Last updated: May 2026
The short version
Some links on Rural.ie are affiliate links. If you click one and make a purchase or sign up for a service, we may earn a small commission — at no extra cost to you. We only recommend services we believe genuinely serve our readers. The commission doesn't change what we write; our recommendations are based on merit and accuracy, not pay-per-click.
How affiliate links work
Rural.ie participates in affiliate programmes with broadband providers, property services, and rural service businesses. When a reader clicks a tagged link and then makes a qualifying purchase or sign-up on the partner's site, we receive a referral fee. Typical commission is 2%–10% and comes out of the partner's margin, not your pocket.
What we earn from
- Broadband referrals: Eir, Vodafone, Starlink, Imagine, and other providers. We refer sign-ups only where we genuinely believe the service suits the reader's situation.
- Property services: Solicitor referrals, chartered surveyor directories, portal click-throughs.
- SEAI/energy installer referrals: Solar, heat pump, and insulation installers registered with SEAI. We recommend verified, registered installers only.
- Newsletter sponsorships: Occasional sponsored mentions in the Rural.ie newsletter. These are labelled "Sponsored" or "Partner" clearly within the newsletter.
- Display advertising: We may use Google AdSense or direct advertising. Ads are clearly separated from editorial content.
What we won't do
- Recommend a service solely because the commission is high
- Accept payment for fake positive reviews or editorial coverage
- Recommend services we believe are poor value for rural readers
- Hide disclosures or bury them in small print
How we flag it
Pages and posts containing affiliate links carry a disclosure near the top. Affiliate links carry rel="sponsored" attributes. Sponsored content is labelled "Sponsored" at the top of the piece. There is no paid editorial — if a service is mentioned without a sponsorship label, we're including it because we think it's useful, not because we're paid to mention it.
Editorial independence
Advertising and affiliate relationships do not influence our editorial content. We cover what matters to people moving to, or living in, rural Ireland — whether or not there is a commercial relationship with the service being discussed. We include and exclude services based on quality and relevance, not revenue.
Advertising standards
We follow ASAI (Advertising Standards Authority of Ireland) guidance for commercial content.
Questions
Questions about our commercial relationships: info@rural.ie.