Affiliate Disclosure
Last reviewed: August 3, 2026
Current status
The Usable Pantry is not currently enrolled in the Amazon Associates Program. The current guides contain no Amazon affiliate links, and the publication does not currently earn commissions from those guides.
This status must be updated before any affiliate link is published. The site must never claim an active commercial relationship before that relationship exists.
What an affiliate link means
If affiliate links are introduced later, The Usable Pantry may receive a commission when a reader follows a clearly disclosed link and completes a qualifying purchase or action. The reader generally pays the retailer's price; the commission is paid under the retailer's affiliate terms.
The publication will not receive the reader's payment-card details from a normal retailer affiliate link. Retailers apply their own ordering, shipping, returns, customer-service, tracking, and privacy practices.
Where disclosures will appear
This page is a general explanation. It does not replace a disclosure near an affected recommendation or link.
When a page contains commission-earning links, it should disclose that fact before the first affected recommendation and close enough to the link that a reader will not have to search for the relationship. Link labels must use plain language—for example, “Paid link—we may earn a commission”—rather than relying only on terms such as “affiliate link” or a generic “Buy now” button.
The same principle applies to Pinterest Pins, social posts, newsletters, video, or any other channel used later. Platform disclosure tools may supplement but should not silently replace a clear statement that the publication may earn a commission.
The U.S. Federal Trade Commission's current affiliate-disclosure guidance emphasizes that a material relationship should be clear and conspicuous and that proximity to the recommendation matters.
Amazon Associates
If The Usable Pantry is accepted into the Amazon.com Associates Program, the publication must update this page and its site-level disclosure before using Amazon Special Links.
Amazon's current Associates Program Operating Agreement requires an Associate to identify itself clearly and prominently using the statement specified in the agreement. Amazon also requires a legally compliant link-level disclosure near affiliate links. The exact required statement and current program rules must be copied from Amazon's live documentation during activation rather than assumed from an old draft.
Amazon does not own, sponsor, or endorse The Usable Pantry. Participation in an affiliate program must not be presented as Amazon approval of the publication or its recommendations.
Editorial independence
The editorial rule remains:
Every article must still help if all affiliate links are removed.
That means:
- the reader's problem is defined before a product appears;
- measurements, routines, and no-purchase options come first;
- a product is considered only when it supplies a missing function;
- a commission does not justify an unsuitable recommendation;
- paid, free, loaned, or sponsored products must be disclosed;
- a product is not called tested unless it was actually tested; and
- a commercial relationship does not prevent corrections or criticism.
The publication may link to a retailer without earning a commission. When no material relationship exists, it should not falsely label that relationship as paid.
Product information and purchasing decisions
Affiliate links do not guarantee:
- current price or availability;
- product dimensions or compatibility;
- materials, food-contact claims, or manufacturing quality;
- delivery, returns, warranty, or customer service;
- installation or load safety; or
- suitability for a particular household.
Readers should check the current retailer listing, manufacturer instructions, return terms, and their own measurements before buying. The publication does not process the retailer's order and cannot provide retailer customer support.
Other commercial relationships
If the publication later accepts sponsorships, free products, paid placements, discount codes, gifts, or another material relationship, that relationship must be disclosed where it affects the reader's evaluation of the content. Sponsored content must not be disguised as independent editorial material.
Questions
Questions about a commercial relationship or disclosure can be sent through the Contact page.