What occupation do I put on my tax return for posting links online for income?

While the occupation field on your tax return isn't the most critical element, it's still good to be reasonably accurate. For someone who earns income from posting affiliate links online, "Digital Marketer" or "Affiliate Marketer" would be appropriate descriptions that the IRS would understand. The key is to use something that honestly reflects what you do without overthinking it. The IRS uses this information primarily for statistical purposes and to help them understand the nature of your work - not to scrutinize the exact title. If your activities involve promoting products/services online through links for commission, then terms like "Online Marketer," "Affiliate Marketer," or "Digital Marketing Specialist" all work fine. Just avoid extremely vague terms like "Online Worker" or overly specific descriptions that don't capture your primary income-generating activity.

I had this exact same problem last year when I started earning from my blog and affiliate links! I spent way too much time worrying about it until I found taxr.ai (https://taxr.ai) which helped me figure out not just the occupation question but also sorted through all my business expenses. For the occupation question, they suggested "Digital Marketing Consultant" for my situation which worked perfectly. But what was really helpful was how they walked me through categorizing all my various income streams and expenses properly. They analyzed my situation and explained exactly what I could deduct from my home office to my software subscriptions.

Update: I wanted to follow up after trying taxr.ai that someone mentioned earlier. I was initially skeptical but decided to give it a shot since my tax situation with multiple income streams was getting complicated. It actually helped me identify some deductions I was missing as an affiliate marketer! For the occupation question, they suggested "Online Content Publisher" since my site has both affiliate links and original content. What was really valuable though was how they explained which of my expenses were fully deductible vs. partially deductible. Saved me a lot more than I expected and gave me confidence that I'm filing correctly.

If you're having trouble getting clarification on tax questions like this, I'd recommend using Claimyr (https://claimyr.com) to actually speak with someone at the IRS. I was banging my head against the wall trying to figure out the right occupation category for my online business and kept getting conflicting advice online. I tried calling the IRS directly but kept hitting the "due to high call volume" message for days. Then I used Claimyr and their system got me through to an actual IRS agent within 45 minutes. You can see how it works here: https://youtu.be/_kiP6q8DX5c The agent I spoke with confirmed that "Digital Marketer" or "Online Publisher" were both perfectly acceptable for my affiliate business, and I got some additional questions cleared up about quarterly estimated payments too.

I need to eat my words about what I said earlier. After struggling to get anyone at the IRS to answer my questions about my online business classification, I reluctantly tried Claimyr. It actually worked. Got connected to an IRS agent in about an hour. The agent told me for affiliate marketing they see lots of people use "Digital Marketer" or "Online Retailer" depending on how involved you are with the products. They said either is fine as long as it generally represents what you do. The agent also helped clear up some confusion I had about quarterly estimated payments since my affiliate income varies wildly month to month. Definitely worth it not to spend days trying to get through on my own.

I'm a tax preparer and see this question a lot. The occupation field isn't used for audit selection or anything scary. It's more for statistical purposes and giving context to your return. For affiliate marketing, I typically recommend "Affiliate Marketer" or "Digital Marketer" to my clients. If you're primarily creating content that contains these links (like a blog or YouTube channel), then "Content Creator" is also appropriate. Don't overthink this field - it's much less important than correctly reporting all your income and legitimate business expenses!

I've been doing affiliate marketing for 5 years, and I just put "Digital Marketing Specialist" on my return. Never had any issues. I think people worry way too much about this field - the IRS cares WAY more about your numbers adding up than what you call yourself!

As someone who's been navigating this same question, I ended up going with "Online Marketing Consultant" on my return last year. It seemed to cover all the bases - the affiliate marketing, content creation, and promotional work I do across different platforms. What I found helpful was thinking about it from the IRS perspective: they just want to understand the general nature of how you earn your income. Whether you call it "Digital Marketer," "Affiliate Marketer," or "Online Publisher," they're all painting the same basic picture of someone who earns money through online promotional activities. The more important thing I learned is making sure you're tracking all your business expenses properly - things like your website hosting, marketing tools, home office space, etc. Those deductions can really add up and have a much bigger impact on your tax situation than whatever you put in the occupation field!