A free Bitly alternative that checks your links
100 active links, a custom domain and unlimited QR codes on the free plan. No ad page before your links, and a check on every one of them every 30 minutes.
Bitly facts checked
Bitly's free plan gives you 5 links a month, and since 2025 every free link opens an ad page first. ndle is a free URL shortener built for the part Bitly leaves out: making sure the page behind each link still works.
ndle and Bitly's free plans, side by side
| ndle free | Bitly free | |
|---|---|---|
| Short links | 100 active | 5 a month |
| QR codes | Unlimited | 2 a month |
| Your own domain | 1, free | From the Growth plan ($29/month billed annually) |
| Ad page before your link | Never | Yes |
| Click history | 30 days: day, country, device, referrer, UTM campaign | None |
| Checks that your pages still work | Every 30 minutes | Not offered |
| Cheapest paid plan | No paid plan yet | Core, $10/month billed annually |
Bitly's figures come from its pricing page and support site, as they read on 28 September 2026. Bitly changes its plans often, so check them before you decide.
Why people look for a Bitly alternative
The ad page. In Bitly's own words, "we introduced an interstitial page that includes a preview of the link destination and an ad" (Bitly Support). It appears on links from free accounts, including links behind QR codes that are already printed.
Bitly free
Every visitor gets the preview page with an ad before your page.
ndle
The click goes straight to your page, on the free plan too.
Five links a month. That's enough to try Bitly, not to run a newsletter, a shop or a podcast on it. ndle counts active links instead: keep up to 100 at once on the free plan.
Your own domain costs extra. Bitly's free and Core plans don't include one. ndle's free plan does, so links can read go.yourbrand.com from day one. That also helps with text messages: carriers often filter links from public shorteners, and both Bitly and Twilio suggest using your own domain.
Nobody tells you when a link breaks. A short link keeps redirecting after the page it points to is gone. Bitly's own advice is to review the health of your short links yourself. ndle checks the page behind every link every 30 minutes, and flags it on your Monitoring page when it returns a 404, times out or fails its certificate check.
Where Bitly is ahead
A fair comparison has two sides. Bitly offers things ndle doesn't have yet:
- Custom back-halves like
bit.ly/spring-menu, 3 a month even on the free plan. ndle's links end in six random characters. - Changing where a link goes after you've shared it, on paid plans.
- An API and integrations with other tools.
- A long track record. Bitly has been around since 2008, with enterprise plans and security certifications.
If you need those today, Bitly's paid plans are worth a look.
Moving from Bitly
You don't have to move everything at once. Bitly says links on bit.ly keep working even after an account is deleted (Bitly Support), so existing links won't break when you stop using it. The exception is links on a domain Bitly gave you with a paid plan, which stop when its registration lapses.
- Start new campaigns on ndle. Sign up free, add your domain, and make links as you need them.
- Move the links that matter as you update the places they appear: your bio, your site, your email signature.
- Reprint QR codes on your own domain when their materials are next printed, so the next move is easier.
Questions
- Is ndle really free?
- Yes. The free plan has 100 active links, 1 custom domain and unlimited QR codes, and every link is checked every 30 minutes. No card needed.
- Does ndle show an ad before my link opens?
- No. A click goes straight to your page, with no ad or preview page in between.
- Will my Bitly links stop working if I switch?
- Not because you switch. Bitly says links on bit.ly keep working even after an account is deleted. Links on a domain Bitly gave you stop when that domain's registration lapses.
- Can I import my Bitly links into ndle?
- Not yet. Create ndle links for new campaigns, and move the ones that matter as you update them.