Most finance creators promoting Public.com earn between $50 and $75 per funded account through the standard affiliate portal. The rate available through platforms with negotiated volume agreements with Public.com sits above that range. The difference is not small, and it is not advertised. Most creators applying direct never find out the higher rate exists because Public.com does not list it anywhere publicly.
This article covers what the program pays, who gets approved, and the two paths to access it.
What Is the Public.com Affiliate Program?
Public.com is a multi-asset brokerage. Stocks, ETFs, bonds, crypto, alternatives. One platform, one login. The affiliate program pays a flat CPA per funded account. Not per signup. The viewer has to deposit money before the commission fires.
The conversion trigger is a funded account, not just a signup. A viewer has to deposit money before the commission fires. That is a stricter conversion event than some brokerage programs, which pay on account open alone. Stricter conversion events typically come with higher CPAs, and Public.com's rates reflect that tradeoff.
Public.com runs its affiliate program through direct creator partnerships. It is not on CJ Affiliate or Impact. If you are looking for it in a marketplace, it is not there. To access it, you either pitch their partnerships team directly or go through a platform they already work with.
How Much Does Public.com Pay?
The standard CPA for finance creators applying directly to Public.com typically falls between $50 and $75 per funded account. That rate is not fixed. Traffic volume and audience quality affect where you land, and so do the specific terms you negotiate.
Cookie window is 30 days. A viewer can click your link, take two weeks to decide, fund the account, and the commission still counts, as long as they deposited within that window.
The income math looks reasonable for investing-focused channels. A channel with 150,000 to 250,000 subscribers covering stock market content can realistically expect 30 to 80 funded accounts per strong video placement, depending on how the CTA is built and how well the content matches the audience. At $60 average CPA, that is $1,800 to $4,800 per placement, with the high end on months that include a dedicated review video.
Creators who access Public.com through Money Matchup receive a CPA above the standard floor. Money Matchup has negotiated volume tiers with Public.com that individual creators cannot access by applying alone. The negotiated rate is not published, but the gap between the standard portal rate and what MM creators earn is consistent enough that creators who switch report an immediate improvement in per-conversion earnings. One creator with 800,000 subscribers, after reviewing their existing Public.com rate when joining MM, said: "I'm currently on a lower payout with them so I can switch that link immediately."
Who Qualifies for the Public.com Affiliate Program?
Public.com looks for finance creators with audiences that actively invest or are building toward investing. The content requirements are specific enough that general lifestyle or business creators without a clear investing angle typically do not get approved.
For direct applications, Public.com wants finance creators with audiences actively investing or building toward it. Stock market, personal finance, wealth building. Those are the content categories that qualify. Budgeting or frugality channels can get approved if the audience has a clear investing angle, but adjacent niches without it usually do not.
On subscriber count, there is no published minimum. In practice, most creators approved direct have at least 25,000 YouTube subscribers. Smaller channels with strong engagement in a tight investing niche sometimes clear the bar, but approval rates drop off fast below that range.
US audience is a requirement. Channels where most viewers are outside the US rarely produce the conversion volume Public.com needs to justify the relationship. Channels promoting guaranteed returns or unregistered investment advice are not approved.
Direct applications take two to four weeks. Rejections come with no explanation. If your numbers are not there yet, you start over and reapply. No feedback on what to fix.
Applications through Money Matchup work differently. MM reviews based on audience fit and engagement quality, not just subscriber count. Most creators who apply get a decision within 48 hours. Creators who are approved get access to Public.com and other investing platform offers through a single dashboard, without submitting separate applications to each program.
How to Apply to Public.com
There are two paths.
Direct application:
- Find Public.com's partner or creator inquiry contact. There is no public landing page for their affiliate program. You will typically need to reach out through their general contact or find a direct email for their partnerships team.
- Submit your channel URL, subscriber count, monthly views, and content examples that show your audience's interest in investing.
- Wait two to four weeks for review. If they are not taking on new creators at your tier, you may receive no response at all.
- If approved, you receive a tracked link at the standard rate floor.
Through Money Matchup:
- Apply at www.moneymatchup.com. The application takes a few minutes and covers your channel, audience size, and what kinds of products you promote.
- MM reviews your application within 48 hours.
- If approved, you get access to Public.com and other programs at negotiated rates, all managed through one dashboard. A dedicated agent helps match you with the offers that fit your content best.
For creators already promoting Public.com at the standard rate, the comparison is worth making before assuming you are on the best available terms.
Tips to Maximize Your Public.com Earnings
The program converts well for the right audience. Here is what actually moves the numbers.
Build a dedicated review video. A well-optimized "Public.com review" video ranks in search for months or years and attracts viewers who are actively evaluating whether to open an account. That is the highest-intent traffic you can target with an investing affiliate link. The conversion rate on a dedicated review video outperforms a mid-roll mention in an unrelated video by a wide margin.
Place your CTA mid-roll, not in the intro. Viewers who are still watching at the middle of a finance video have decided to trust you. That is when they are ready to act on a recommendation. A mention in the first 60 seconds of a video is heard before any trust has been established and converts at a fraction of the rate of a mid-roll placement.
Write description copy, not just a link. Your affiliate link sitting alone in the description with a bare URL does not convert. Two or three lines of context above the link, explaining what Public.com is and why you use it, dramatically increase click-through from people who scroll the description before clicking.
Pin a comment with your link. A pinned comment with your affiliate link and a short recommendation creates a second click path for viewers who scroll comments before deciding to act. This takes about 30 seconds per video and adds a placement that many creators skip entirely.
Match your framing to your audience's investing stage. Public.com appeals to investors who want multiple asset classes in one place. If your audience is new to investing, position it as the account to open when they are ready to go beyond a basic brokerage. If they already invest, the pitch is consolidation. Stocks, bonds, and alternatives in one account, fewer logins, same exposure.
Revisit older high-performing videos. If you have videos ranking well for investing-related queries, update the description with your current Public.com link. A video that has been pulling steady views for two years is passive traffic you may be leaving without a conversion path. It takes 10 minutes to update and pays for itself the first week.