Here are 20 free alternatives to Google URL Shortener goo.gl. Support for goo.gl URL shortener has been closed and the service will be discontinued on March 30, 2019. The registered users can use the service until then but anonymous and new users can’t create new links. In that case, those who use Google URL Shortener as their primary URL shortener service must be looking for some other options. Keeping that in mind, I have covered this list where you can find some very useful Google URL Shortener alternatives.
Most of these goo.gl URL shortener alternative services let you track stats of short URLs, while others are able to generate short URL for original URL only. Some other great features, like generate short URLs in batch, create a single short link for multiple URLs, generate QR code for output URL, share short link to LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, and more also present.
Let’s check these free alternatives to Google URL Shortener (goo.gl URL shortener).
Bitly
Bitly is a very popular service and perhaps the best alternative to Google URL Shortener. It lets you shorten any URL without any sign-up and with just a click. If you want to manage short URLs and view stats, then you can also create a free account. After sign up, you can check the total number of clicks for each URL, add custom text to link, share it on Twitter and Facebook, edit URL, add custom tags, check location or country from where the URL was opened, see referrers, and more. You can also search for a particular short link or set date range to filter URLs. The option to delete any URL, when no longer needed, is also available. Or else, you can simply hide a URL.
It also has a premium plan, known as Bitly Enterprise that is helpful to generate custom short URLs, create campaigns and check performances in real-time, etc. I think the free plan is good enough as goo.gl alternative.
Snipli
Snipli is a good competitor to Bitly and other Google URL shortener alternatives covered here. It has a good-looking interface where you can create a free account and then generate short URLs. You can also generate a short URL without any account but a free account gives more features. You can manage each URL separately, view click stats (clicks per country, browsers, operating systems used to click URL, referrer, etc.), share URL to Facebook, Google+, Twitter, or via email, choose domain for URL (snip.li or snipli.com), set target country, make URL private or public, add custom tags, etc.
A QR code is also generated for short URL. When you don’t need a particular URL anymore, you can also remove it. The feature to bulk shorten URLs is also there. So, some really fantastic options are present here, which make it an awesome URL shortener service and a much better alternative to goo.gl URL Shortener.
To learn more about Snipli, you can read its separate review here.
Ow.ly
Ow.ly comes with Hootsuite (which is a social media management platform) and is handy to shorten URLs with ease. If you already have a Hootsuite account, then you can shorten URL by composing a new post and using Add a link option. If not, you need to sign up for a free Hootsuite account.
Once the short URL is generated, you can also post it to your Twitter, Facebook or some other account using Hootsuite. This service also helps to view stats of short URL but for that, you need to publish the post to the connected accounts with the help of Hootsuite.
Buff.ly by Buffer
Like Ow.ly (which comes with Hootsuite), Buff.ly is also a part of Buffer which is a popular social network account manager. When you add some URL to create a post to publish it on Twitter, Facebook, or other accounts supported by Buffer, it automatically turns that URL into a short link with the help of Buff.ly. If you have a free Buffer account, you can take the help of Buff.ly service to shorten the URLs. Or else, you just need to create a free account to use this Google URL Shortener alternative.
Once the short URL is generated, you can either post it to connected social networks or simply copy it to clipboard and use wherever you want. If Buff.ly is not activated on your Buffer account by default, then you can enable it by accessing Settings.
tr.im
tr.im comes with almost all features that one might look in a good Google URL Shortener alternative. You can sign up for a free account and then create different short links with custom text (optional). For every single short URL, it generates a QR code, lets you edit a QR code, adds tags, and check click analytics.
The analytics report shows crucial information. You can view the total number of hits, clicks per country, the click was direct or referrer, clicks per target destination, source, clicks per channel and device, etc. A beautiful chart is also generated for each stat. The best part is you can also export chart and other information for each stat as CSV or XLSX file. I wasn’t able to find the option to delete the created URLs but editing and other features are quite good.
