Here is the bottom line: MedStands pays a recurring fixed marketing fee of $36 to $260 per active referred customer every month, set by the medication category, and it keeps paying every month that customer stays active. Noom's affiliate program, by contrast, is listed on third-party networks as a one-time CPA that pays once per qualifying action. That difference, recurring monthly versus paid once, is the whole story, so it is worth understanding before you pick where to send your audience.
Both are legitimate ways to earn from referrals. They just pay on completely different timelines, and that changes what a single referral is worth to you over a year.
At a glance
| MedStands | Noom | |
|---|---|---|
| Payment model | Recurring fixed marketing fee by medication category (a flat per-category dollar amount, not a commission or share of sales) | One-time CPA per action (reported) |
| When you are paid | Every month a referred customer stays active | Once, after the qualifying action |
| How much per referral | $36 to $260 per active customer per month, by category | Listed at $160 per GLP-1 (Noom Med) purchase; $10 to $15 per free-trial signup reported by aggregators; the official trial figure is not publicly disclosed |
| How long a referral counts | Tied to you for life (bound to the referrer at signup) | Cookie window not disclosed on network signup pages; aggregators report 30 days (unverified) |
| Cost to join | $0, no setup fee, no monthly fee | Free to join |
| Sign-up requirements | Self-serve, no follower or audience-size minimum, admin review | Apply through the network or the official media-partner page |
| Referral cap | No cap on referrals or earnings | Not stated on network listings |
| Who handles the clinical side | Licensed providers prescribe, licensed pharmacies fulfill; you do no clinical work and hold no inventory | Handled by Noom |
The math: recurring monthly vs one-time
The clearest way to see the structural difference is to follow a single referred customer through one year.
Under a one-time CPA, you are paid once when the action qualifies, and then that referral is closed out. Using Noom's publicly reported figure, that is listed at $160 for a GLP-1 (Noom Med) purchase after the referred visitor completes the form. Whether the customer stays for one month or twelve, the network listing describes a single payout. That is a normal and clean model, and for high-volume traffic it can add up quickly.
Under the MedStands recurring model, the same active customer is paid on again every month. The fixed marketing fee runs from $36 to $260 per active customer per month depending on the medication category. So a referral who stays active is counted month after month, not just at signup. Over a year, one steady referral in a higher category can be paid on repeatedly rather than once.
Here is the honest part. MedStands does not promise a guaranteed total. Your actual earnings depend on the medication category involved and on how many referred people qualify with a licensed provider and stay active on the platform. Not everyone qualifies, and people can stop. The $36 to $260 range is the per-customer monthly fee schedule, not a promise of what you will make. The point is structural: a one-time CPA pays for the moment of conversion, while a recurring monthly fee pays for the duration of the relationship. If your audience tends to start GLP-1 treatment and stay on it, recurring rewards that behavior in a way a single CPA cannot.
For a deeper walk-through of how recurring referral income compounds over time, see How to Earn Recurring Income Referring Businesses to Telehealth.
Attribution: bound for life vs an undisclosed window
The second real difference is how long a referral stays yours.
With MedStands, a referred customer or business is bound to you for life. The link is stored on the account at signup, not held in a browser cookie that expires. If someone scans your QR code or uses your personal link, then comes back weeks later to sign up, you are still the referrer. There is no window to miss.
Noom's cookie window is not disclosed on the network signup pages. Some aggregators report a 30-day cookie, but that figure is unverified and does not come from a Noom-official affiliate terms page, so treat it as a listing rather than a confirmed term. With any cookie-based model, attribution generally depends on the visitor converting inside that window on the same device and browser, and cookies can be cleared. Lifetime binding removes that timing pressure entirely.
If attribution mechanics matter to you, How Telehealth Referral Attribution Works (Lifetime Tracking) explains the account-level approach in more detail.
Cost, requirements, and what you actually do
Both programs are free to join, so cost is not a differentiator at the door. The requirements and the day-one experience differ.
MedStands is self-serve. You sign up, and your QR code and personal link are live the same day, with an admin reviewing the account. There is no follower count or audience-size minimum, so you do not need to qualify as a large creator to start. You get paid, and you never pay: no setup fee, no monthly fee, nothing to buy. There is no cap on referrals or earnings.
Payouts run monthly to your bank through Stripe Connect, with a US$25 minimum. If your balance is under $25 in a given month, it rolls to the next month rather than being lost.
You also do no clinical work. MedStands is not a medical practice and does not prescribe. Licensed providers handle prescribing, and licensed pharmacies handle fulfillment, refills, and shipping on a LegitScript-certified platform. You hold no inventory, and every request is reviewed by a licensed provider, so not everyone qualifies. Your job is the referral; the medical side is handled by licensed professionals.
One structural note specific to MedStands: affiliates can both sell directly on their own link and refer businesses, and a referred business still earns its own fee in full. Nobody earns less because you referred them.
A note on Noom's member referral
It helps to separate Noom's two referral paths. The affiliate/creator program above pays external partners through networks like Impact, FlexOffers, and ShareASale/Awin. Noom also runs a separate member-to-member referral. In the US, that member referral gives the friend a two-week trial plus 20% off, while the referring member receives no reward. That is a discount play to bring in a friend, not a third-party payout, so if your goal is earning income, the affiliate program is the relevant one to compare.
Where Noom might be a fit
Noom is an established, well-known brand with a broad wellness and behavior-change following, which can make it an easy name to promote to a general audience. If you drive high volumes of top-of-funnel traffic and prefer a clean one-time payout per action, a CPA model can convert that traffic into predictable per-action revenue. It is also multi-network, so you can join it wherever you already manage affiliate links.
Common questions
Is the MedStands fee a commission or a percentage of sales?
No. It is a fixed marketing fee set by the medication category, a flat per-category dollar amount. It is not a commission, a percentage, or a share of sales or revenue. For more on the distinction, see Is a Telehealth Referral Fee a Commission?.
How is MedStands paid out, and is there a minimum?
Payouts are monthly, sent to your bank through Stripe Connect, with a US$25 minimum. If your balance is below $25 in a given month, it rolls over to the next month.
Do I need a large following to join MedStands?
No. There is no follower or audience-size minimum. Sign-up is self-serve, your QR code and personal link are live the same day, and an admin reviews the account.
What is the real difference between a one-time CPA and a recurring monthly fee?
A one-time CPA pays once when the qualifying action happens. A recurring monthly fee pays every month the referred customer stays active. Same referral, but one is counted once and the other is counted repeatedly for as long as the customer stays on the platform.
Ready to earn a recurring monthly fee for every active customer you send? Start with the MedStands affiliate program and get your QR code and personal link live the same day. If you are weighing the business track instead, Partner vs Affiliate: Which MedStands Program Fits You? breaks down which path fits your situation.
Competitor program terms are as of July 2026 and come from each brand's published affiliate information. Programs change, so check their current terms.