How to add discount codes to your link in bio
By Erin Kerr ·
The short answer
Put each code on its own button in your link in bio, inside a section called something like Discount Codes, with the code showing and one line saying what it gets people. Make the code copy with one tap, keep the brand's link on the same button, and add a short note that you may earn a commission.
Why codes get lost
Think of your link in bio as the noticeboard by the front door. A Reel or a story is you mentioning a deal out loud, and the link page is where it stays pinned up for everyone who missed it, so the codes you want people to use should always end up there too.
The problem is that most of the places you mention a code don't last. A story is gone after 24 hours unless you save it to a Highlight (ShopMy's creator guide suggests Highlights for exactly this reason), and a code in a caption only lives on that one post. Instagram does let you add up to five links to your profile now, but only the first one shows in your bio and the rest sit in a pop-up menu, so a single link page that holds every code is still the easiest place to send people.
Where codes can go
| Where | How long people can find it | Best for |
|---|---|---|
| A caption on a post or Reel | As long as the post is up, but only on that post | The code for the product in that post |
| A story | 24 hours, unless you save it to a Highlight | A sale or a launch |
| A Highlight | Until you take it down | A running "codes" Highlight |
| A DM | Only the person who asked | Answering "what's your code?" |
| Your link in bio page | Always one tap from your profile | Every code you have, in one place |
You don't have to pick one. Mention the code in the post where you talk about the product (Social Media Examiner's promo code guide puts it right in the caption or the creative), and keep every live code on your link page so the people who find you a week later can still use it.
How to set up a discount codes section
- Give codes their own section. Someone looking for a deal shouldn't have to scroll past your podcast and your newsletter to find it, so put the codes under one heading that says what they are, like "Discount Codes".
- Use one button per brand. The title is the brand or the product, the note under it says what the code gets people ("15% off your first order"), and the code is written exactly the way the brand gave it to you.
- Make the code copy with one tap. If the code is just text inside a button, tapping it opens the link, and copying it turns into a long-press and a fiddly text selection on a phone. A copy button next to the code saves people that step.
- Keep the brand's link on the same button. People copy the code, then tap through to shop, and it's really nice when both are in the same spot.
- Keep the code short if you get to choose it. Social Media Examiner's advice is one word, or a word plus a number, which is also much easier to remember from a video.
- Take codes down when they end. Someone who tries an expired code starts wondering what else on your page is out of date, so check your codes whenever a deal wraps up.
Disclose it where people see it
If you earn a commission or got something free, the FTC wants people to know, and the placement matters as much as the wording. Its guide, Disclosures 101 for Social Media Influencers, says disclosures "are likely to be missed if they appear only on an ABOUT ME or profile page," and its advice is simple: "The disclosure should be placed with the endorsement message itself."
So I'd do both: say it in the post where you mention the code, and put a short line right on the codes section of your link page, something like "Some of these are affiliate links, and I may earn a commission at no cost to you." Plain words like "ad" and "sponsored" are fine too, according to the same guide. (I'm not a lawyer, so read the FTC's page for your own situation.)
See which links people actually tap
A code that nobody uses is just taking up space, so it's worth knowing which buttons get tapped. If your link page counts taps on each button, that count tells you which brands your audience really cares about. Two things to keep in mind: copying a code isn't the same as opening the link, and sales show up in the brand's or the affiliate program's dashboard, not on your link page, so treat tap counts as interest rather than income.
How I built this into Goose Tools
The link page in Goose Tools started as the links page on my own site, and the Discount Codes section came over with it. Your page lives at goosetools.com/@yourhandle, and the codes get a section of their own under your main links.
- When you add a link, you pick its section, and you can give it a note and a discount code.
- The code shows on the button as a small chip with the code and a copy symbol. Tapping the chip copies the code and the chip says "copied!", and tapping anywhere else on the button opens the brand's page.
- The Discount Codes section shows a line saying some links are affiliate links that may earn a commission at no cost to the buyer, without you having to write it, and those links are marked as sponsored in the page's code.
- Every time someone opens a link from your page it gets counted, with link-preview bots filtered out, and you can see each link's count for any date range or all time. Copying a code from the chip doesn't count as opening the link.
- There's no limit on how many links you add.
To be upfront about what it doesn't do yet: you can't reorder or edit a link once it's added (delete it and add it again), and the look is one accent color plus a tagline, not themes.
It's free, and you sign in with Google (the privacy policy spells out what that shares). If your codes are scattered across old stories right now, you can set up your link page on Goose Tools and put them all in one place. How-tos for the rest of the business side of being a creator go on the Goose Tools blog.
Quick answers
Where do discount codes come from?
The brand or its affiliate program gives you one, and it's usually yours alone, because that's how they know which sales came from you (Social Media Examiner's guide tells brands to give each creator a unique code for exactly that). Write it exactly as they sent it.
What if an affiliate program only gives me a link?
Add it to the same section without a code. On Goose Tools it shows with a small "affiliate" tag instead of a code chip, so it still reads as a deal.
Should the code go in my bio text too?
Bio text is short, so if one code really matters right now it can go there, but keep the full list on your link page so you only have one place to update when a deal ends.