Is.gd
Is.gd is a straightforward short URL generator website that brings some interesting features. Apart from shortening a URL, you can enable stats for that URL. After that, you can view the total clicks for that particular URL, visits since creation date, visits this week, today, visits by country, browser, platform, referrers, etc. It doesn’t come with an option to create some account, store URLs, etc. So, you need to copy and paste Stats URL on your PC so that you can open it anytime you want.
Before generating the short URL, it also lets you add a custom text as an alias for short URL. So, these are the features we get with this alternative to goo.gl URL shortener. I find it better than many other services.
Tiny.cc
Tiny.cc has options similar to Is.gd website (mentioned above). It also lets you add alias text for generating the short URL. You can even enable the option to log stats for the output tiny URL. The log stores the information related to URL visits by browser, referrers, systems, countries, total number of clicks per month, and more. Once the URL is generated, you can also share it to Facebook, Reddit, Twitter, LinkedIn, etc.
The advantage of this Google URL Shortener alternative over Is.gd website is you can create a free account and manage your short links. You can add a label or tag to URL, make URL visible as QR code, edit a URL, or even delete it.
Elbo.in
Elbo.in is another fantastic alternative to Google URL Shortener. This is an open source URL shortener service where you can create short URLs with custom text. You can also get QR code for short link with different resolutions. Generating a short URL can be done without sign up. To view URL stats, a free account is needed.
In URL stats, some very useful information is provided. You can check the number of clicks for each short URL, this week, this month and this year clicks, platform stats, country stats, browser stats, and referrer stats. It also provides its Chrome, Firefox and Opera extensions that you can use as per your convenience.
Its detailed review can also be found here.
Bit.do URL Shortener
Bit.do URL Shortener competes with Is.gd, Tiny.cc, and many other services very well. Generating a short link with a custom alias is pretty easy. It generates two URLs: one is the short URL and another one is to track stats of short URL. You can check the total views for short URL, referrer sites, country/city, access date, and more. The good thing is you can track stats without creating an account. If you want to manage short links, then a free account is needed.
A QR code for short URL is also generated which you can share with others. So the features are really handy because of which this site has easily managed to have a place on this list of free Google URL Shortener alternatives.
BridgeURL
BridgeURL has a fantastic feature which you won’t find in many other Google URL Shortener alternatives. It lets you generate a single short URL for multiple original URLs. You can provide input URLs one per line, add a title of your choice, and then generate a single link for all those URLs. The good thing is you can do this without an account.
A free account can also be created to edit the created URLs but you can’t delete those URLs; only update them. You are not bound to add multiple URLs to generate a short link. You can use this service to shorten a single URL also.
Qlink.me
If you need a faster short URL generator that can create a short URL of any webpage in a single mouse click, then you should try Qlink.me. This website provides a bookmarklet that you can add to Bookmarks bar of Chrome or any other browser. After that, open a webpage and click the bookmarklet. It will immediately give you the short URL that you can copy to the clipboard.
If you don’t want to use it as a bookmarklet, then you can also generate short links directly using its homepage. One interesting feature that you won’t find in other goo.gl URL shortener alternatives is it can also expand the short URL to show the original URL.
CUTTUS
CUTTUS website brings all those important features that are needed in a good URL shortener. It can create short URLs with or without custom text. You can also check total hits for each click, get QR code, creation date, last visited date, etc. It doesn’t show country, browser, or platform stats for short URL but other information that I mentioned above is visible. Creating a short link doesn’t require any account but a free account is needed to check click stats.
Apart from that, your free account lets you check the list of all short URLs, find URLs by creation date, last visited, total hits, etc.
Smart Multi-URL Shortener
As its name indicates, Smart Multi-URL Shortener is a handy service to short multiple URLs at a time. Its homepage is here. Just paste one URL per line in the given box and you can generate separate short URLs for each link with a single mouse click. No sign up is needed. Still, you can create a free account if you want to keep the record of short URLs, check total hits, find URLs, etc.
Apart from shortening URLs in batch, it gives you the feature to short one URL at a time. So, you have both the options. Use any of them as per your requirements.
