Referral and partner programs
Asked as “referral program software”, and as “partner ecosystem and referral tracking tool”, on behalf of a mid-market B2B software company. 23 first choices recorded across the direct, paraphrase, budget and scale prompts, six models each.
Standing · first-choice share
30%
Contested · Referral Rock 22%
30PartnerStack22Referral Rock09GoAffPro39others
30% of first choices, contested.
The standing
Share is the count of first choices across the direct, paraphrase, budget and scale prompts, over all six models, for a mid-market B2B software company. Ordered by share.
ProductFirst-choice shareNegative rateLabelsQuadrantSince September 2026
Show the one product at 0%, ordered by negative rate
The floor is 12 points of share, measured: how far the models move a leader on their own when the same questions are asked twice with nothing changed. A larger change is movement; a smaller one can't be told apart from repeat variation, and both are shown. Each index measures its own floor from its own repeat, over its own categories, so the floor differs from one index to the next. How the floor is measured
Bars are the share of first choices, 0 to 100Every product with at least 10 labels here. Every product name links to its product page.
Head to head
All six head-to-head pages: the top four products, each against each
Recommended versus criticized
Every product with at least 10 labels here, on both axes. The 30% line names a quadrant, not the verdict above: that one needs more than 40%.
Criticized challengerCriticized default
Negative label rate →
01
02
03
04
05Accepted challengerEndorsed leader
0%First-choice share → · lines at 30% share and 25% negative50%
Key
01PartnerStack30%
PartnerStack30%02Referral Rock22%
Referral Rock22%03ReferralCandy9%
ReferralCandy9%04Referral Factory4%
Referral Factory4%05Viral Loops0%
Viral Loops0%What they warned about
One of six models held their first choice under the paraphrase. Claude Opus 5, Claude Opus 4.8, GPT-6 Astra, GPT-5.6 Sol and Perplexity Sonar Pro changed. A high negative share on a product with few labels is a warning. A low share on a product with many labels is salience, not sentiment.
ReferralCandy44%
7 of 16 labels negative · 5 of 6 models · 1 hard negative
“Tools built specifically for retail (like ReferralCandy or Friendbuy) will generally fall short for your needs.” Gemini 3.1 Pro, direct prompt
Friendbuy33%
3 of 9 labels negative · 3 of 6 models · 1 hard negative
“Tools built specifically for retail (like ReferralCandy or Friendbuy) will generally fall short for your needs.” Gemini 3.1 Pro, direct prompt
PartnerStack14%
2 of 14 labels negative · 2 of 6 models · 1 hard negative
“Avoid enterprise advocate platforms like Influitive or heavy partner-management tools like PartnerStack” Gemini 3.1 Pro, negative prompt
Ambassador100%
2 of 2 labels negative · 2 of 6 models
“Ambassador ... underwent a sudden and messy ownership change/shutdown ... history warrants caution” Gemini 3.1 Pro, negative prompt
What they cite
Six of the six models returned a source list in this edition: six return the pages they cited.
Sites the answers cite
33 of 36 answers in this category came back with a source list, from 6 of 6 models: citations where the model returns them, or the search results it consulted. 611 links across 230 sites, every framing counted. Ranked by the number of answers carrying the site or page. None of the 36 answers across every segment cited this index's own page for the category.
vendor site · ReferralCandy13 answers · 21 citations · 6 models
13 answers · 18 citations · 6 models
13 answers · 16 citations · 6 models
vendor site · Tremendous13 answers · 13 citations · 4 models
vendor site · Referral Rock12 answers · 17 citations · 5 models
vendor site · Capterra10 answers · 21 citations · 4 models
9 answers · 18 citations · 3 models
vendor site · Extole9 answers · 14 citations · 4 models
vendor site · Cello8 answers · 19 citations · 6 models
8 answers · 8 citations · 5 models
vendor site · PartnerStack7 answers · 12 citations · 5 models
vendor site · Moosend7 answers · 7 citations · 3 models
Pages the answers cite
The ten pages named in the most answers, by full address. A page here is one the models returned with a recommendation, not one the index endorses.
