7 Best URL Shorteners for WordPress to Track Links

As an experienced WordPress user of over 15 years, I wanted to provide a comprehensive guide to the best URL shorteners available today. Whether you want to create branded links, cloak affiliate links, or simply shorten URLs for social sharing – having the right tool can save you time and effort.

In this detailed guide, I‘ll compare the top 7 URL shorteners specifically for WordPress users based on hands-on testing and experience. You‘ll get insight into the key features, pros and cons, and recommendations for the best solution based on your needs.

Let‘s start with why URL shorteners are so useful for WordPress sites in the first place.

Why Use a URL Shortener with WordPress?

Here are some of the biggest reasons to use a URL shortening service or plugin with your WordPress site:

Save Characters for Social Media

Twitter, Facebook, and other social networks limit post length. Shortened URLs save room for more text to drive engagement. For example:

Short: https://bit.ly/3CjvHD2
Long: https://www.reallylongurl.com/example/post/share/12345 

Brand and Customize Links

Shorteners let you add your domain to links instead of random strings. For example:

https://blogcadre.com/go/

Looks much more professional than:

https://bit.ly/abc123

Track Clicks on Shared Links

See how many clicks your shortened URLs get from social traffic or other sites linking to you.

Cloak and Manage Affiliate Links

Hide ugly affiliate code and IDs with pretty branded links. For example:

https://blogcadre.com/recommended/tool-name  

Instead of:

https://external-site.com/go/?a=1234&c=5678

Improve Link Management

Organize, group, and manage all your links from one dashboard.

According to Backlinko, branded shortened URLs have a 34% higher CTR on average compared to non-branded URLs.

Shortened URLs are click magnets for social media. Just be sure to use permanent 301 redirects to maintain SEO value.

Now let‘s compare the top 7 tools and WordPress plugins for creating and managing short links…

1. Pretty Links – Best for Affiliate Links

Pretty Links is my top pick for affiliate marketers who want to cloak, track, and manage affiliate links.

With over 300,000+ active installs, it‘s the most popular URL shortener plugin on WordPress.org.

Key Features

• Cloak and brand affiliate links
• Built-in click tracking
• 301, 302, 307 redirects
• Auto-link keywords
• Link categories and groups
• Import/export links
• Integrates with Google Analytics

One of the best features is the automatic affiliate link cloaking.

For example, you can turn this:

https://amazon.com/product-link?tag=yourID

Into this:

https://blogcadre.com/amzn/product-name

This helps hide ugly affiliate codes into clean-looking links.

Pretty Links also has robust click analytics. You can see clicks, geodata, referrers, browser, platform, and more for each link.

The free version is great for getting started. Upgrade to pro to unlock more analytics, priorities support, and other powerful features.

Pretty Links is used by large sites like QuickSprout and BoostBlogTraffic to manage thousands of affiliate links.

Pros

• Custom branded links
• Easy affiliate link cloaking
• Great analytics and reporting
• Easy to import links in bulk
• Free and paid versions

Cons

• Have to manually update changed affiliate links
• Some advanced features only in paid version

Best For: Affiliate marketers, lead generation sites, or anyone with lots of affiliate links.

2. Bitly – Most Recognized Brand

Chances are you‘ve used or seen Bitly links before. They are one of the most established URL shorteners.

The Bitly WordPress plugin lets you shorten links directly from the editor.

Key Features

• Create custom branded short links
• Real-time click tracking
• Link retargeting
• QR code generator
• Bookmarklets to shorten links
• WordPress plugin

For example, you can create a branded short domain like:

https://bit.ly/yourname

Bitly also provides real-time analytics. You can see when your links are getting clicked and which referral sites drive the most traffic.

A pro account lets you connect your own custom domain as well.

For example:

https://customdomain.com/go

Bitly is the best option if you want a recognized brand URL shortener with reliable link tracking. It‘s been around since 2008.

Pros

• Recognized brand
• Reliable click analytics
• Custom link branding
• WordPress plugin integration

Cons

• Free plan limits you to 5 custom domains
• Have to log in to third-party dashboard

Best For: Established sites who want a trusted tool for shareable shortened links.

3. ThirstyAffiliates – For Cloaking Affiliate Links

ThirstyAffiliates is a WordPress plugin built specifically for affiliate link management.

With over 60,000+ active installs, it‘s one of the most popular options for affiliate marketers.

Key Features

• Auto insert affiliate links
• Cloak and brand links
• Link click tracking
• Geolocation tracking
• Import affiliate links in bulk
• Link blacklist
• Free and paid plans

For example, you can take an Amazon affiliate link like:

https://www.amazon.com/Large-Foam-Roller/dp/B084DXSNWH?tag=yourID

And turn it into:

https://www.yoursite.com/recommended/foam-roller 

The pro version has very powerful analytics where you can see earnings per link and by geo location.

ThirstyAffiliates integrates beautifully with Amazon Associates or any affiliate program.

Pros

• Made specifically for affiliate links
• Automatic link insertion
• Great analytics and tracking

Cons

• Have to renew changed Amazon codes manually
• Free version is limited

Best For: Affiliate marketers who want a WordPress-first cloaking solution.

4. URL Shortener by MyThemeShop – Basic Free Plugin

URL Shortener by MyThemeShop is a simple free WordPress plugin to create short links.

Key Features

• Shorten URLs for your content
• Basic click tracking
• 301, 302, 307 redirects
• Link tagging
• Open links in new tab
• Link grouping

It adds a Shorten URL box when editing posts in WordPress. You can enter any long URL and create a shortened version.

For example:

Original: https://example.com/really-long-url 

Shortened: https://wp.com/abc123

The free version provides basic click analytics. You can see a counter of how many clicks your links received.

