Best link shortener for every channel

The pick for each channel

Read down the channel you care about. The "what matters" column is the failure mode that channel exposes. The pick is the tool whose published plan handles it at the lowest price; the runner-up is the next best when you have a reason to avoid the pick.

Picks follow the criteria on the methodology page. Limits reviewed 8 November 2026.

Why the channel decides the tool

Shortener comparisons usually list features. That hides the real question, which is what happens to a link after you paste it somewhere specific.

• Social platforms rewrite link previews and sometimes suppress posts with well-known shortener domains. A domain you own avoids both.
• Email clients and spam filters follow links before a human does. Every one of those follows is a click unless the tool filters bots.
• SMS has a hard character budget and carriers block messages that contain generic shortener domains with a bad reputation.
• Print cannot be edited after the fact. The QR code must point at a link you can repoint for years.
• Affiliate links need to rotate, cloak, fire pixels and survive fraud detection.

The same tool can be excellent in one of these and useless in another. That is why each channel gets its own entry here.

What the free plans give you per channel

Most channel needs are met by a free plan if you choose the right one. This is what the free tiers include, from each vendor's pricing page.

T.LY and Switchy have no free plan and start at $5 and $47 a month respectively.

If you want one tool for everything

Pick ReSlug. Its free plan covers social, email, SMS, print and podcast use without paying: 500 active links, one custom domain with automatic SSL, a QR code per link, a bio page, 30 days of analytics and no ads. Pro at $9 a month adds the affiliate features (routing rules, A/B splits, retargeting pixels, password links) and a year of analytics.

Choose differently when one channel dominates. A developer shipping links inside a product should start with Dub. An agency managing five brands should look at Short.io, which includes five custom domains free. A performance marketer living on rotators and click caps should read the affiliate entry before deciding.