If you are choosing between these two referral options, the payment structure is the whole decision. 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. Teladoc's affiliate page advertises only "competitive commissions" with no published dollar figure, and its structure is reported by third-party directories as a one-time payment per referral. One model pays on the same retained customer again and again; the other, as far as anyone can verify publicly, pays around the signup and does not disclose how much.
There are two caveats up front. First, Teladoc is a broad, general telehealth brand, not a GLP-1-specific program, so this is a model-level comparison rather than a category-for-category one. Second, almost every specific about Teladoc's affiliate program comes from aggregators and generic directory boilerplate rather than a brand-confirmed page, so we hedge those details and avoid attaching any number to them. Here is the factual side by side.
At a glance
| MedStands | Teladoc | |
|---|---|---|
| Payment model | Recurring fixed marketing fee by medication category (a flat per-category dollar amount, not a commission, percentage, or share of sales) | Affiliate page reports a one-time payment per referral (CPA/CPL); a separate customer refer-a-friend credit also exists. Broad telehealth, not GLP-1-specific |
| When you are paid | Every month a referral stays active | Not disclosed for the affiliate program; the separate customer refer-a-friend credit pays once after a valid referral |
| How much per referral | $36 to $260 per active customer per month, by category | Not publicly disclosed. The affiliate page states only "competitive commissions" with no figures; aggregator numbers conflict and are not brand-confirmed |
| Attribution window | Tied to you for life, stored on the account at signup | Not disclosed |
| Cost to join | $0, free to join, no setup or monthly fee | Listed as free to join with easy sign-up, per the affiliate page's boilerplate |
| Sign-up requirements | Self-serve, live the same day, admin review, no follower or audience minimum | "No technical knowledge" required per the affiliate page; no specific eligibility criteria stated |
| Referral cap | No cap on referrals or earnings | Not disclosed for the affiliate program; the separate customer credit is capped at a yearly maximum |
| Who handles the clinical side | Licensed providers prescribe; licensed pharmacies fulfill, refill, and ship (LegitScript-certified platform) | Broad telehealth company running its own clinical operations; not part of the affiliate terms |
A note on the Teladoc details. The affiliate program appears at a page (teladoconline.com/affiliates) that we could not confirm is an official Teladoc Health property versus a reseller or agent-oriented site, and its specifics read as generic directory boilerplate. Floating figures such as "15% per sale" or "about $25 per sale" turn up in aggregator and AI-generated summaries, but they conflict with one another and are not corroborated by the brand, so we do not treat any of them as fact. The one Teladoc item that is brand-confirmed is a separate customer refer-a-friend credit, powered by Extole, that gives an existing customer a $20 Amazon gift card per valid referral up to a yearly cap. That is a customer loyalty credit, not an affiliate or partner earning program, and the two should not be confused. Teladoc Health's "Connected Care Partners" is likewise a B2B enterprise and health-plan partnership, not a commission affiliate program.
The math: recurring monthly vs one-time
The clearest way to see the difference is to follow one referred customer across a year.
A one-time payout, which is how Teladoc's affiliate structure is reported to work, credits you once, around the point the referral signs up. After that, the same customer does not pay you again, however long they stay. Because Teladoc does not publish an amount, we are comparing the shape of the payment, not a specific figure, and we are deliberately not putting a dollar number on their side.
MedStands pays the opposite way. The fee is a fixed dollar amount set by the medication category, between $36 and $260, and it lands in your bank every month that referred customer stays active. Refer one person who stays on treatment, and that same referral is paid on again the next month, and the month after that. Over a full year, a one-time model pays on that customer once, while the recurring model can pay on the same active customer up to twelve times. The longer someone stays, the wider the gap grows.
Be clear-eyed about what that range is and is not. It is a per-customer monthly fee schedule by category, not a promise of a total. Your actual MedStands earnings depend on which category applies and on how many referred people qualify and stay active, and every request is reviewed by a licensed provider, so not everyone qualifies. What the recurring structure changes is direction: retention works for you month after month instead of a single event at signup. For a plain-language look at what recurring referral income can and cannot add up to, see How Much Can You Earn Referring Businesses to Telehealth?.
Attribution: lifetime binding vs a cookie
Attribution decides whether a referral still counts to you weeks or months later. With MedStands, a referred customer or business is bound to you for life. The link is stored on the account at signup, not in a browser cookie that expires, so it does not lapse if the person clears cookies, switches devices, or returns later. You keep earning the monthly fee for as long as that customer stays active.
