Short answer
Use the AffiliateBoxes browser extension to import the Amazon product (title, images, price) straight from the product page — no Product Advertising API key needed — then insert it into your post with the free AffiliateBoxes WordPress plugin. It works on the free plan and takes about five minutes.
Why the Amazon API is a problem for new affiliate sites
Most Amazon affiliate plugins for WordPress fetch product titles, images and prices through Amazon's API — the Product Advertising API (PA-API), which Amazon is replacing with the Creators API. The catch: Amazon typically only grants API access once your Associates account has made qualifying sales, and can take it away again if sales stop.
So a new site is stuck in a loop: you need product boxes to make sales, and you need sales to get the API that powers the product boxes.
Your options without an API key
| Option | Images & price | Product box design | Effort |
|---|---|---|---|
| Amazon SiteStripe text/image links | Basic image only | No | Manual, per link |
| Plugins that require the API | Yes — once you have API access | Yes | Blocked until you qualify |
| Hand-built HTML boxes | Copied by hand | Whatever you build | High, hard to maintain |
| AffiliateBoxes browser extension | Yes, imported in one click | Yes, styled boxes & tables | Low |
Step by step: Amazon product boxes in WordPress, no API key
- Create a free AffiliateBoxes account. Sign up — no credit card needed. The free plan covers 1 site and 20 products and tables.
- Install the browser extension. Get it for Chrome, Edge or Firefox and approve the connection to your account.
-
Import the product from Amazon.
Open the product page on Amazon and click the extension. It saves the title, images, price and link to your AffiliateBoxes dashboard. Check that the buy button uses your affiliate link with your Associates tracking ID (for example
yourstore-20). - Style the box. Pick a box style or adjust colours, buttons, ribbons and pros/cons in the visual editor — no CSS needed. Add buy buttons for other stores if you like.
- Install the WordPress plugin and connect your site. Install AffiliateBoxes from WordPress.org, then approve the connection request in your AffiliateBoxes account.
-
Insert the box into your post.
Use the Gutenberg block, or paste the shortcode shown on the product page, e.g.
[affprod slug="…"]. Changes you make later in AffiliateBoxes sync to your site automatically.
When you do get API access
Nothing needs to be rebuilt. Add your Amazon credentials (Credential ID, Credential Secret and Partner Tag) to the Amazon network in AffiliateBoxes, and your existing boxes start receiving automatic price, image and availability updates.
Not using WordPress?
The same product boxes work on Ghost, Squarespace, Wix or any HTML page — copy the one-line script tag from the product page instead of the shortcode.