Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Written By Toppal Support
Last updated 4 days ago
Q: When is a referred transaction confirmed and eligible for payout?
A transaction becomes confirmed when its Sharetribe process reaches a completed-or-later state (including review states). This applies across all supported transaction processes — default-purchase, default-booking, and default-negotiation.
Once confirmed, Toppal checks it against your program rules (minimum value, limits, affiliate status, etc.). If it passes, the transaction is marked eligible and the associated payout moves from Pending → Ready. A Ready payout is one you can pay out to the affiliate.
Note: "confirmed" is driven by the Sharetribe transaction state, not strictly the moment provider payout is triggered. See the table in the next FAQ for the exact states per process.
Q: How is transaction eligibility determined across the different Sharetribe transaction types?
Toppal listens to Sharetribe transaction/transitioned events and supports the three standard transaction processes. A transaction is treated as confirmed once it reaches any of these states:
The transaction value (GMV) is read from Sharetribe's product line items, so every standard unit type is covered: item, day, night, hour, units, km, fixed, offer, and request. Shipping and commission line items are deliberately excluded from GMV. Marketplace Revenue is calculated separately from the customer and provider commission line items.
Once a transaction is confirmed, it must pass all of these checks to become eligible:
Confirmed state — reached one of the states above.
Attributed to an affiliate — the buyer or seller is a referred user (see attribution rule below).
Affiliate is Active — deactivated affiliates don't earn.
Program still active at transaction time — transactions dated after a program's deactivation are excluded.
Meets the minimum transaction value — if the program sets one (measured against GMV, Revenue, or Payout, per the program config).
Within the max referral limit — caps the number of distinct referred users an affiliate is rewarded for.
Within the max transactions per referral — caps eligible transactions per individual referred user.
If any check fails, the transaction is kept but marked ineligible with a reason (e.g. "Affiliate not active", "below minimum", "Reached referral limit").
Q: Does the transaction program only count when the referred user is the customer?
No — it counts activity on both sides. If an affiliate refers someone who then drives activity on your marketplace, it counts toward payout eligibility whether that person buys (as a customer) or sells (as a provider).
This is intentional: for newer marketplaces it helps reward referrals that bring in supply (sellers/listings), not just demand — useful for tackling the classic chicken-and-egg problem.
Attribution when both parties are referred: if both the buyer and the seller were referred, the transaction is attributed to the buyer's affiliate. The seller's affiliate only earns when the buyer is not a referred user.
On the roadmap: the ability to choose which activity is rewarded (purchases, sales, or both) per program.
Q: On a referred user, what's the difference between "Purchases" and "Sales"?
Purchases — transactions where the referred user was the buyer (they bought something).
Sales — transactions where the referred user was the seller/provider (they sold something).
Both contribute to an affiliate's eligible activity, subject to the attribution rule above.
Q: Is there an approval step when someone applies through the signup form?
Currently, no — affiliates who apply through the signup form are approved instantly. A few things worth knowing:
The signup form is completely optional. You decide whether to publish it on a public link / embed it at all.
Today the form supports adding social media link fields (commonly used for influencer programs).
If you want a vetting step now, a common approach is to collect applications with your own form tool, vet them manually, then create the affiliate directly in the Toppal dashboard.
On the roadmap: an optional approval workflow for affiliate sign ups
Q: What does "Pending" vs "Ready" mean for a payout?
Pending = the referred transaction isn't confirmed/eligible yet (e.g. still in progress, or below the minimum value). Ready = confirmed and eligible — you can now pay the affiliate.
Q: A transaction completed but the payout didn't become Ready — why?
It's likely failing one of the eligibility checks: the affiliate is deactivated, the transaction is below the program's minimum value, the program was deactivated before the transaction date, or a referral/transaction limit has been reached. Each transaction stores the specific reason.
Q: How is the payout amount calculated?
For percentage payouts, the amount is GMV (or Marketplace Revenue, depending on the program's measure) × your percentage. For fixed payouts, it's a flat amount per eligible transaction.
Q: What's the difference between GMV and Marketplace Revenue?
GMV is the gross product value of the transaction (excluding shipping and commissions). Marketplace Revenue is your commission income (customer + provider commission). You choose which one your payouts and minimums are based on.
Q: Can the same person be counted twice (e.g. as both buyer and seller, or across programs)?
Each user is enrolled/tracked once per workspace — Toppal de-duplicates on Sharetribe ID and email before creating an affiliate, so no duplicate affiliate or welcome email is created.
Q: If a transaction is refunded or reversed, does it still count?
Reversed line items are excluded from value calculations, and only confirmed states count — so a transaction that doesn't reach a confirmed state won't generate an eligible payout.
Q: Does signing up (without transacting) earn anything?
That depends on the program's Qualification trigger. With a "Sign Up" trigger, a qualifying signup can earn; with a "Transaction" trigger, the referred user must complete a transaction. (Note: auto-enrolment of the affiliate always happens on first confirmed transaction, regardless of this setting.)