If you’ve spent any time in affiliate marketing, you’ve probably heard the same advice over and over again:

“The money is in the list.”

The problem is that building that list is often easier said than done.

You need traffic. You need subscribers. You may need an autoresponder. And when you’re just starting out, paying for advertising and multiple marketing tools can get expensive quickly.

That’s what caught my attention about Free List Monster.

Free List Monster takes a different approach to email list building. Instead of charging you to participate, the program is free to join and uses an unusual referral system designed to help members grow their own mailing lists.

Even more interesting, Free List Monster offers cash rewards as your list reaches certain milestones.

So, is Free List Monster worth joining?

Let’s take a closer look.

What Is Free List Monster?

Free List Monster is an email list-building program created by Craig Haywood.

The basic idea is surprisingly simple:

Help marketers build their own email lists without requiring them to pay for another list-building program.

That distinction matters.

A lot of new affiliate marketers spend most of their time looking for the next traffic source or promoting the next affiliate offer. They might get a few clicks, referrals or commissions, but once the promotion ends, they essentially have to start over.

Building an email list changes that.

Instead of constantly depending on someone else's audience, you begin developing an audience of your own that you can communicate with again.

Free List Monster was designed to encourage marketers to start building that asset.

And it does something unusual to provide that motivation:

It rewards members for growing their lists.

How Does Free List Monster Work?

This is where Free List Monster becomes interesting.

The program uses what it calls a one-up-to-infinity referral system.

The name sounds complicated, but the basic concept isn't too difficult once you see how it works.

When you refer people to Free List Monster, your referrals are shared according to the one-up structure.

For example, if you personally generate 20 referrals, roughly half would be passed upward to your sponsor while the others remain in your downline.

At first, giving away referrals might not sound very attractive.

But here's the important part.

The people who remain in your downline follow the exact same referral structure.

Their odd referrals are passed upward to you.

Those new members can then generate referrals of their own, creating the potential for your list to grow beyond the number of people you personally recruit.

That's the leverage behind Free List Monster.

Instead of your results depending entirely on your own referrals, activity occurring underneath you can contribute to the growth of your list.

Of course, that doesn't mean you can join today, do absolutely nothing and expect thousands of subscribers tomorrow. Your actual results will depend heavily on how much promotion takes place throughout your referral structure.

But it is an interesting approach to list building.

You Can Earn Up to $550 in Cash Rewards

Here's another feature that makes Free List Monster stand out.

The program doesn't just encourage you to build your list.

It offers cash rewards for doing it.

As your subscriber count reaches different milestones, you become eligible for rewards. The reward structure can total as much as $550 as you progress through the list-building milestones.

That's a clever idea because one of the biggest problems beginners face is motivation.

It's easy to get excited about making an immediate affiliate commission.

Building an email list can feel different because you're creating something whose real value may become apparent over time.

Free List Monster gives you another reason to keep going.

You're working toward building your own audience while also progressing toward cash-reward milestones.

I wouldn't join expecting the rewards themselves to replace an income. The bigger potential value is the list you're building.

If you eventually have hundreds or thousands of people you can communicate with, that audience could be considerably more useful to your business than the reward you received while building it.

Free List Monster Is 100% Free to Join

This is probably one of Free List Monster's biggest advantages, especially for beginners.

There is no membership fee required to join the core program.

You aren't joining a free trial that immediately requires you to upgrade just to make the basic list-building system work.

That removes one of the biggest barriers facing new marketers.

You can learn how the system works, begin promoting your referral link and start building your list without putting another monthly charge on your credit card.

For someone already paying for hosting, autoresponders, advertising and other marketing tools, that's a welcome change.

Free List Monster and GetResponse

Free List Monster can also make managing your new subscribers easier.

According to multiple user reviews, members using GetResponse can have their leads automatically added to their GetResponse list.

That's convenient because you don't have to constantly transfer subscribers manually.

What if you don't use GetResponse?

You're not locked out.

Free List Monster provides a one-click lead export option for members using other email marketing services.

You can export your leads and then work with them through your preferred compatible email marketing setup.

The limitation is that automatic lead depositing is currently associated with GetResponse. If you use another autoresponder, expect an extra export/import step.

You Only End Up on One Sponsor's List

This is a feature I particularly like about the concept.

Some referral-based list-building systems can result in the same person ending up on multiple marketers' mailing lists.

Free List Monster was designed differently.

The one-up system means you end up on your sponsor's mailing list rather than automatically being placed on numerous marketers' lists throughout an upline.

That's better for the subscriber and potentially better for the marketer.

If the same person is receiving similar promotions from ten different people, getting their attention becomes difficult.

Free List Monster attempts to avoid that problem.

Can You Make Money With Free List Monster?

There are several possible monetization angles, but it's important to keep expectations realistic.

