Best URL Shorteners in 2026: 6 Compared, Free Plans First
We compared six URL shorteners for creators and small teams: Short.io, SendURL, Bitly, Rebrandly, TinyURL and Dub. Free-plan limits with numbers, paid prices, and each one's gaps.
For most people the best URL shortener is the one whose free plan covers what they need: Short.io if you want a custom domain and lots of links, SendURL if you want full click data without an account or a card, Bitly if you'll pay for a big platform. The table below puts six services side by side, with every number taken from each company's own pricing page on 15 October 2026.
Disclosure: SendURL is our product. We list its gaps alongside everyone else's, and for several needs we point you elsewhere.
Key takeaways
- Short.io has the largest free plan: 1,000 links over the account's lifetime and 5 custom domains.
- SendURL is the only one here with full per-click data, passwords and expiry on the free plan, and you can shorten without an account, then claim the link when you sign up. It has no custom domains.
- Bitly's free plan is down to 5 links a month; its paid plans are the broadest.
- Rebrandly and Dub put a custom domain on the free plan but keep detailed analytics small.
- TinyURL's free plan has no analytics at all.
How we compared. On 15 October 2026 we read each service's pricing page (and, for TinyURL, the plan data the page loads) and recorded free-plan limits, analytics, QR codes, password and expiry, API access and the first paid price. We did not test redirect speed or uptime. Prices are in US dollars as listed; they change often, so check before you buy.
The six at a glance
| Free links | Free click data | Custom domain on Free | Password, expiry | API on Free | First paid plan | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Short.io | 1,000 lifetime total | 50,000 tracked clicks a month | 5 | from Pro ($18) | yes | Hobby, $5 a month |
| SendURL | 100 per workspace | every click; 7 days of analytics history listed | none | every plan | yes | Pro, $5 a month, set up by email |
| Bitly | 5 a month | no data history listed | none | expiry from Growth ($29, billed annually); password not listed | 1,000 requests a month | Core, $10 a month, annual only |
| Rebrandly | 10 a month | 100 clicks a month in detail | 1 | from Professional ($32) | yes | Essentials, $11 a month |
| TinyURL | 30 a month | none | none | expiry on paid plans | yes (API token from your account) | Pro, $11 a month |
| Dub | 25 a month | 1,000 events a month, 30 days | 3 | from Pro ($30) | yes | Pro, $30 a month |
"Not listed" means the pricing page doesn't say. SendURL redirects with a 302, so every click reaches the server and gets counted. Rebrandly and Short.io list 301 redirects among their features, and Bitly answered a 301 that browsers may cache for 90 seconds when we checked on 15 October 2026; we didn't check TinyURL or Dub. Why it matters is in how URL shorteners work.
Short.io: best free plan for custom domains
Short.io's pricing page lists 1,000 branded links on Free, issued once for the account's lifetime rather than each month, plus 5 custom domains and 50,000 tracked clicks a month. Its "included in every plan" list covers QR codes, an API, destination and slug editing, a UTM builder and A/B testing. Hobby is $5 a month; password protection and link expiration start on Pro at $18. You need an account to start.
Full comparison: Short.io vs SendURL.
SendURL: best for click data without paying
You can shorten a link on the SendURL home page without an account, then claim it when you sign up. The free plan holds 100 links. Every click records the country, device, browser, operating system, referrer and time, with QR scans flagged separately, and you get charts of clicks over time; Free lists 7 days of analytics history. Every link also gets one of SendURL's QR codes, an optional expiry and an optional password, and the REST API works on every plan. Pro is $5 a month for 1,000 links in total and lists 30 days of analytics history; it's set up by email at support@sendurl.to, not self-serve checkout. For the free plans side by side on analytics alone, see our comparison of each free URL shortener with analytics. The tour of every SendURL feature lists the rest.
The gaps are real. SendURL has no custom domains, no team seats and no browser extension, and you can change a link's destination only through the API, not in the console. If you need any of those, pick another service on this list.
