Every URL shortener on this list turns a long link into a short one, and on the first day they all feel the same. The differences show up later: in the third week of a campaign, when the monthly link allowance runs out, or when a printed QR code needs a new destination and the plan does not allow edits, or when someone asks how a post from four months ago performed and the analytics only go back thirty days.
This comparison covers seven link shorteners: Linxly, Bitly, TinyURL, Dub, Cuttly, Linkly and T2M. For each one you get the price of the cheapest paid plan, what that plan actually allows, and the limit people tend to hit first. Prices come from each tool's own pricing page and were checked in October 2026. Linxly is our product. It is listed first because this is our blog, and its entry sticks to the plan limits, including the ones that do not flatter it.
The short answer
If you only read one section, read this one.
- Short links, a bio page and QR codes for a few dollars a month: Linxly. Pro is $7.99 a month with two years of click history.
- A developer team tracking signups and sales from links: Dub. The API comes on every plan, and conversion tracking starts on Business.
- The name your team and clients already recognize: Bitly, if the budget allows $120 a year for the entry plan.
- Shortening with no tracking at all: TinyURL's free plan. It records no clicks and the link cannot be edited.
- A large monthly link volume on a small budget: T2M Standard (2,000 links a month for $9.99) or Cuttly Single (5,000 a month for $25).
Seven URL shorteners side by side
The table compares the cheapest paid plan of each tool, because that is the plan most people buy first.
| Tool | Cheapest paid plan | Free plan | Links on that plan | Bio page | App or device routing |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Linxly | $0.99/mo (Starter) | No, 7-day trial | 5 new a month | Yes, every plan | From Starter |
| Bitly | $10/mo, billed yearly (Core) | Yes | 100 new a month | Yes | Premium, $300/mo |
| TinyURL | $12.99/mo, or $9.99 billed yearly (Pro) | Yes | 500 active | No | No |
| Dub | $30/mo (Pro) | Yes | 1,000 new a month | No | Deep links on Pro, device targeting on Business ($90/mo) |
| Cuttly | $12/mo (Starter) | Yes | 300 new a month | 1 page, 5 links | Mobile redirects on Single ($25/mo) |
| Linkly | $15/mo, annual only (Starter) | Yes | 250 new a month, 2,000 clicks | No | Pro, $39/mo |
| T2M | $9.99/mo (Standard) | After a one-time $5 fee | 2,000 new a month, 25,000 clicks | No | Pro, $29.99/mo |
Two columns need a note. "New a month" means an allowance that resets every month. TinyURL counts active links instead, so 500 is a ceiling on live links. Linkly and T2M meter clicks as well as links, and on Linkly's free plan a link stops redirecting once the click quota is spent.
The seven tools, one by one
1. Linxly
Linxly puts a URL shortener, bio pages, device-based deep links and QR codes in one account. Every link gets a QR code automatically when you create it, and the destination stays editable on every plan, so a code that is already printed can point somewhere new.
Starter costs $0.99 a month, or $0.79 billed yearly. It is a small plan, and the numbers say so: 5 new short links a month, 2 deep links, 2 bio pages, and analytics limited to country and device type with 30 days of history. It works for a profile that needs one bio page and a couple of links. It is not built for running campaigns.
Pro at $7.99 a month ($6.39 billed yearly) is the plan to compare with the others on this list. It includes 250 new short links a month, 20 bio pages, 20 deep links, the UTM builder, password protection, link expiration, time-based redirects and QR codes with your logo and colors. Analytics cover country, city, device type, device brand, operating system, browser and referrer, with QR scans reported separately from clicks, and the history goes back two years. Business at $39.99 raises the allowance to 5,000 links a month and five years of history.
What it does not have: a free plan. Every plan starts with a 7-day trial that unlocks the full feature set, and then it is paid.
Try short links, bio pages and QR codes in one account
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Get started2. Bitly
Bitly is the name most people know, and its price reflects that. Core costs $10 a month and is sold annually only, so the entry plan is $120 paid upfront. It gives you 100 links and 5 QR codes a month, 30 days of analytics history and 5 bio pages.
The limit to read twice is "redirects". Bitly counts destination changes as a separate monthly allowance: 5 a month on Core, 20 on Growth. Growth costs $35 a month, or $29 billed yearly, and adds 500 links, 10 QR codes and 120 days of history. City-level analytics and mobile deep linking wait on Premium at $300 a month.
The free plan gives 5 links and 2 QR codes a month. Our Bitly alternative post covers why marketers move away, and Linktree vs Bitly compares it with the best-known bio page tool. For a row-by-row view, see Bitly vs Linxly.
3. TinyURL
TinyURL has been around since 2002, and its free plan still does exactly one job. You get unlimited links on tinyurl.com, a custom alias, an automatic QR code, and links that never expire. You get no click data, and you cannot edit or delete a link after you create it.
Pro costs $12.99 a month, or $9.99 billed yearly, and adds analytics and link editing. The cap is 500 active links. Above that, the next step is Bulk 100K at $99 a month, with nothing in between. There is no bio page and no device routing at any tier. Details are in the TinyURL alternative post and the TinyURL vs Linxly table.
4. Dub
Dub is built for teams with developers. The API is available on every plan, native SDKs are available, and the higher tiers track conversions, meaning signups and sales, not only clicks. Dub also sells a separate partner and affiliate program product.
