A TinyURL alternative with no link quota.
TinyURL is cheap, and we will not pretend otherwise. What it rations is how many links you make, how many domains you use and, on the bigger plan, how many clicks it counts. Kortli runs on your own server, costs one payment, and has no quotas at all.
What TinyURL counts
TinyURL Pro is $9 a month paid yearly ($108), or $11 month to month. It includes 125 new links a month, and each extra 10 costs $1.50. It allows three branded domains. The Bulk plan raises that to 50,000 links for $69 a month paid yearly, but then counts clicks too: 50,000 a month, then $0.60 per extra thousand. On Bulk, new links expire after 90 days unless you change the default.
None of that is unreasonable for a hosted service. But it means your bill grows with how well your links do, and a campaign that takes off costs you more.
Side by side
| TinyURL Pro | TinyURL Bulk 50K | Kortli | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Price | $108 a year | $828 a year | $199 once |
| New links | 125 a month, then $1.50 per 10 | 50,000 a month, then $2 per 1,000 | No limit |
| Tracked clicks | Unlimited | 50,000 a month, then $0.60 per 1,000 | No limit |
| Your own domains | 3 | 3 | As many as you like |
| Click history | 2 years | 2 years | For as long as you keep it |
| Where links and data live | TinyURL’s servers | TinyURL’s servers | Your server |
| Password-protected links | No | No | Yes |
| A/B split testing on a link | No | No | Yes, up to four destinations |
| Styled QR codes with your logo | — | — | Included, as vector artwork |
| Source code | No | No | All of it |
| Setup | None — sign up and go | None | One command on a Linux server |
The maths, over five years
Kortli plus a small server at about $6 a month comes to roughly $559 over five years. TinyURL Pro comes to $540 paid yearly, or $660 month to month. That is close to even, and we would rather say so. The gap opens when you outgrow 125 links a month, when you need a fourth domain, or when you move to Bulk, which costs $4,140 over the same five years.
When TinyURL is the better buy
Stay with TinyURL if you make a few dozen links a month on one or two domains, and nobody wants to look after a server. At that size Pro is cheap, and it asks nothing of you. Kortli makes sense when you want no quotas, more domains, password-protected links or A/B testing, or you want the click data on your own machine.
Kortli is built on Shlink, an open-source shortener under the MIT licence that you could download for nothing tomorrow. What Shlink has not got is password-protected links, A/B testing or QR codes. Those, the interface, the one-command install and the support are what you are paying for.
Questions people ask
Can I keep my existing tinyurl.com links working?
Links on the tinyurl.com domain belong to TinyURL, so they stay with TinyURL. If your links are on a domain you own, point that domain at Kortli and import your list, and the same links keep working. Moving is simplest while most of your links are still on your own domain.
Is Kortli cheaper than TinyURL?
Against TinyURL Pro, over five years, it is about the same: roughly $559 including a small server, against $540. Against the Bulk plan, or once you pay for extra links, it is much cheaper. What Kortli adds is no quotas, unlimited domains and your data on your own server.
What do I need to run it?
Any Linux server with Docker — a $6-a-month box is plenty — and a short domain of your own. The install is one command, and HTTPS sets itself up. If you would rather not, we will install it for you for $199 + $499 — licence and setup together, paid once — or host it for you for $199 once and then $79 a month.
Does Kortli make QR codes like TinyURL?
Yes. Every link can have a QR code in your colours with your logo in the middle, downloaded as vector artwork for print. The destination stays editable after the code is printed. There is more on the URL shortener with QR codes page.
No quotas. No meter running.
One payment. Full source code. Your server, your data. Also comparing against Bitly? See our Bitly alternative page.