There are also options to open links in a new tab, use no follow/sponsored tags, and group links into channels.

URL Shortener by MyThemeShop is great if you just need simple URL shortcodes for your WordPress content without advanced tracking and reporting.

Pros

• Simple interface
• Good for basic URL shortening
• Lightweight free plugin

Cons

• Very limited analytics
• No custom branding options
• No affiliate link cloaking

Best For: Blogs, small sites, or anyone who just needs a barebones URL shortcode plugin.

5. URL Shortify – Free Plugin with Tracking

URL Shortify is another free WordPress URL shortener plugin but with more advanced analytics.

Key Features

• Automatic post URL shortening
• Detailed click analytics
• Track geolocation
• Blacklist bad links
• Click fraud detection
• Free and paid plans

For example, here‘s a snapshot of the detailed analytics available in the free version:

Date	Short URL Clicks	Long URL Clicks	Unique Clicks	Top Country
8/12/2022	5	3	4	United States
8/11/2022	3	0	2	Canada
8/10/2022	2	1	3	United Kingdom

URL Shortify makes it easy to see click data for both the short URL and original long URL.

The pro version expands the analytics and lets you detect fraudulent clicks.

Overall, it‘s a great option if you want free WordPress shortcodes with more robust tracking.

Pros

• Free plugin with good analytics
• Automatic post URL shortening
• Tracks geo and referrals
• Click fraud protection (pro)

Cons

• Can‘t customize short URL domain
• Still limited compared to premium tools

Best For: Blogs, publishers, or anyone who wants more data from a free shortener.

6. Jetpack Shortlinks – Use wp.me Links

The Jetpack plugin by WordPress.com includes the Shortlinks module.

It lets you shorten links using the wp.me domain.

Key Features

• Create short links from editor
• Uses wp.me domain
• Part of Jetpack plugin suite

The Shortlinks tool is easy to use directly within the editor:

The biggest downside is the lack of analytics and tracking.

You won‘t get any click data on your shortened wp.me links. And there is no dashboard to see how many clicks your links are getting.

However, if you already use Jetpack, it can be a quick and simple URL shortener.

Pros

• Super easy to create short links
• Handy editor integration
• Free as part of Jetpack

Cons

• No analytics or tracking
• Can‘t customize domain
• Very limited features

Best For: Casual users who already use Jetpack for other features.

7. TinyURL – Quick External Shortener

TinyURL is one of the original URL shortening services. Their free plan lets you shorten URLs with basic tinyurl.com links.

Key Features

• Simple submission form
• Link click tracking
• Custom short domains
• Basic dashboard for links
• Completely free

The stripped down free version is nice if you just want a barebones external shortener.

To get analytics, you would need to upgrade to a paid plan starting at $8/month. This unlocks:

• View click analytics
• See countries and referrers
• Create a custom domain
• API access

Overall, TinyURL is better for personal use where you just want a simple shortened link. For WordPress sites, I suggest a more integrated plugin instead.

Pros

• Easy and straight-forward
• Free basic URL shortener
• Upgrade for tracking

Cons

• Very limited free version
• No WordPress integration
• Have to log in externally

Best For: Casual personal use where you don‘t need WordPress integration or advanced tracking.

How to Choose the Best URL Shortener for Your Needs

All the tools on this list will shorten your URLs, but they vary widely in terms of features.

Here are some things to consider when choosing a URL shortener for WordPress:

Number of Links

Are you shortening a few links or hundreds/thousands? Some tools handle large libraries better.

Affiliate Links?

Do you want to cloak or brand affiliate links? If so, Pretty Links or ThirstyAffiliates are better picks.

Analytics

Do you need basic or advanced analytics? Pretty Links has the most powerful built-in tracking.

Custom Branding

Can you customize shortened URLs with your domain vs .3rd party links?

WordPress Integration

Do you want a true WordPress plugin or external service?

Price

All have free plans. But some advanced features require paid upgrades.

Take these factors into account when choosing the right solution for your site‘s specific needs.

My Top Recommendation

Here is my top pick for the best WordPress URL shortener:

Pretty Links is my top recommendation for most WordPress users.

It makes it simple to:

• Cloak, brand, and track affiliate links
• Create custom shortened URLs
• 301, 302, 307 redirects
• Automatic keyword linking
• Detailed built-in click analytics
• Easy import and export of links
• Superb support from the developer

I‘ve used Pretty Links on my own sites for years and it‘s been a real game changer for tracking affiliate links and creating branded short URLs.

The free version is great. But I highly recommend upgrading to pro to unlock more powerful features:

• Priority email support
• Additional analytics
• A/B testing
• Earnings tracking
• And more

Give Pretty Links a try on your WordPress site today!

URL Shortener FAQs

Here are answers to some common questions around URL shorteners:

Are shortened URLs bad for SEO?

No, shorteners using 301 redirects will not hurt SEO. Google sees it as a permanent URL move.

Do short links expire?

It depends – Bitly and TinyURL links expire after inactivity but Pretty Links do not.

Can I use just for affiliate links?

Yes, Pretty Links and ThirstyAffiliates specialize in cloaking affiliate links only.

What‘s the best free URL shortener?

Pretty Links has the most powerful free version in my experience.

Will I be penalized for hiding affiliate links?

No, as long as your content provides value, shortening affiliates links is perfectly fine.

Shorten Links and Track Clicks

I hope this detailed guide helped you learn about the top URL shorteners available for WordPress.

Shortening your sites URLs makes them more shareable on social media and allows you to track clicks.

Pretty Links is my #1 recommendation, especially if you want to cloak and track affiliate links.

Let me know if you have any other questions!