We’ve known that short links are effective when you want to market your links. Then, it’s important to know how to shorten a link for free.
A URL shortener is exactly what it sounds like: a service that allows users to shorten their links to make them more human-friendly and less complicated-looking, typically to less than 20 characters.
Since the untimely demise of Google URL Shortener, we’ve all been looking for something that could take over as the best link shortener available. Goo.gl was extremely convenient – it was quick and, more importantly, it was free to use. Many other services have emerged since it was decommissioned in 2018, allowing you to track click data, share links faster on social media platforms, manage links, and customize link domains.
With that in mind, we’ve compiled a list of some of the best free link shorteners in no particular order, along with reasons why you should give them a try.
Tools to Shorten a Link for Free
The Most Effective URL Shortener for Branded Links
Rebrandly has an incredibly easy-to-use (and easy-on-the-eyes) interface for an app with advanced features even in its free plan. Rebrandly is more than a URL shortener with its desktop apps and browser extensions; it is a link management platform that allows you to securely and easily shorten, customize, brand, track, and integrate your links.
Features
To shorten a link for free with Rebrandly, you’ll get these features:
- With 5000 clicks tracked per month, you have unlimited link redirects.
- Up to 5 custom domains are available for personalized link branding.
- URL slugs and slash tags can be customized in five different ways (shortest, random, suggested, SEO-friendly, and suggested camel case)
- over 50 app integrations (including Zapier and Slack), as well as link sharing to major social media platforms
- editable URL destinations and a comprehensive link history, along with QR codes
- sophisticated link tracking (with stats including location, time, browser, and the number of clicks).
Highlight
Rebrandly is the app for small businesses looking to improve their custom branding and branded links. Even with its free plan, the platform packs a punch and is highly scalable and user-friendly.
Best URL Shortener for Tracking Unlimited Clicks
Bitly is one of the most widely used URL shorteners. It provides users with a chrome extension for faster access and a simple web dashboard with visual clarity for all of its tools. While Bitly has advanced link features, they are only available on paid plans.
These include, among other things, bulk-shortening, link permissions, email support, campaigns, and QR codes. However, its free plan provides users with a reasonable amount of link tracking.
Features
Signing up for a free account allows users to:
- Each month, you can shorten and track up to 100 secure links.
- count the number of clicks for each link indefinitely
- look at the referrers and click locations
- modify link back-halves (slugs, basically).
Highlight
The advantage of using Bitly – and the reason for its popularity – is its ease of use. If you’re in a hurry and need to shorten a link, simply go to their homepage and paste it in the long box there. Within a second, you’ll be given a secure link that you can copy with the click of a button. It’s pretty cool.
The Best URL Shortener for Instant Link Customization
Even if you’ve never used TinyURL, chances are you’ve come across a link created with it. TinyURL is the most basic URL shortener in this list, and most of its advanced features, such as custom branding and link monitoring, are only available as part of its paid plans. Even its free account’s web dashboard is bare bones and extremely simple to use.
If you want to know more about TinyURL, we’ve also written about “What is TinyURL Creator.”
Features
Users receive the following benefits with its free plan:
- unlimited URL shortening and link history
- Customizable URL slugs and an unlimited number of active links
- a selection of alternative TinyURL domains or a vanity TinyURL domain
Highlight
TinyURL is where you go when you need to create a quick, anonymous link to share right away. This is most likely why it is so popular; like Bitly, it provides a free URL shortener on its homepage. However, unlike Bitly, it allows you to customize your slug and choose from TinyURL’s other domains before creating a link, and without the need to sign up.
The Best URL Shortener for Mobile Advertising
Short.io is a great place to start if we’re talking about interfaces. Its design is user-friendly and well-organized, preventing the user from becoming disoriented by the software’s features. The app’s best feature is that it provides a number of advanced features, albeit limited, for free that most other apps only provide in their paid plans. One feature worth mentioning is the ability to redirect visitors based on their mobile operating system.
Features
When you sign up for a free Short.io account, you will receive:
- 5 custom domains with 1000 branded links, as well as link automation (for example, bulk-shortening) for 1000 links
- Using mobile targeting, a user’s mobile operating system is used to redirect to a specific destination.
- unlimited redirects and tracking of 50,000 clicks
- Browser extensions and responsive mobile and desktop apps for faster access
- Zapier, Segment, and Slack app integrations
- Encrypt SSL certificate for destination URL and URL slug editing
Highlight
Okay, we know it’s not free, but Short.io has a unique feature that few apps have: geographical tracking and traffic routing. You can direct visitors to different pages of your website based on their location. It’s pretty cool, especially if you’re a large corporation with an international website.
Other Great Link Shorteners
There are numerous other notable free or low-cost URL shorteners on the web that do more than the bare minimum and have unique features to offer. Tiny.cc, for example, allows users to add a logo to their links. Sniply.io, for example, enables users to add a CTA feature to their links in order to direct traffic.
Shorby was created specifically for Instagram links. Another popular open-source software, AdFly, allows users to monetize their clicks despite not having the best visual interface or user experience.
You can also read about more alternatives on our “How to Make a Link Shorter.“
For Your File Sharing Needs, Use a Link Shortener
With the convenience that a short link provides, both functionally and aesthetically, services are now offering URL shortening as part of their integrations.
Jumpshare, as a multi-tiered visual communication platform, places a strong emphasis on quick file sharing via link and email. It is intended to shorten the time between link generation and file sharing, so it includes a built-in URL shortening feature that is automatically applied to all links generated based on your custom domain and branding. It even provides per-file analytics, allowing you to see how your shared files are being viewed.
