URLR is a URL shortener from Orléans, France, that has been developed since 2019 and is aimed mainly at companies and public organizations. Short links run either on the urlr.me domain or on a domain or subdomain that the customer already owns. Links can be edited after creation, organized in folders, protected with a password, given an expiry date or routed by visitor location. The service also generates QR codes whose destination can be changed later without printing a new code. A central dashboard shows visits, unique visitors and the split between clicks and QR scans over time. A REST API, webhooks and integrations such as Zapier allow links to be created automatically, and the interface is available in six languages.
European URL shorteners
URL shorteners turn long web addresses into short links that redirect visitors to the original page. Businesses, publishers and public bodies use them to share links in social media posts, printed material, text messages and QR codes, where long addresses are impractical. Most services in this category run short links on the customer's own domain, so recipients see a familiar brand instead of a generic short domain. They also record clicks per link, typically broken down by time, country, device or referring site, which helps measure campaigns. Links can usually be edited after publication, grouped, protected with a password or given an expiry date, and created automatically through an API. Some URL shorteners are open source and can be run on your own server, which keeps link and click data entirely under your control. Because short links hide their destination, a reputable provider also needs clear rules against misuse and a way to report abusive links.
This category contains services from companies based in a member state of the European Union (EU), the European Economic Area (EEA) and the European Free Trade Association (EFTA).
You can read more about the listing criteria the listing criteria.
European services
Nemorius is a URL shortener from Paris, France, that was previously known as LC.CX and has been creating short links since 2009. Short links run on the lc.cx domain or, after a simple DNS change, on the customer's own domain. Besides shortening links, the platform creates QR codes, simple landing pages and forms whose responses can be viewed and exported from a dashboard. Audience reports show how links and QR codes perform in campaigns, and scheduled reports and link monitoring are available for larger teams. An API and integrations with production and project management tools allow links and QR codes to be created in bulk.
Cuttly is a URL shortener from Gdańsk, Poland, that turns long web addresses into short links on the cutt.ly domain or on a customer's own branded domain. Every link records clicks with breakdowns by location, device, operating system, browser and referring site. Links can carry custom slugs, UTM parameters, passwords, expiry dates and device-specific redirects, and their destination can be changed after publication. Alongside shortening, the service creates QR codes, link-in-bio pages, simple surveys and call-to-action pages. Teams can share workspaces, and a REST API plus integrations with automation tools such as Zapier and Make let links be created programmatically.
Self-hosted & Open Source
Shlink is a self-hosted open-source URL shortener written in PHP and released under the MIT license. It has been developed since 2016, mainly by Alejandro Celaya from Spain. Rather than being a hosted service, it runs on the user's own server, for example from the official Docker image, and serves short links on one or more of the user's own domains. Links are managed through a REST API, a command-line tool or the separate open-source Shlink web client, and they can be edited, tagged, limited in time or number of visits and redirected differently depending on the visitor's device. Every visit is recorded with details such as referrer and browser, and an optional GeoLite2 database adds the visitor's approximate location. QR codes can be generated for any short link.
YOURLS, short for Your Own URL Shortener, is a self-hosted open-source URL shortener written in PHP and released under the MIT license. It runs on an ordinary web server with a MySQL or MariaDB database and serves short links on a domain of the operator's choosing, either privately for one person or team or publicly for anyone. Links are created and edited in a web admin interface, through bookmarklets or through an API that returns JSON or XML. For each link, YOURLS records clicks over time, referring sites and the visitors' countries. A plugin system with a large catalogue of community extensions adds features such as additional authentication methods, spam protection and custom redirects.