Affiliate disclosure

Editorial review: 26 August 2026 · By: Alston Antony

WebsiteHosting.lk makes money in two ways: affiliate links to third-party services, and referral leads forwarded to Sri Lankan providers. Both create a commercial interest that a reader deserves to know about upfront. This page states plainly what those are and how they interact with the editorial rankings.

Affiliate links, defined

An affiliate link is an outbound link to a third-party service (usually a hosting company, website builder or SaaS product) where the vendor pays WebsiteHosting.lk a commission if a reader clicks through and buys. The price the reader pays is exactly the same whether they use the affiliate link or go to the vendor's site directly. Common programs used on this site: Hostinger, SiteGround, Namecheap, Cloudways, Shopify, Wix, Squarespace, and a small number of Sri Lankan hosts.

Referral leads, defined

A referral lead is a form submission (through the contact page or a QuoteCTA on a page like web design or website cost) forwarded to a Sri Lankan web designer, developer or agency matched to the reader's stated requirements. WebsiteHosting.lk receives a referral fee from the provider when a lead becomes a paying client. The reader is told before form submission that leads may be forwarded to external providers.

How commercial interests interact with rankings

Two rules, published on every ranking page:

1. Ranking order follows the criteria published above the table. When criteria change, the ranking changes; when the affiliate commission on a program changes, the ranking does not. If a program pays nothing and it is still the best pick, it stays at #1.
2. Inclusion is editorial, not commercial. A provider is included in a comparison if it serves the specific Sri Lankan need, publishes its pricing, and meets the selection criteria in the editorial policy. Affiliate availability does not gate inclusion; a good non-affiliate option is included alongside affiliate options.

What this disclosure does not claim

WebsiteHosting.lk earns money when readers buy from a provider WebsiteHosting.lk recommends. That is a real commercial interest and a real potential conflict, and pretending otherwise would be dishonest. The commitments above (ranking follows criteria; inclusion is editorial) are how that conflict is handled - not proof that it does not exist. Readers who would rather bypass the affiliate link entirely can go directly to the vendor's site; the recommendation stands either way.

Where affiliate links appear

• Hosting comparison pages (best-hosting listings, provider-specific reviews).
• Website-builder pages (Shopify, Wix, Squarespace, WordPress hosting).
• Domain registrar references where a vendor runs a referral program.
• Sri Lankan web design and development providers, where a referral fee arrangement exists and is disclosed on the CTA before submission.

Where affiliate links do not appear

• Editorial guides that are not commercial in intent (definitions, PAA pages, technical explainers).
• Trust pages (this page, editorial policy, privacy, terms, contact, thanks).
• The website cost calculator and the website quotation checklist.
• Any page where a reader would reasonably expect a neutral explanation, not a recommendation.

Personal site precedent

On the personal site alstonantony.com, both an affiliate link and a non-affiliate link are frequently offered so readers can choose. The same principle applies here: where a non-affiliate route is straightforward, it is stated alongside.

Questions or corrections

Email via the contact page. If a specific recommendation looks biased by commercial interest, name the page and the line and the case will be reviewed against the published criteria.