How to Set Up a dYdX Affiliate or Referral Link

dYdX’s affiliate commission isn’t a flat percentage, it climbs from 30% to 50% of your referred users’ taker fees based on a rolling 30-day volume window, and you need to have traded a meaningful amount yourself before the platform gives you a link at all.

This guide is part of TradeOnDEX’s dYdX how-to series within Perpetual Futures.

Disclosure: TradeOnDEX may earn a commission from links to dYdX on this page, at no extra cost to you. Full details at the end of this article. Note: this article covers dYdX’s own native affiliate program, which is separate from TradeOnDEX’s own affiliate relationship with dYdX, discussed elsewhere on this site.

How to get access to an affiliate link

You need to generate at least $10,000 in your own trading volume before gaining access to your unique affiliate link. This requirement exists specifically as a fraud-prevention measure, it’s a deliberate barrier, not an oversight, meant to reduce low-effort or automated affiliate sign-ups.

How the tiered commission structure works

Once you have a link, you earn a share of your referred users’ taker fees, on a sliding scale based on the total trading volume you’ve referred over a trailing 30-day period:

• Up to $1 million in referred volume: 30% commission
• Between $1 million and $10 million: 40% commission
• Above $10 million: 50% commission

This means for you, concretely: your commission rate isn’t fixed once you start, it adjusts continuously based on your trailing 30-day referred volume, so a strong month can push you into a higher tier, and a quieter one can drop you back down.

Other structural details worth knowing

Commissions are paid in real time, credited every second, in USDC, following a lifetime commission model, you continue earning as long as your referred users keep trading, without a fixed expiration on the relationship. There’s also a $10,000 earnings cap per individual referred user within any 30-day period.

How to set up your link, step by step

1. Build up your own trading volume on dYdX to the $10,000 threshold.
2. Access the affiliate program section of the dYdX interface once eligible.
3. Generate your unique affiliate link.
4. Share your link, commissions begin accruing automatically as your referred users trade, without needing further action from you per trade.

Risk: what to understand about this program’s actual mechanics

Your commission tier depends on trailing referred volume, which can move in both directions. Don’t assume a tier you’ve reached is permanent, a slowdown in your referred users’ trading activity over a rolling 30-day window can drop your rate back to a lower tier just as an increase can raise it.

The $10,000-per-user earnings cap limits how much you can earn from any single very active referred trader within a 30-day window. This matters if your referral strategy leans on a small number of very high-volume traders rather than a broader base, the cap applies per user, per period, regardless of how much volume that individual generates.

Commission percentages and program structure are set by dYdX and can change. As with staking-fee discounts and MegaVault’s fee-revenue share covered elsewhere in this series, this program has already been revised upward from an earlier lower baseline. Treat current tier percentages as the present structure, not a permanent guarantee.

dYdX’s own affiliate program is distinct from TradeOnDEX’s affiliate relationship with dYdX. Don’t conflate the two, this article explains dYdX’s native referral system for any user who wants to refer others directly, separate from how TradeOnDEX itself may earn a commission from readers who use links on this site.

Commission tiers at a glance

See it for yourself

If you’re planning to refer others to dYdX, track your own trailing 30-day referred volume periodically so your expected commission tier doesn’t come as a surprise, the sliding scale moves with recent activity, not a one-time qualification. You can review current affiliate program terms at dydx.trade.

Frequently asked questions

Do I need to trade a certain amount before I can get an affiliate link?

Yes, you need at least $10,000 in your own trading volume first, a deliberate anti-fraud measure rather than an arbitrary hurdle.

Is the affiliate commission a flat percentage?

No, it’s a sliding scale from 30% to 50%, based on your trailing 30-day referred trading volume, and can move up or down as that volume changes.

Is there a limit to how much I can earn from one referred trader?

Yes, there’s a $10,000 earnings cap per individual referred user within any 30-day period, regardless of how much volume that trader generates.

Is this the same as TradeOnDEX’s own affiliate relationship with dYdX?

No, this article covers dYdX’s own native affiliate program available to any user; it’s separate from how TradeOnDEX itself may earn a commission through links on this site.

Affiliate disclosure

TradeOnDEX may earn a commission if you sign up or trade through a link on this page, at no extra cost to you. dYdX’s own affiliate/referral terms are still being confirmed for this site, so links here are direct and untracked for now. This article is educational and is not financial advice. See our disclaimer for the full risk warning.