The free plan includes 25 new links and 1,000 tracked events a month, with 30 days of retention. Pro at $30 a month raises that to 1,000 links, 50,000 events and a year of history, and adds deep links and custom QR codes. Business at $90 a month is where conversion tracking, A/B testing, device and geo targeting and password protection arrive.
For a SaaS company that wants to see which link brought in a paying customer, Dub is a strong pick. For a creator who needs a bio page, it is the wrong tool: it does not have one.
5. Cuttly
Cuttly has five plans, from free up to $149 a month. The free plan covers 30 links a month, one bio page with up to five links, a single fixed QR style and 30 days of analytics.
Starter at $12 a month mostly multiplies the link allowance to 300. The QR style, the single five-link bio page and the 30-day history stay the same. The real change comes on Single at $25 a month: 5,000 links, customizable QR codes, 3 bio pages with up to 20 links each, a year of history and mobile redirects. Full deep links sit on Team at $99. More in the Cuttly alternative post.
6. Linkly
Linkly's analytics are detailed, and it allows unlimited team members on every plan, including the free one. Few tools on this list do that.
The metering is the catch. The free plan covers 100 links and 500 clicks a month, and once the clicks run out, links pause until the next billing period. Starter is $15 a month but annual only, which means $180 upfront for 250 links and 2,000 clicks a month. Device routing, link rotators, password protection and tracking pixels arrive on Pro at $39 a month, or $32 billed yearly. There is no bio page on any plan. See the Linkly alternative post for the plan-by-plan breakdown, or Linkly vs Linxly for the feature table.
7. T2M
T2M's Basic plan is free for life after a one-time $5 verification fee, which T2M charges to keep spam accounts out. It covers 500 links and 5,000 clicks a month, with static QR codes and basic analytics.
Standard at $9.99 a month ($89.91 billed yearly) gives 2,000 links and 25,000 clicks a month, dynamic QR codes without customization, password protection and link expiration. Geo data, QR branding and mobile targeting wait on Pro at $29.99. T2M has no bio page. The T2M alternative post goes through each tier, and T2M vs Linxly compares the features row by row.
Which one fits which job
A creator on Instagram or TikTok. You need a bio page more than a pile of short links. Linxly includes bio pages on every plan. Cuttly's free page holds five links, which is enough for some profiles and tight for most. Bitly includes pages too, but the entry price is $120 a year.
A small business printing QR codes. The destination has to stay editable, because menus, prices and landing pages change after the print run. That rules out TinyURL's free plan. Linxly Pro puts your logo on the code at $7.99 a month. On Cuttly, customizable QR codes start at $25.
An app developer with two store links. One link should send iPhones to the App Store and Android phones to Google Play. Linxly does it from Starter. Linkly does it on Pro at $39, and Bitly only on Premium at $300.
A SaaS team with engineers. If the question is which link produced a paying customer, Dub's conversion tracking on Business answers it directly.
High volume on a small budget. T2M Standard gives 2,000 links a month for $9.99, and Cuttly Single gives 5,000 for $25.
Four things to check before you pay
What the allowance counts. New links a month, active links, or clicks. A product launch with UTM variants for every channel can use up 100 new links in a week, and a click quota that pauses links is worse than one that only stops counting.
Whether edits are metered. Changing the destination is the main reason to use a short link instead of the raw URL. Bitly limits it to 5 a month on Core. TinyURL's free plan does not allow it at all.
How far back the history goes. Thirty days is common on entry plans. A campaign that ran in March cannot be reviewed in June. Linxly Pro keeps two years, Dub Pro one year, and Bitly Core 30 days.
Where QR customization starts. A logo on the code matters before the print run, not after. On the plans above it starts at $7.99 (Linxly Pro), $15 (Linkly Starter), $25 (Cuttly Single), $29.99 (T2M Pro) and $30 (Dub Pro).
Frequently asked questions
What is the best URL shortener in 2026?
It depends on the job. For short links, a bio page and QR codes on a small budget, Linxly Pro at $7.99 a month covers all three. For conversion tracking with a developer team, Dub. For a company whose workflows already run through Bitly, Bitly.
Which URL shorteners have a free plan?
Bitly, TinyURL, Dub, Cuttly and Linkly have free plans, and T2M's Basic plan is free after a one-time $5 fee. Linxly does not have a free plan. It has a 7-day trial with every feature unlocked, and plans start at $0.99 a month after that.
Which URL shortener keeps click history the longest for the price?
Among the plans compared here, Linxly Pro keeps two years of history at $7.99 a month. Dub Pro keeps one year at $30, and Bitly Core keeps 30 days at $10 a month billed yearly.
Can I change where a short link points after I share it?
On most paid plans, yes. TinyURL's free plan does not allow it, and Bitly counts destination changes against a monthly allowance. On Linxly every plan allows edits, which is what keeps a printed QR code useful.
Can I move my existing short links to another tool?
You recreate them. Linxly has no bulk import, so the practical route is to rebuild your active links with the same slugs and update destinations as campaigns change. Export your old analytics first, because history does not transfer between tools.
The short version
On the first day every link shortener works. The plan you buy decides what happens later: how many links you get, whether you can change a destination, and how long the numbers stay. Bitly charges $120 a year for 100 links a month and 30 days of history. Dub is the developer's choice at $30 and up. Linxly Pro gives 250 links a month, bio pages, branded QR codes and two years of history for $7.99.