First, there are the previously mentioned cash rewards for reaching list-building milestones.

Free List Monster also has an optional account monetization component, and reviewers mention opportunities to earn commissions from additional products available through the system.

But I wouldn't make those features the only reason to join.

The real opportunity is much simpler:

You're building a mailing list.

Suppose you're an affiliate marketer.

Instead of sending someone directly to an affiliate offer and losing contact with that visitor forever, building a list gives you the opportunity to develop an ongoing relationship with subscribers.

You can potentially introduce appropriate affiliate offers, share useful marketing information, recommend tools and promote future opportunities.

That's what makes an email list an asset rather than simply another source of clicks.

Is Free List Monster Passive?

You'll see the word "passive" mentioned quite frequently in reviews of Free List Monster.

There is some reasoning behind it.

Because of the one-up-to-infinity structure, referrals generated by members underneath you can potentially add people to your list without those people being personally referred by you.

However, I wouldn't interpret that as meaning no work is required.

Someone still has to generate those referrals.

The stronger your promotion and the more activity occurring throughout your referral network, the greater the potential leverage.

I think a better way of looking at Free List Monster is:

Your list-building efforts aren't necessarily limited to the referrals you personally generate.

That's attractive without assuming automatic results.

Who Is Free List Monster Best For?

I think Free List Monster makes the most sense for:

• New affiliate marketers who don't have an email list

• Safelist and traffic-exchange users

• Marketers looking for free list-building methods

• Affiliate marketers tired of constantly chasing one-time clicks

• People who already use GetResponse

• Marketers who want to build an audience they can contact repeatedly

• Beginners who can't justify paying for another marketing program

Traffic exchanges and safelists could actually be an interesting fit.

Rather than using those sources only to send people directly to affiliate offers, you could promote Free List Monster and potentially turn some of that traffic into something longer lasting—your own list.

Free List Monster Pros and Cons

What I Like

100% free to join

There's very little financial risk involved in testing the program.

Unique one-up-to-infinity system

Your list has the potential to benefit from referral activity happening underneath you.

Up to $550 in cash rewards

The reward milestones provide extra motivation to continue building your list.

GetResponse integration

GetResponse users can benefit from automatic lead deposits.

One-click lead export

Members using other autoresponders aren't completely left out.

Only one sponsor's mailing list

The structure is designed to prevent members from automatically ending up on multiple sponsors' lists.

Additional monetization opportunities

Members can explore optional monetization and commissions in addition to building their lists.

What I Don't Like

Automatic integration is limited

If you don't use GetResponse, you'll need to use the export option rather than automatic lead depositing.

You still need to promote

Free doesn't mean effortless. You need to get the ball rolling by promoting your Free List Monster link.

Referral activity isn't guaranteed

The one-up system can create leverage, but its effectiveness depends on people throughout the structure actually generating referrals.

Cash shouldn't be the only motivation

The $550 reward sounds attractive, but I believe the real reason to use Free List Monster should be building a useful email audience.

Is Free List Monster Legit?

Based on how the program operates and the experiences shared by users, Free List Monster appears to be a legitimate list-building program rather than a typical "pay money and hope to make more money" opportunity.

The most reassuring part for me is simple:

You don't have to buy your way in.

You're being encouraged to perform a legitimate marketing activity—building an email list.

The program then adds a referral mechanism and rewards around that activity.

That doesn't mean everyone who joins will build thousands of subscribers or make substantial money.

Results depend on promotion, referral activity, follow-up and how effectively you eventually market to your list.

But you're starting without the usual upfront membership expense.

My Free List Monster Review: Final Verdict

I like the idea behind Free List Monster because it addresses one of the biggest mistakes people make when starting affiliate marketing.

They focus almost entirely on getting today's click or today's commission.

They don't build anything they control for tomorrow.

Free List Monster tries to change that behavior.

The one-up-to-infinity referral structure gives members an interesting form of leverage, the cash rewards provide additional motivation, and the free membership makes it accessible to someone who doesn't have a large marketing budget.

Would I expect to join today and wake up next month with thousands of subscribers?

No.

Would I use a free system that could help me build an email list while rewarding me for reaching certain milestones?

Absolutely.

If you're already promoting affiliate programs, using traffic exchanges, mailing safelists or trying different ways to generate traffic, Free List Monster gives you another possibility:

Instead of sending every visitor directly to somebody else's offer, start using some of that effort to build an audience of your own.

That's where I believe the real value of Free List Monster lies.

Overall Rating: 4.8/5

For beginners in particular, it's difficult to argue with the price.

Free List Monster is free to join, gives you a reason to finally start building your list, and creates the potential for other members' referral activity to help that list grow.

If you've been putting off list building because it seemed too expensive or complicated, Free List Monster is certainly worth taking a closer look at. Click here to get started