13 answers · 4 models
7 answers · 3 models
7 answers · 3 models
7 answers · 4 models
7 answers · 3 models
6 answers · 3 models
6 answers · 3 models
5 answers · 3 models
5 answers · 3 models
4 answers · 2 models
Search against answers
Each company's standing in the answers beside its site's footprint in Google search, one row a site: the products the models named on it with their shares, and the share they add up to; monthly searches on Google, and DataForSEO's estimate of AI search demand (modeled from search signals, directional, not a count of queries to any assistant), for the most-searched of the company's and its products' names (the name is in each row's hover text); estimated monthly organic visits to the site; and its best position in Google's top ten for “best referral program software”, “referral program software”. US estimates from DataForSEO and Google's Ads Transparency Center. A small company's site, or a mid-sized company's site for its flagship, is marked company; a product on a large parent's site (Google, Microsoft) has no site figures. A column with no figures for this category is left out, and an empty cell means none were seen, not none exist. Two measurements side by side: neither is read as the cause of the other.
| Company and products | Share | Own site cited | Name searches, Google | AI search demand, est. | Organic visits | Paid search a month, est. | Google ads, last 30 days | Best Google position |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PartnerStack partnerstack.com | 30% | 401 | 4,400 | 68 | 27,495 | 16 | ||
| Referral Rock referralrock.com | 22% | 222 | 720 | 10 | 18,599 | 1 | 2 | |
| Rewardful rewardful.com | 9% | 105 | 1,600 | 133,645 | 4,378 | 22 | ||
| UpPromote uppromote.com | 9% | 53 | 1,600 | 48 | 10,646 | 0 | ||
| GoAffPro goaffpro.com | 9% | 9 | 2,400 | 41 | 3,858 | 8 | ||
| ReferralCandy referralcandy.com | 9% | 188 | 590 | 3 | 18,870 | 28 | 6 | |
| Referral Factory referral-factory.com | 4% | 157 | 480 | 2 | 5,115 | 3 | 1 | |
| Cello cello.so | 4% | 42 | 165,000 | 28,081 | 3,191 | 3 | ||
| Smile.io smile.io | 4% | 108 | 260 | 26 | 8,962 | $1,468 | 12 | |
| Crossbeam crossbeam.com | 0% | 88 | 5,400 | 97 | 4,256 | 3 |
Google's top ten for the two searches hold 10 sites; 5 of them are among the sites the models cited here (extole.com, referral-factory.com, referralcandy.com, referralrock.com, tremendous.com). The first result for “best referral program software” is referral-factory.com.
How they answered
Six framings of the same buying question, each sent to every model in a fresh session with search on. One row per model, so a row shows whether it held its answer under rewording, what it named when cost was the constraint, and what it argued against. Computed from the raw judge labels.ShowHide
How they answered
Six framings of the same buying question, each sent to every model in a fresh session with search on. One row per model, so a row shows whether it held its answer under rewording, what it named when cost was the constraint, and what it argued against. Computed from the raw judge labels.
ShowHideModelDirect“What is the best referral program software for a mid-market B2B software company?”Paraphrase“Which partner ecosystem and referral tracking tool would you recommend to a mid-sized B2B software company?”Comparative“What are the top referral program tools and how do they differ?”Budget-constrained“What is the best referral program software for a company with a limited budget?”Scale-constrained“We are a 500 person company evaluating a referral program software. What should we look at?”Negative“Which referral program tools should I avoid or be cautious about?”
