RefRef vs Viral Loops
Your old waitlist shouldn't set this year's price.
Viral Loops is good at waitlists, giveaways, and newsletter referrals built from templates, and RefRef is the open-source platform for referral, affiliate, and loyalty programs. Viral Loops counts every participant since signup, so its quota never resets, and has no free plan; RefRef prices by monthly active participants and is free up to 1,000.
Open sourceFree up to 1,000 active participantsNo share of your revenue
Updated October 20, 2026, checked against the official pages of Viral Loops.
Feature scorecard
RefRef
12/12
Viral Loops
4/12
+6 partly
- YesOpen sourceViral Loops: Proprietary; its terms bar attempts to derive the source code.
- YesPricing that doesn't tax your growthViral Loops: Priced by participants counted since signup; the quota never resets.
- YesReferral, affiliate, and loyaltyViral Loops: Referral, waitlist, and giveaway templates; no commissions or loyalty listed.
- YesCash payouts with tax formsViral Loops: Rewards through your own Tremendous or Stripe from Growing; no tax forms listed.
RefRef vs Viral Loops: feature comparison
| Feature | RefRef | Viral Loops |
|---|---|---|
| Open source | YesAGPLv3 on GitHub. Use RefRef Cloud or run it yourself. | NoProprietary; its terms bar attempts to derive the source code. |
| No vendor lock-in | YesFull data export, REST API, and webhooks. | YesCSV export on every plan; REST API and webhooks from Plus. |
| Pricing that doesn't tax your growth | YesPriced by active participants. No share of referred revenue, no fee on your own payout rail. | PartlyPriced by participants counted since signup; the quota never resets. |
| Referral, affiliate, and loyalty | YesAll three program types on one integration. | PartlyReferral, waitlist, and giveaway templates; no commissions or loyalty listed. |
| AI assistant and MCP | YesSet up and run programs from the in-app assistant, Claude, Cursor, or Codex. | YesAI campaign assistant and MCP server. |
| Cash payouts with tax forms | YesPayPal payouts in 98 countries. W-9 and W-8BEN collected. | PartlyRewards through your own Tremendous or Stripe from Growing; no tax forms listed. |
| Rewards inside your billing | YesAccount credit, discounts, and plan upgrades in Stripe, Paddle, Polar, Dodo Payments, and RevenueCat. | PartlyStripe coupons and credits, triggered by hand, from the Growing plan. |
| Shopify and WooCommerce | YesNative Shopify app and WooCommerce plugin. | PartlyShopify app; no WooCommerce plugin on its integrations page. |
| Signup attribution for your auth stack | YesBetter Auth plugin and recipes for Clerk, Supabase, Auth0, WorkOS, and Auth.js. | PartlyJavaScript SDK and API; no auth-provider plugins listed. |
| Embeddable widget and join pages | YesBranded referral widget and public partner join pages. | YesEmbeddable widgets and hosted campaign pages. |
| Custom link domains | YesShare links on your own domain. | YesCustom domains for referral links and campaign pages. |
| Free plan | YesFree up to 1,000 active participants. | NoNo free plan; 14-day trial capped at 10 participants. |
Viral Loops facts checked on October 20, 2026 against its official pages. See sources
Switch from Viral Loops to an open-source platform, free to start.
Start freeWhy teams choose RefRef over Viral Loops
Pay for active participants
Viral Loops counts every participant since your account was created, and the quota never resets. RefRef prices by monthly active participants, so an old waitlist does not keep you on a bigger plan.
Cash payouts and tax forms included
Run an affiliate program next to customer referrals, pay partners through PayPal in 98 countries, and collect W-9 and W-8BEN forms. Viral Loops leaves reward delivery to you or your own reward accounts.
A free plan, not a 10-participant trial
RefRef is AGPLv3 and free up to 1,000 active participants. Viral Loops starts at $35/month billed yearly, after a 14-day trial capped at 10 participants.
Everything you need, from the first click to the payout.
Referral, affiliate, and loyalty in one place
Run customer referrals, a partner program, and a loyalty program side by side, each with its own rewards and results.
Rewards inside your billing
Give account credit, discounts, or plan upgrades straight in Stripe, Paddle, Polar, Dodo Payments, or RevenueCat.
Partners, invitations, and applications
Invite partners, approve applications, and give each one a branded join page and link.
Cash payouts, done for you
RefRef pays partners through PayPal in 98 countries, collects W-9 and W-8BEN forms, and shows every statement.
Viral Loops pricing vs RefRef pricing
RefRef
| Plan | Price | Includes |
|---|---|---|
| Free | $0 | Up to 1,000 active participants |
| Starter | $49/month | 5,000 active participants ($29 billed annually) |
| Pro | From $119/month | 10,000 to 50,000 active participants, custom domains |
No overage, no share of referred revenue. Managed PayPal payouts cost 2%.
Viral Loops
| Plan | Price | Includes |
|---|---|---|
| Start-up | $49/month ($35/month billed yearly) | 1,000 participants, lead generation campaigns |
| Plus | $139/month ($99/month billed yearly) | 5,000 participants, customer referrals, custom domain, API |
| Growing | $229/month ($159/month billed yearly) | 10,000 participants, automated, Stripe, and Tremendous rewarding |
| Power | $399/month ($279/month billed yearly) | 25,000 participants, team member invites |
| Enterprise | Custom | 25,000+ participants |
Plugs into the stack you already run.
Native billing, commerce, and auth integrations, plus an open API, webhooks, and MCP for AI agents. The ecosystem grows every month.
- Billing
- StripePaddlePolarDodo PaymentsRevenueCat
- Commerce
- ShopifyWooCommerce
- Auth
- Better AuthClerkSupabaseAuth0WorkOSAuth.js
- Payouts
- PayPalW-9 and W-8BEN forms
- Automation and AI
- REST APIWebhooksMCPZapierMakeActivepiecesClaudeCursorCodex
Switch from Viral Loops in three steps.
Your partners and customers keep what they earned. We help you move.
Export participants and referral codes from Viral Loops as CSV, and list any rewards still pending.
Import them into a RefRef referral program, and connect your billing provider or store so conversions keep tracking.
Replace the Viral Loops widget with the RefRef widget, then test one signup and one conversion before you pause your Viral Loops plan.
01How does Viral Loops count participants?
02How much does Viral Loops cost?
03Does Viral Loops pay rewards in cash?
04Can I migrate from Viral Loops to RefRef?
When Viral Loops fits
Choose Viral Loops if you want a prelaunch waitlist, giveaway, or newsletter referral campaign from a ready-made template, set up without code.
Sources, checked October 20, 2026
Written by the RefRef team. Viral Loops is a trademark of its owner; RefRef is not affiliated with it. Plans change, so check the official pages before you buy. Spot an error? Tell us and we correct it.
Ready to switch from Viral Loops?
Start free. Your first 1,000 active participants cost nothing.