How we make money.
There's no catch and no premium tier. melchvr is free because of one revenue stream — affiliate links on our blog. Here's the whole deal, in plain English.
The model in one paragraph
Our blog reviews and curates gift ideas. The product links go through retailer affiliate programs (Amazon and select EU retailers). When you click a link and buy something, the retailer pays us a small percentage of the sale. The price you pay is exactly the same — the commission comes from the retailer's margin, not your wallet.
What the retailer sees
The retailer sees that the click came from melchvr.app. They do not see your name, your email, your wishlist, or anything else about you. We send them traffic; we send them nothing about you.
What we see
We see a monthly summary from each affiliate program — totals, no names. We never see what specific people bought, and we don't link purchases to wishlist activity.
Where affiliate links live
Only on blog posts. There are no affiliate links inside the iOS or Android app, no affiliate links on your wishlists, and no affiliate links injected into anything you share with friends.
Why we picked this model
Because the alternatives — ads, data sales, premium tiers — would compromise the product. Ads need trackers. Data sales need to collect data first. Premium tiers split the user base into 'real users' and 'second-class freeloaders'. Affiliates let one revenue stream cover the bills without changing how the app behaves.
If you'd rather not click out
Don't. The app works identically whether you ever read the blog or not. We'd rather you use melchvr for years than you click one affiliate link and bounce.
Contact
Have a retailer suggestion or an affiliate partnership idea? hello@melchvr.app.