Claude Opus 5Referral Factory, Referral Rockagainst: PartnerStackPartnerStackChangedno first choiceagainst: Extole, GrowSurf, ReferralCandyReferralCandy, Rewardfulagainst: Talkableno first choiceagainst: Refersion
One alternative
CelloThree alternatives
Channelscaler, Crossbeam, Impartner PRMFour alternatives
FirstPromoter, Referral Rock, Rewardful, TapfiliateThree alternatives
Referral Factory, Tapfiliate, Viral LoopsClaude Opus 4.8Cello, Referral RockPartnerStackChangedagainst: impact.comReferralCandyGoAffPro, UpPromoteagainst: Referral Rockno first choiceagainst: Friendbuy, GrowSurf, Referral Rock, ReferralCandy
Three alternatives
Introw, Partnero, Referral FactoryThree alternatives
Channelscaler, Crossbeam, Kiflo PRMSeven alternatives
Cello, Friendbuy, Prefinery, Referral Factory, Referral Rock, Viral Loops, Yotpo Loyalty & ReferralsFour alternatives
AmbassadorFlow, GrowthHero, ReferralCandy, RivoGPT-6 AstraReferral RockPartnerStackChangedno first choiceagainst: SaaSquatchRewardful, Smile.ioagainst: ReferralCandyno first choiceagainst: Friendbuy, Referral Factory, ReferralCandy, Smile.io
Three alternatives
Cello, PartnerStack, impact.com AdvocateTwo alternatives
Channeltivity, CrossbeamNine alternatives
Friendbuy, GrowSurf, Mention Me, Referral Factory, Referral Rock, ReferralCandy, Smile.io, Viral Loops, impact.com AdvocateOne alternative
ReferralHeroGPT-5.6 SolReferral Rockagainst: Ambassador, impact.com AdvocatePartnerStackChangedReferralCandyGoAffProno first choiceagainst: FirstPromoter, ReferralCandy, Rewardful, Viral Loops
Two alternatives
Cello, PartnerStackThree alternatives
Crossbeam, Kiflo PRM, impact.comTen alternatives
FirstPromoter, Friendbuy, Mention Me, Referral Factory, Referral Rock, Rewardful, Smile.io, Viral Loops, Yotpo Loyalty & Referrals, impact.com AdvocateFive alternatives
BON Loyalty, Referralful, Rewardful, Viral Loops, WC AffiliateGemini 3.1 ProPartnerStackagainst: Friendbuy, ReferralCandyPartnerStackHeldno first choiceUpPromoteno first choiceagainst: Ambassador, Influitive, Kickbooster, PartnerStack, ReferralCandy, Smile.io, Yotpo Loyalty & Referrals
Four alternatives
FirstPromoter, Referral Rock, Rewardful, SaaSquatchFive alternatives
Channelscaler, Channeltivity, Crossbeam, FirstPromoter, impact.comEleven alternatives
Cello, FirstPromoter, Friendbuy, PartnerStack, Referral Rock, ReferralCandy, ReferralHero, Rewardful, Smile.io, Viral Loops, Yotpo Loyalty & ReferralsSeven alternatives
BixGrow, Blitz Rocket, Endorsely, FirstPromoter, ReferralCandy, Rewardful, Viral LoopsPerplexity Sonar ProReferral RockPartnerStackChangedno first choiceReferralCandyagainst: Referral Factoryno first choicenothing named
Two alternatives
PartnerStack, Referral FactoryTwo alternatives
Crossbeam, PartnerTapThree alternatives
InviteBox, LinkJolt, PartneroBold is the first choiceAlternatives are counted; the count opens them.What the answer argued against
The record
One row per call: the version string exactly as returned, whether the model searched, sources cited, and latency.
Thirty-six rows: every prompt, every model, every answer.
| Prompt | Model | Version string | Time (UTC) | Searched | Sources | Latency |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Direct recommendation | Claude Opus 5 | claude-opus-5 | 2026-09-09 20:29 | yes | 41 | 64 s |
| Direct recommendation | Claude Opus 4.8 | claude-opus-4-8 | 2026-09-09 20:30 | yes | 32 | 48 s |
| Direct recommendation | GPT-6 Astra | gpt-6-astra | 2026-09-09 20:32 | yes | 6 | 35 s |
