1. First answer: Kobo uses Rakuten Advertising, not Awin
If you start looking for Kobo inside Awin, you are already in the wrong castle.
Kobo’s official affiliate page sends publishers to Rakuten Advertising, formerly LinkShare.[1]
The basic flow is simple:
- Register as a publisher with Rakuten Advertising.
- Add your website or marketing channel.
- Complete tax and payment information.
- Search for Rakuten Kobo in the advertiser directory.
- Apply to one Kobo program.
- After approval, create affiliate links.
- Use your Affiliate ID when integrating those links into your site.
The difficulty is not the concept. It is the dashboard.
The dashboard asks what kind of publisher you are, what your site does, whether users post content, whether you have downloadable software, whether you are subject to US tax, how you want to get paid, and which regional Kobo program you want.
This guide translates those questions into normal human language.
2. Which affiliate type should a normal article site choose?
For a site built mainly around articles, guides, reviews, and editorial content, Content & Media / Media Portfolios is usually the clearest fit.
Do not choose Creator / Influencer simply because one person operates the site.
The important question is how the audience reaches the site and how products are introduced.
If the model is:
- people discover an article through search or social media,
- the article discusses a topic,
- relevant books are recommended,
- readers click through to Kobo,
then Content & Media is a natural description.
For site categories, do not select everything. Pick the major topics that genuinely describe the site.
A broad editorial site might reasonably use categories such as Blog / Social Networking, Computers & Technology, Literature & Reading, Arts & Entertainment, Food & Drinks, or Career & Employment.
The category screen is not asking you to list every subject you have ever mentioned. It is asking advertisers what kind of publication you run.[4]
3. If the 225-character description box complains, shorten it
A channel description does not need to be a manifesto.
A simple version is enough:
“An independently operated information site covering AI, work, daily life, systems, and entertainment. We research everyday questions and explain them clearly.”
If the form still rejects your text, remove extra detail, line breaks, and symbols and make it shorter.
Do not spend thirty minutes arguing with a character counter.
The goal is to let an advertiser understand the site in a few seconds.
4. User-generated content, newsletters, apps, and DSA: do not click Yes for decoration
The profile includes several Yes / No questions.
More Yes answers do not make your account more impressive.
User-generated content
Select Yes if visitors can publish comments, reviews, forum posts, or other content.
If only the operator publishes articles, No is generally correct.[4]
Newsletter
Select Yes only if you actually send a newsletter to subscribers.
Mobile app
Select Yes if you operate a real mobile application used as part of your promotion.
A website that works on a phone is not automatically a mobile app.
DSA
DSA means Downloadable Software Application.
Rakuten Advertising uses this term for software such as toolbars, browser plug-ins, or other installed applications. DSAs require review and approval.[5]
A normal content website usually selects No.
Do not see the word “software” and accidentally unlock the browser-extension compliance quest.
5. Nofollow is fine, but sponsored matters too
Rakuten Advertising can automatically add nofollow to text, banner, and product links generated in the dashboard.[6]
Turning that setting on is reasonable.
Google currently recommends rel="sponsored" for links created as part of advertising, sponsorship, or other compensation arrangements. Nofollow is still acceptable.[7]
If your own site generates affiliate cards, a practical markup choice is:
rel="sponsored nofollow"
The disclosure to readers matters just as much.
Rakuten Advertising says Content / Media publishers should clearly disclose the material connection on every page containing affiliate links, and the disclosure should be visible without requiring the visitor to hunt for it.[17]
This is not a treasure map where the disclosure is hidden in tiny gray text at the bottom of the footer.
6. Tax: W-8BEN is the common form for a non-US individual, but do not sign text that obviously does not describe you
Rakuten Advertising collects tax information from publishers outside the United States.
If a non-US publisher is not liable for US tax, Rakuten directs them toward a W-8 form, and says W-8BEN is appropriate for most publishers.[8]
The IRS describes W-8BEN as the form used by a foreign individual to establish foreign status and beneficial ownership of income.[9]
A useful warning:
If the screen says W-8BEN but the certification text suddenly talks about “the organization I am signing for,” a foreign government, or a central bank, do not blindly sign it.
W-8BEN is for individuals. W-8BEN-E is generally for foreign entities, while W-8EXP covers certain foreign governments and organizations.[9]
First confirm that the Rakuten account’s business classification is Individual. If the certification wording still looks inconsistent, ask Rakuten Advertising support before signing.
A page containing the phrase “under penalties of perjury” is not the place for speed-running the Next button.
This article is general information, not personal tax advice.
7. Payments: PayPal is easy; bank transfer requires checking the bank’s rules too
Payment methods can include PayPal, bank transfer, and check depending on location and network.[10]
PayPal
PayPal is simple because you do not need to enter SWIFT information.
