The rate is the least informative number in the deal

The rate is the least informative number in the deal
Choosing a partner by payout is like choosing a flight by the number on the first screen. It is the figure designed to be looked at.
What actually determines what you earn:
— Approval and validation rates, and who decides them.
— How much gets pulled back later, and how far back they are allowed to reach.
— Payment reliability. A slightly lower rate paid on time beats a high rate paid eventually, because money you do not have cannot be reinvested.
— Whether the offer stays open. A great rate for two weeks and then a pause means you optimised for nothing.
— Support responsiveness when something breaks, and something always breaks.
The uncomfortable part: an unusually generous rate often means the partner expects to keep some of it through deductions, or they are paying you to absorb a risk on their behalf.
Compare partners on money actually received per unit of traffic across a full cycle. The rest is a quoted price.