Bitly: broadest paid platform
Bitly's free plan, marked with a "With Ads" badge, lists 5 links a month, 2 QR codes a month and 3 custom back-halves, with no data history. Core is $10 a month, billed annually only ($120), for 100 links a month and 30 days of data. Growth, at $29 a month on annual billing ($35 month to month), adds a complimentary custom domain, bulk creation and 4 months of data; Premium adds city-level and device-type data.
Full comparison: Bitly vs SendURL, or see free Bitly alternatives if the free plan is the problem.
Rebrandly: a custom domain on the free plan
Rebrandly's free plan lists 10 links a month, 10 QR codes a month with a watermark, one custom domain plus the Rebrand.ly domain, a UTM builder and API access. Detailed engagement data is capped at 100 clicks a month, with total clicks and country. Essentials is $11 a month, or $8 on annual billing, for 250 links and 2 domains; passwords, expiry, referrer, browser, OS and city data start on Professional.
Full comparison: Rebrandly vs SendURL.
TinyURL: simplest, analytics on paid plans only
TinyURL lets anyone shorten a link from its home page, and free links never expire by default. The free plan allows 30 links a month and has no analytics. Pro starts at $11 a month, or $9 on annual billing, for 125 links a month, 3 branded domains and 2 years of analytics history.
Full comparison: TinyURL vs SendURL.
Dub: custom domains and attribution
Dub's free plan lists 25 new links a month, 1,000 tracked events, 30 days of analytics retention, 3 custom domains, QR codes and API access. Password protection and link expiration aren't on Free; Pro is $30 a month for 1,000 links and a year of data, and Business and Advanced ($90 and $300) add more.
Full comparison: Dub vs SendURL.
What SendURL doesn't do
No custom or branded domains: every link is on snu.to. No UTM fields in the console (there is a free UTM builder on the website), no CSV export (the API is the export path), no team seats, no bulk import, no city data, no bot filtering. Destination changes are API-only. Each Free link stops at 100,000 visits (it then answers 410); Bitly and Rebrandly list unlimited clicks, and Short.io unlimited redirects.
How to choose
| If you need… | Start with |
|---|---|
| Your own domain, free | Short.io, Dub or Rebrandly (Rebrandly: a yourbrand.bio address) |
| Lots of free links | Short.io |
| Every click in detail, free | SendURL |
| Passwords or expiry, free | SendURL |
| A shortener with no sign-up | SendURL or TinyURL |
| Years of history, paid | Bitly, TinyURL or Dub (1 year on Pro) |
| Bulk creation or teams | Bitly, Rebrandly, Short.io or Dub |
To see clicks by country, device, browser and referrer without a bill, shorten your first link on the home page, watch its counter, and sign up free to see every click.
Checklist before you pick one
- Count the links you make in a month, and in a year (Short.io's free 1,000 are a lifetime allowance, not a monthly one)
- Decide whether the link must show your own domain
- Decide how much click detail you need on the free plan
- Ask what happens to your links if the service closes (the goo.gl shutdown stranded links that nobody had used in late 2024)
- Check the pricing page again on the day you buy
Frequently asked questions
What is the best free URL shortener?
It depends on what you need from the free plan. Short.io gives the most links (1,000 over the account's lifetime) and custom domains. SendURL gives full per-click analytics on 100 links with no account needed to start. TinyURL is the simplest but has no free analytics.
Which URL shortener has analytics on the free plan?
As of 15 October 2026: SendURL records every click in full; Short.io tracks 50,000 clicks a month; Dub tracks 1,000 events a month with 30 days of history; Rebrandly shows detailed data for 100 clicks a month; Bitly lists no data history on Free; TinyURL has no free analytics.
Which URL shorteners have password protection on the free plan?
SendURL includes it on every plan, Free included. Short.io, Dub and Rebrandly start it on paid plans (Pro, Pro and Professional), and the Bitly and TinyURL pricing pages do not list it, as of 15 October 2026.
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