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Everything you need to know about shortening, tracking, and managing links with bitURL. Can't find what you're looking for? Contact us.
Is bitURL free to use?
Yes. bitURL is completely free — shortening links, custom aliases, QR codes, and click analytics all come at no cost. There is no credit card or payment information required.
Do I need to create an account to shorten a URL?
No. You can shorten up to 5 URLs a day without an account. Creating a free account raises your daily limit to 50 URLs a day and unlocks a dashboard to manage, edit, and track every link you've made.
How does a URL shortener actually work?
A URL shortener stores your long destination URL and generates a short, unique code to represent it. When someone visits the short link, bitURL's server looks up that code, records an anonymous click event for analytics, and redirects the visitor to the original URL — typically in well under a second.
Can I choose a custom alias for my short link?
Yes. Instead of a random code, you can request a custom, memorable alias (for example, biturl/spring-sale) as long as it isn't already taken.
Can I shorten a lot of links at once?
Yes. Bulk shortening lets you paste a whole list of URLs and shorten every one in a single action — useful for campaigns, spreadsheets, and mail merges. Bulk-created links count toward your normal daily limit.
Can a short link expire automatically?
Yes. You can set a custom expiration date and time on any link. Once a link expires, visitors see a clear “link expired” response instead of being redirected — handy for limited-time offers and time-boxed campaigns.
Does every short link get a QR code?
Yes. Every short link can generate a matching QR code, and you can customize its colors, module shapes, and frame style before downloading it as a PNG or SVG for print or digital use.
What analytics do I get for my links?
Each link tracks total clicks and unique visitors, broken down by day, week, month, and year, along with anonymized referrer, device, browser, and approximate location (country/city) data — available from your dashboard.
Is it safe to click on a shortened link?
Shortened links hide the destination until you click, so it's good practice to only follow short links from senders you trust. bitURL does not sell link or click data, disables links reported for malware, phishing, or spam, and never asks you for payment information. See the Privacy Policy and Terms of Service for full details.
Can I edit or delete a link after creating it?
Yes, from your dashboard. Signed-in users can update a link's destination, change its expiration, or delete it entirely at any time.
Is there a developer API?
Yes. bitURLoffers a developer API for creating and managing short links programmatically from your own apps or scripts, authenticated with a personal API key generated from your dashboard. API requests share your account's daily creation quota.