Affiliate Disclosure

How Affiliate Links Work

• 1
  We recommend a product we genuinely use

  If we link to a product — say, a specific brand of gochugaru or a fermentation crock — it is because we have personally used it and believe it is the best option for our readers. The affiliate relationship comes after the recommendation decision, not before.
• 2
  You click the link and visit the retailer

  When you click an affiliate link, a tracking code in the URL tells the retailer (e.g. Amazon) that you arrived from KimchiGuide. A cookie is set on your device to remember this referral.
• 3
  If you buy something, we earn a small commission

  If you make a purchase within the cookie window (typically 24 hours for Amazon), we earn a small percentage of the sale price — typically between 1% and 5% depending on the product category. This comes from the retailer’s margin, not from you.
• 4
  Your price is unchanged

  You pay exactly the same price you would pay if you went directly to Amazon. There is no surcharge, markup, or premium for using our link. The commission comes entirely from Amazon’s side.

Affiliate Programmes We Participate In

How We Protect Our Editorial Independence

Affiliate income is genuinely useful for keeping KimchiGuide running. But it must never compromise what we recommend. Here is exactly how we maintain independence:

• ✓
  We recommend first, affiliate second

  Every product recommendation on this site starts with a genuine assessment of whether it is the best option for our readers. We then check if an affiliate link exists. If it does not, we link directly anyway — without a commission.
• ✓
  We link to the best product — not the highest commission

  Different Amazon product categories earn different commission rates. We never choose a product based on its commission rate. If a cheaper, better-value product is the right recommendation, we recommend it — regardless of what it earns us.
• ✓
  We have never accepted payment to feature a product

  No brand, retailer, or manufacturer has ever paid KimchiGuide to feature or recommend their product. Every product mentioned on this site is mentioned because it is genuinely useful — not because someone paid us to say so.
• ✓
  Negative experiences are reported honestly

  If we test a product and it does not perform well, we say so — even if that product has an affiliate link. Our readers’ trust is more valuable than any commission we might earn from a misleading recommendation.
• ✓
  Affiliate links do not influence article topics

  We do not write articles about topics simply because they offer affiliate commission opportunities. Article topics are chosen based on what our readers need to know — not on what is most commercially convenient for us.

What We Actually Earn

Affiliate commissions from the Amazon Associates programme typically range from 1% to 5% of the sale price, depending on the product category:

• Kitchen & housewares: approximately 4.5%
• Grocery & food products: approximately 1–3%
• Books: approximately 4.5%
• Other categories: variable, typically 1–5%

On a £15 jar of gochugaru, we might earn approximately £0.23–£0.45. On a £60 fermentation crock, approximately £2.70. These are modest amounts. Affiliate income supplements — but does not replace — the work of maintaining a high-quality specialist site.

What Affiliate Income Pays For

KimchiGuide is a specialist site produced by a small team. Affiliate income — along with any advertising revenue — helps cover the genuine costs of running the site:

Our Policy on Sponsored Content

KimchiGuide does not currently publish sponsored articles — content written in exchange for payment from a brand or organisation.

If this changes in the future:

• All sponsored content will be clearly and prominently labelled “Sponsored” or “Paid Partnership” at the top of the page
• Sponsored content will be clearly distinguished from editorial content in design and labelling
• We will only accept sponsored content from brands whose products align with our editorial values and that we would genuinely recommend independently
• Sponsors will not have editorial control over content — we reserve the right to decline or modify any content that conflicts with our editorial standards
• This Affiliate Disclosure page will be updated to reflect any sponsored content arrangements

How to Identify Affiliate Links on This Site

Affiliate links on KimchiGuide are not individually labelled on every mention within article text — doing so would make articles significantly harder to read. Instead, we make a general disclosure on this page, in our Editorial Policy, and in a brief note in the footer of articles that contain affiliate links.

As a general guide:

• Links to products on Amazon.co.uk or Amazon.com within recipe or guide pages are likely affiliate links
• Links to specialist Korean grocery retailers may be affiliate links — disclosed in the relevant article
• Links to research papers, government sites, or news sources are never affiliate links
• Links to other KimchiGuide pages are never affiliate links

Legal Compliance

This disclosure is made in compliance with:

• US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) — 16 CFR Part 255: Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising. Requires clear and conspicuous disclosure of material connections between endorsers and marketers.
• UK Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) — CAP Code rules on affiliate marketing, which require that affiliate content is clearly identified as such.
• Amazon Associates Operating Agreement — which requires participants to clearly state their participation in the programme on their website.

As an Amazon Associate, KimchiGuide earns from qualifying purchases. This statement appears in the footer of pages containing Amazon affiliate links.

Questions About Affiliate Links