Rakuten Advertising currently supports PayPal for publishers working with advertisers in the US, Canada, UK, Australia, France, and Germany networks. Commissions from the Japan and Brazil networks cannot be paid through PayPal.[11]
The PayPal account must also be verified.
Bank transfer
For direct deposit, the bank account must use the same legal name and country as the Rakuten Advertising account. International direct deposit also requires a bank with a BIC / SWIFT code.[10][13]
There is another trap: a bank account may technically accept international transfers but still prohibit business-purpose payments on that account type.
For example, Rakuten Bank states that its ordinary personal incoming-remittance service cannot be used to receive business-purpose funds.[14]
Its individual business account, however, supports business-purpose incoming international remittances.[15]
So “I found the SWIFT code” does not mean the setup is finished.
You also need the correct account type.
For Rakuten Bank’s individual business incoming-remittance service, its official instructions list SWIFT RAKTJPJT, HEAD OFFICE as the bank branch name, and a 10-digit beneficiary account number made from the customer’s three-digit branch code plus seven-digit account number. It also requires intermediary bank information.[15]
Other banks have different rules. Never copy one bank’s format into another bank’s form.
8. The minimum payment is 50, but it is per network
Rakuten Advertising publishes network-specific minimum payment thresholds.[12]
As of October 2026:
- Australia: 50 AUD
- Canada: 50 CAD
- France / Germany: 50 EUR
- UK: 50 GBP
- US: 50 USD
- Brazil: exempt from a minimum threshold
This is not “once the whole account reaches 50 yen, payment happens.”
Each network has its own currency threshold.
You can choose a higher personal threshold, but beginners usually gain nothing by voluntarily moving the finish line farther away.
9. Six Kobo programs appear. You do not need all six
The advertiser search may show Kobo programs for the US, Canada, UK, Australia, Europe, Brazil, and other regional networks.
Kobo’s own guidance says you only need to apply to one program. Affiliate links can work across territories.[2]
The territory you choose can affect the reporting currency and available assets.
On October 2, 2026, the Sign Up link on Kobo’s Japanese affiliate page pointed into Rakuten Advertising with MID 39331.[1]
But do not assume every regional offer has the same commission rate.
Kobo’s public affiliate page currently advertises:
- up to 5% on eBooks, audiobooks, and devices,
- up to 10% on device accessories,
- a 14-day cookie,
- and an approval time of roughly one to two weeks.[1]
Actual advertiser cards and offer terms inside Rakuten Advertising can differ by network.
The live offer you are about to join is the contract that matters.
“Up to 5%” on a marketing page does not override the number shown in your actual offer.
10. After approval: you want the Affiliate ID, not the Site ID
Rakuten Advertising also gives your marketing channel a Site ID or SID.
That is not the tracking identifier you place into affiliate links.
The Affiliate ID is an 11-character alphanumeric code, also called the Encrypted ID or Tracking ID.[16]
Rakuten’s documented path is:
- Advertisers
- My Advertisers
- Open an available Kobo link
- Get Link
- View Code
- Find the 11 characters immediately after id=
The roles are different:
Site ID = identifies your marketing channel.
Affiliate ID = identifies whose affiliate click generated the referral.
Mix them up and you can create the classic mystery: “The link works, so why is nobody paying me?”
11. Final checklist
The whole setup becomes much simpler when reduced to this list:
- Kobo affiliate registration runs through Rakuten Advertising.
- A normal editorial site generally fits Content & Media.
- Keep the site description short and clear.
- Choose only categories that really describe the site.
- Answer Yes to UGC, newsletter, app, or DSA only when you actually use them.
- DSA does not mean an ordinary website.
- Mark affiliate links appropriately with sponsored / nofollow.
- Disclose affiliate compensation clearly on pages containing those links.
- W-8BEN is commonly used by non-US individual publishers who are not US-taxable.
- Stop and verify any certification language that does not match your actual status.
- PayPal is easy but not available for every Rakuten network.
- For bank transfer, confirm legal name, country, SWIFT, and whether the account type accepts business payments.
- Payment thresholds are calculated by network.
- One Kobo regional program is generally enough.
- Check the live offer for the current commission rate.
- After approval, use the 11-character Affiliate ID, not the SID.
Rakuten Advertising also announced in 2026 that it is moving to impact.com as its exclusive technology platform in phased migrations.[18]
For publishers, the stated plan is continuity rather than an overnight reset: existing relationships and links are intended to keep working while migration instructions are provided.
So there is no reason to freeze.
Set up the current Rakuten Advertising account correctly, apply to Kobo, and obtain the tracking ID after approval.
The system is less “technically impossible” and more “several similarly named IDs and checkboxes are standing in a hallway trying to look important.”