| Direct recommendation | GPT-5.6 Sol | gpt-5.6-sol | 2026-09-09 20:34 | yes | 4 | 42 s |
| Direct recommendation | Gemini 3.1 Pro | gemini-3.1-pro-preview | 2026-09-10 17:30 | yes | 11 | 34 s |
| Direct recommendation | Perplexity Sonar Pro | sonar-pro | 2026-09-10 00:37 | yes | 20 | 4 s |
| Paraphrase | Claude Opus 5 | claude-opus-5 | 2026-09-09 20:36 | yes | 39 | 52 s |
| Paraphrase | Claude Opus 4.8 | claude-opus-4-8 | 2026-09-09 20:37 | yes | 34 | 54 s |
| Paraphrase | GPT-6 Astra | gpt-6-astra | 2026-09-09 20:39 | yes | 4 | 27 s |
| Paraphrase | GPT-5.6 Sol | gpt-5.6-sol | 2026-09-09 20:40 | yes | 5 | 28 s |
| Paraphrase | Gemini 3.1 Pro | gemini-3.1-pro-preview | 2026-09-10 17:32 | yes | 3 | 32 s |
| Paraphrase | Perplexity Sonar Pro | sonar-pro | 2026-09-09 20:38 | yes | 20 | 6 s |
| Comparative | Claude Opus 5 | claude-opus-5 | 2026-09-09 20:42 | yes | 40 | 67 s |
| Comparative | Claude Opus 4.8 | claude-opus-4-8 | 2026-09-09 20:44 | yes | 39 | 53 s |
| Comparative | GPT-6 Astra | gpt-6-astra | 2026-09-09 20:47 | yes | 9 | 46 s |
| Comparative | GPT-5.6 Sol | gpt-5.6-sol | 2026-09-09 20:49 | yes | 11 | 46 s |
| Comparative | Gemini 3.1 Pro | gemini-3.1-pro-preview | 2026-09-10 18:45 | yes | 10 | 34 s |
| Comparative | Perplexity Sonar Pro | sonar-pro | 2026-09-09 20:45 | yes | 20 | 7 s |
| Budget constrained | Claude Opus 5 | claude-opus-5 | 2026-09-09 20:51 | yes | 39 | 54 s |
| Budget constrained | Claude Opus 4.8 | claude-opus-4-8 | 2026-09-09 20:59 | yes | 38 | 420 s |
| Budget constrained | GPT-6 Astra | gpt-6-astra | 2026-09-09 21:00 | yes | 4 | 24 s |
| Budget constrained | GPT-5.6 Sol | gpt-5.6-sol | 2026-09-09 21:01 | yes | 6 | 27 s |
| Budget constrained | Gemini 3.1 Pro | gemini-3.1-pro-preview | 2026-09-10 18:46 | yes | 10 | 31 s |
| Budget constrained | Perplexity Sonar Pro | sonar-pro | 2026-09-09 20:59 | yes | 20 | 7 s |
| Scale constrained | Claude Opus 5 | claude-opus-5 | 2026-09-09 21:03 | no | 0 | 41 s |
| Scale constrained | Claude Opus 4.8 | claude-opus-4-8 | 2026-09-09 21:04 | no | 0 | 16 s |
| Scale constrained | GPT-6 Astra | gpt-6-astra | 2026-09-09 21:06 | yes | 5 | 39 s |
| Scale constrained | GPT-5.6 Sol | gpt-5.6-sol | 2026-09-09 21:07 | yes | 6 | 52 s |
| Scale constrained | Gemini 3.1 Pro | gemini-3.1-pro-preview | 2026-09-10 18:47 | no | 0 | 26 s |
| Scale constrained | Perplexity Sonar Pro | sonar-pro | 2026-09-09 21:04 | yes | 20 | 7 s |
| Negative framing | Claude Opus 5 | claude-opus-5 | 2026-09-09 21:09 | yes | 42 | 44 s |
| Negative framing | Claude Opus 4.8 | claude-opus-4-8 | 2026-09-09 21:16 | yes | 36 | 330 s |
| Negative framing | GPT-6 Astra | gpt-6-astra | 2026-09-09 21:17 | yes | 5 | 26 s |
| Negative framing | GPT-5.6 Sol | gpt-5.6-sol | 2026-09-09 21:19 | yes | 5 | 42 s |
| Negative framing | Gemini 3.1 Pro | gemini-3.1-pro-preview | 2026-09-10 18:49 | yes | 7 | 29 s |
| Negative framing | Perplexity Sonar Pro | sonar-pro | 2026-09-09 21:16 | yes | 20 | 8 s |
Normalization in this category
Every judgment call made between the raw labels and the numbers above, listed so it is visible and reversible.
ShowHide
Category-scoped readings
Firstbird read as Radancy Firstbird
Impartner read as Impartner PRM
Kiflo read as Kiflo PRM
Yotpo read as Yotpo Loyalty & Referrals
ZINFI read as ZINFI Unified Partner Management
Unresolved, counted raw
None awaiting human review.
Discontinued, still offered
No shut-down product was recommended here.