Teladoc does not publicly disclose an attribution or cookie window for its affiliate program, so we will not present one as fact. Most affiliate programs rely on a browser cookie of some length, and any cookie-based window is a fundamentally different mechanism from an attribution stored on the account that never expires. For a category where people often research for weeks before starting, account-level binding removes the clock entirely. If you want the mechanics of how that works, see How Telehealth Referral Attribution Works (Lifetime Tracking).
Cost, sign-up, and who does the clinical work
MedStands is free to join. There is no setup fee, no monthly fee, and nothing to buy. You get paid, you never pay. Sign-up is self-serve, your QR code and personal link are ready the same day you sign up, and an admin reviews the account. There is no follower or audience-size minimum, and there is no cap on referrals or earnings. Payouts go to your bank monthly via Stripe Connect. Teladoc's affiliate page similarly lists itself as free to join with an easy sign-up and "no technical knowledge" required, but it states no specific eligibility criteria, so beyond "free and easy" there is little confirmed detail to compare.
MedStands also runs two tracks. Businesses can join the partner program and individuals can join the MedStands affiliate program, and both are paid the same recurring monthly fee for the life of each active customer. An affiliate can sell directly on their own link and refer businesses, and a referred business still earns its own fee in full, so nobody earns less because you referred them. If you want to see how the model is applied in a specific field, from clinics to gyms to med spas, browse partner programs by industry, and if you are weighing the two tracks, read Partner vs Affiliate: Which MedStands Program Fits You?.
On the clinical side, MedStands is not a medical practice and does not prescribe. Licensed providers do the prescribing, and licensed pharmacies handle fulfillment, refills, and shipping on a LegitScript-certified platform. Every request is reviewed by a licensed provider, and not everyone qualifies. As a partner or affiliate you do no clinical work and hold no inventory. Teladoc is a broad telehealth company that runs its own clinical operations, which is a difference in the company's structure rather than something an affiliate is involved in either way.
Where Teladoc may be a fit
Teladoc is one of the most recognized names in telehealth, and that broad brand awareness can help conversion for general-audience health traffic that is not specific to weight management or GLP-1 care. If you would rather promote a single well-known, general telehealth brand across many service lines than a category-focused program, and you are comfortable applying without a published rate up front, the affiliate page is a reasonable place to start. Existing Teladoc customers who simply want to share the service with a friend also have the Extole-powered refer-a-friend credit available to them. Those are genuine reasons some people will prefer it.
Common questions
Does Teladoc publish how much its affiliate program pays?
No. The affiliate page advertises only "competitive commissions" with no dollar figure, and the structure is reported by third-party directories as a one-time payment per referral. Figures like "15% per sale" or "about $25 per sale" appear in aggregator summaries but conflict and are not brand-confirmed, so we do not cite them. MedStands, by contrast, publishes its schedule: $36 to $260 per active customer per month, by medication category.
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 between $36 and $260 per active customer per month. It is not a commission, a percentage, or a share of sales or revenue. The amount is tied to the category, not to how much the customer spends.
What is the difference between Teladoc's refer-a-friend credit and an affiliate program?
The refer-a-friend credit is a customer loyalty perk. An existing Teladoc customer refers a friend, the friend completes registration, and the referrer receives a $20 Amazon gift card, up to a yearly cap, powered by Extole. It pays in gift-card credit, not cash, and it is capped. An affiliate or partner program, like the MedStands programs, is built for businesses and individuals to earn ongoing income for referring customers.
How long does a MedStands referral keep paying?
For as long as that customer stays active. The referral is bound to you at signup and stored on the account, not on an expiring cookie, so the monthly fee continues each month the customer remains active rather than stopping after a fixed window.
Ready to earn recurring fees?
If a recurring monthly fee beats an undisclosed one-time payout for you, MedStands is built for exactly that. Sign-up is free and self-serve, your link and QR code are live the same day, and there is no follower minimum and no cap on what you can earn. Learn how the recurring model works on the MedStands affiliate program page, and if you want to weigh other options in the category, compare MedStands vs the Top GLP-1 Affiliate Programs.
Competitor program terms are as of July 2026 and come from each brand's published affiliate information. Programs change, so check their current terms.