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Link shortener: what it does, and the four things worth checking
A link shortener stores a destination behind a short code and redirects to it. Everything useful about one comes from that indirection, and so does everything risky.
By Wasim Idrishi · Updated · 2 min read
A link shortener does one thing: it stores a destination behind a short code and answers requests for that code with a redirect. Everything useful about one follows from that indirection, and so does everything risky about it.
What the indirection buys you
The destination can change after the link is published. That is the whole value. A QR code on ten thousand printed menus points at a short link, and the menu can move to a new URL without reprinting anything.
The click can be counted. A request that passes through a redirect is a request somebody can measure, which is why campaign links go through one.
The link fits. Ten characters instead of a hundred and forty matters in an SMS, on a printed page, and in any field with a limit.
What the indirection costs you
The reader cannot see where they are going. That is not a side effect, it is the mechanism, and it is why short links appear in phishing. Two habits fix it: use a branded host so the sender is identifiable, and expand anything unexpected before opening it.
The link now depends on a third party. If the shortener disappears, every link stops working. That is a real risk and the mitigation is boring: export your links, know the expiry policy, and put anything printed on a plan that does not expire.
Four things worth checking before you pick one
How long the link lives
Anonymous links here last 30 days, a free account 365, and paid plans do not expire while the plan is active. Ask any shortener the same question.Whether the destination is editable
If it is not, you bought a redirect and threw away the reason to have one.What the status code is
302 keeps the destination editable. 301 is for a permanent move. A shortener that will not tell you which it uses is worth avoiding.How you get your data out
CSV export or an API, before you have thousands of links rather than after.
The pieces around the redirect
| Host | Service | Characters | With the slash | Registry |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| t.ly | T.LY | 4 | 5 | .ly, Libya |
| v.gd | v.gd | 4 | 5 | .gd, Grenada |
| gc.mw | gc.mw | 5 | 6 | .mw, Malawi |
| is.gd | is.gd | 5 | 6 | .gd, Grenada |
| bit.ly | Bitly | 6 | 7 | .ly, Libya |
| cutt.ly | Cutt.ly | 7 | 8 | .ly, Libya |
| rebrand.ly | Rebrandly | 10 | 11 | .ly, Libya |
| tinyurl.com | TinyURL | 11 | 12 | .com |
A short link is a host, a slash and a code. Beyond that, the useful parts are a QR code at the link's own URL, analytics counted at the redirect, an editable destination, and rules that send different visitors to different places by country or device.
Try it with your own link
Paste a long link and get a 10-character gc.mw link with a QR code. No account needed for 30 days; free forever with one.
Next: best URL shortener for how to choose, shortest URL shortener for the length arithmetic, and 301 vs 302 redirects for the status codes.
Questions people ask
How does a link shortener work?
It stores your long URL against a short code. When somebody opens the short link, the server looks the code up and answers with a redirect to the stored destination. The browser follows it, usually in well under a second.
Which redirect status is used?
302 by default, so the destination stays editable and every click is counted. A link can be switched to 301,307 or 308 when a permanent or method-preserving redirect is what you need.
Are short links safe to click?
They hide the destination, which is exactly why they are used in phishing. Expand one before clicking anything you were not expecting. The free link expander shows the final destination and every hop on the way without opening it.
Do short links hurt SEO?
A redirect passes the visitor through to the destination and the destination is what ranks. Use 301 when a URL has permanently moved and the signal should transfer. Use 302 for campaign links whose target you may change.