Beyond the Last Click: What the Honey ‘Cull’ Means for Affiliate Marketing in 2026

Affiliate marketing has never really remained stagnant, which is clear in the recent move by several major networks who’re ditching PayPal’s browser extension Honey. It’s not your usual tech update, but an acceleration of a shift we’ve seen coming for a long time. The industry is finally having a real conversation around attribution and where the money is really going. 

To an outsider, it probably looked like a random argument over a browser extension. But inside the affiliate channel? It’s a correction. We’re moving away from a place where you get paid just for being there at the end, and towards a model that actually demands some level of influence.  

Why we stopped mistaking proximity for persuasion

Honey’s main business model was all about showing up at checkout and finding an automatic coupon just as the customer was about to pay. For the shopper, it’s great. For the brand, it’s an operational headache.  

When a tool pops up at the very final stage of a transaction, you have to ask: Did this partner actually drive the sale, or did they claim a commission on a customer who was already hitting ‘buy’? As margins get tighter, that last-click win isn’t the silver bullet it used to be. The removal of Honey was less of an attack on technology and more of a blunt review of what incremental value actually means in 2026.  

How Affiliate networks are finally enforcing real transparency

The recent decision by major networks, (including Rakuten, AWIN, and Impact) to suspend Honey isn’t only a tech update, it’s a landmark enforcement of industry standards. For years, the conversation around browser extensions was theoretical. In 2026, it became a matter of fundamental compliance as networks acted on findings regarding violations and attribution manipulation.  

By tightening these policies, networks aren’t trying to kill off discount-led publishers or tech partners, they’re just updating the rules. It’s about making sure that a partner’s payout actually matches their role in the journey, and not just their ability to show up at the finish line. In that sense, the Honey debate wasn’t a big shake-up, it was a long-overdue bit of housekeeping.  

The danger of managing your affiliate program on autopilot

If you’re an advertiser, the lesson isn’t that browser extensions are bad, as plenty of them are great for conversion, but the real takeaway is that letting your program run on autopilot is now a massive risk.  

We saw this coming last year and began auditing our client programs to address bottom-of-the-funnel bloat. It meant we had to have some uncomfortable conversations about partner weighting and attribution rules. Still, it ensured our programs were actually balanced across all funnel stages and not just clustered at the checkout. The recent industry headlines didn’t change our strategy, they just proved we were right to start early. 

Growth means letting go of the “easy wins”

From the early days of voucher sites to cashback and now AI tools, this channel has always had to fight to prove its worth. Every few years, we have this same argument about value, and every time, the industry comes out a bit more disciplined.  

The Honey situation is a recent example of this change. It shows a channel that is finally ready to cut out the waste to maintain the trust of the brands financing it. 

Our final thoughts 

The changes coming in 2026 will bring an end to the “set and forget” approach for UK brands. From now on, the most successful brands will be those that care about the quality of their influence, not just the number of sales they make. As an agency, we believe that every commission should come from real brand advocacy, not just from being the quickest to appear at checkout.  

The “Honey situation” is not a setback for the industry; it is a much-needed step toward greater transparency. This change helps keep affiliate marketing true to its purpose as the most accountable and value-driven part of your marketing strategy. 

For more information on how we can help you when it comes to all things affiliates, get in touch with the team today.