what’s it called when you make money on the percentage of the total sales you make?

The thing you’re describing is usually called commission.

More specifically, when you make money as a percentage of the total sales you generate, people often say:

• “I get paid on commission.”

• “It’s a percentage-of-sales commission.”

• In some contexts (like recurring subscriptions), it can be called residual commission if you keep earning a percentage as long as the account stays active.

So if you’re looking for the term: it’s a commission-based pay structure, where your income is a percentage of total sales.