Quick answer
National Relief Program is a free, independent informational website, not a government agency. We earn money through labeled "Sponsored partner" links: when you click one or use a partner's service, the partner may pay us a referral fee, at no extra cost to you. Sponsors never decide what our guides say, and applying for official programs is always free.
Where sponsored links appear
- In articles: a labeled "Sponsored partner" box, usually one near the top of the article and up to two more in the body.
- In the sidebar: one sponsored box under "Before you apply," matched to the topic of the page (for example, a SNAP application guide on food pages).
- In our tools: free and official resources are listed first. Sponsored partners appear after them as clearly marked optional extras.
- Not on trust pages: pages like this one, our contact page, and our scam warnings carry no sponsored links. Some health and crisis topics carry none either.
How the links work
Sponsored links go through addresses on our own site that start with /go/ (for example, /go/debt-help-guide/). These addresses simply redirect you to the partner's website. They are marked rel="sponsored", as search engines ask for paid links, and they open in a new tab. When you click one, the partner may pay us a referral fee. It never costs you anything extra.
What to expect from partner sites
Partners are independent companies with their own terms and privacy policies. Some of them are lead-generation forms: they ask for your name, email, phone number, or other contact details, and you may then get marketing calls, texts, and emails. Our ad copy says so where it applies. Before you share anything, read the partner's privacy policy and terms. No partner is a government program, and none can make you eligible for one.
Loan offers
We do not currently show loan offers. If we ever add one, it will be labeled "Loan offer", say plainly that a loan must be repaid with interest and is not a grant, and appear only after free options such as grants, 211, and nonprofit help, never at the top of a page.
What sponsors don't get
- Sponsors never decide or review what we write, which programs we cover, or what we recommend.
- A sponsored link is not an endorsement. We don't verify or guarantee a partner's products, services, or your eligibility for them.
- Our guides link to official sources whether or not a partner exists for that topic.
Our advertising rules
Many of our readers are going through a hard time, so we hold sponsored links to specific standards:
- No sweepstakes, prize, or "free gift card" offers.
- No partners that impersonate a government agency or promise guaranteed approval.
- No countdown timers, fake urgency, or "act now or lose your benefits" messages.
- Grants (not repaid) and loans (repaid with interest) are always clearly told apart.
- We don't sell your information. Our calculators and tools run in your browser, and nothing you type into them is sent or stored.
Analytics we use
To understand which pages are useful, we use Google Analytics, Ahrefs Web Analytics, and Cloudflare Web Analytics. These show us things like page views and how visitors found the site. They are not used to choose which sponsored links you see: sponsored boxes are matched to the topic of the page, not to you. See our privacy policy and cookie policy for details.
FTC compliance
This disclosure follows the Federal Trade Commission's Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising (16 CFR Part 255). This page does not replace the labels on individual sponsored links, which appear wherever those links do.
Questions or concerns
If a partner's practices ever fall short of what you'd expect from a link on our site, we want to hear about it. Email support@nationalreliefprogram.org or see our contact page.
Frequently asked questions
Is National Relief Program a government agency?
No. We are an independent informational website. We explain official programs and link to them, but we don't run them, and applying for official programs is always free.
Does it cost me anything to click a sponsored link?
No. If a partner pays us a referral fee, it comes from the partner, not from you.
Why might I get calls or texts after using a partner site?
Some partners are lead-generation forms that collect your contact details. If you submit one, you may get marketing calls, texts, and emails from that partner or companies it works with. Read the partner's privacy policy before you share anything.
Do sponsors decide what you write?
No. Sponsors never decide or review our content. Our guides link to official sources whether or not a partner exists for that topic.