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Verify Tracking

Validate referral capture and conversion attribution before launch

Table of Contents

Verify Tracking

Use this checklist before launch.

1. Validate Referral Capture

  1. Open your site with ?via=TEST_TOKEN
  2. Confirm a call to /api/track succeeds
  3. Confirm window.AffiliateBase.referral is populated

2. Validate Checkout Attribution

Start a Stripe checkout and confirm client_reference_id is set to the generated AffiliateBase referral ID.

  • Payment Link: inspect the link after a referred visit and confirm client_reference_id was appended.
  • Buy Button or Pricing Table: inspect the Stripe element and confirm client-reference-id is set from the referral value.
  • Backend-created Checkout Session: confirm your server receives referral_id, sets client_reference_id, and mirrors the same value into affiliatebase_referral_id metadata.

If Stripe shows a client_reference_id beginning with ref_ or setup_, your checkout is sending the public affiliate link token instead of the generated referral ID.

3. Validate Conversion Creation

First check the mode shown beside your Stripe connection.

  • Connected — Test mode: complete a Stripe test purchase.
  • Connected — Live mode: test payments will be recorded as test activity but will not create live AffiliateBase sales or commissions. Verify the referral handoff and webhook delivery, or use an appropriate live payment when you are ready to validate the full conversion path.

For a same-mode payment, verify data appears in merchant dashboards:

  • Referrals
  • Sales
  • Commissions

4. Validate Affiliate Visibility

Log in as an affiliate (or impersonate) and confirm referral/commission visibility in the affiliate portal.

Troubleshooting

Use:

Next steps