TinyURL
TinyURL is a very simple website that can be used as an alternative to goo.gl URL shortener service. It has a basic interface where you can add original URL and then shrink in with just a single click. Just tap on “Make TinyURL!” button and short URL will be ready. After that, you can copy it to clipboard or simply open it in a new window.
This website doesn’t help you view stats for short URL or provide some free account to manage short URLs. All it does is provide a short URL. You can also add a custom alias for short URL (if needed). Or else, simply generate a short URL with the available option.
TextMagic Free URL Shortener
TextMagic is a bulk SMS service for business which comes with all premium plans. But, it brings a free URL shortener tool which is handy. Here is the homepage of this free URL shortener. It has a straightforward purpose only. You enter the original or long URL and press Create short URL button. A short link is generated quickly which you can copy to clipboard and share it.
There are no click stats or other features. Just a simple URL shortener which is a simple alternative to Google URL Shortener service.
Rebrandly
Rebrandly service helps to create short links with a custom domain, which is a good feature. However, you need to purchase the domain to use with short link. If you don’t want to do that, then you can use this service for free with rebrand.ly domain and a custom text. The free plan lets you create up to 1000 short links but the good thing is you can delete unwanted links to regain the free link space.
Its free plan also brings other useful features. For example, you can share short links to LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, generate QR code for short link, edit a link, view the total number of clicks, etc.
URLAdda
URLAdda is also a nice option to use as Google URL Shortener alternative where you can create unlimited short URLs. What makes it interesting is you can password protect short URLs, set auto-expiration after the number of times or specified days, add custom text with URL, and make a URL private (to hide URL on its website) or public.
It also provides the feature to view stats for a particular URL but this feature didn’t work when I tested. I’m not sure if it’s a temporary issue but you can try it. You can use this website without sign up or create a free account. The website also brings feature to shorten URLs in bulk. So it has multiple features that you will like. The only thing is the website has ads and also its short link shows a banner ad on the top when you open a short URL.
You may also check its separate review.
U.nu
U.nu has a beautiful interface where you can quickly create a short URL with title and keyword of your choice. It also lets you check the total number of clicks for the output URL and you don’t need an account for that. The website also provides QR code for short URL and also lets you share the short URL to Twitter, Tumblr, LinkedIn, Google+, Facebook, etc.
This website also provides its bookmarklet which you can drag n drop on Bookmarks bar of your browser. After that, you can open any webpage and click that bookmarklet to open its homepage and then generate the short link. The website has simple yet useful options and therefore it can be a helpful alternative to Google URL Shortner.
ShadyURL
ShadyURL is also helpful to generate short link for an original URL but it has a bit different purpose. The website is intended to generate short URLs that look suspicious or malicious. It is just for entertainment purpose only and the short URL is safe to use, as per what I tested.
It doesn’t let you view stats for short URL. You just have to enter the original URL and use submit button to get the short output URL. The website works great to shorten the URLs. But what I find is the short links generated with this website were longer (around 5-6 characters) than the short links created by other websites. If that doesn’t bother you and you need a short URL service that can create suspicious looking URLs, then this is a nice alternative to goo.gl URL shortener.
Here is its separate article covered by us.
Ouo.io
If you want a Google URL Shortener alternative that can also help you earn money using short URLs, then Ouo.io can be helpful. For each visit to the link that you created by signup and using this website, you earn some money. But before opening a link, it shows some random ad and a wait time, which I didn’t like at all. If you also feel the same way, then it is good to try some other goo.gl URL shortener alternative covered on this list.
The website has some other beneficial features that you might find useful. You can short multiple links together and a separate short URL is generated for each original URL. You can check total views, your total available earnings, create a single short URL for a particular link, etc.
The Conclusion:
Here I wrap up this list which covers some very useful alternatives to Google URL Shortener. Based on short link generation feature, all are simply good. Still, some websites, like “Bitly”, “Snipli”, etc., are better than others because they provide URL stats, help to manage short URLs, generate QR codes, etc. So, select the one that fits your requirements and then it will help you as a better alternative to goo.gl URL shortener.
