A link shortener plugin is not just a plugin used to shorten a long link into a shorter, more easy-to-remember format. But you can also use it to track campaign performance. Here is the list of the best WordPress link shortener plugins in case you need one.
If you are an affiliate marketer, I bet you already know how shortening your affiliate links can be beneficial.
Let’s take an example.
You have a blog post that you use to promote an affiliate product from Amazon. The blog post is well researched and executed. It has been on the first page of Google consistently.
One day, you find that the product is no longer available on Amazon and you want to replace it with the same product from Walmart. In a case like this, you can — ideally — edit the post and replace the affiliate link.
But what if you have mentioned the same product on multiple blog posts? Should you edit every single post where you mention the product on?
You can do that, of course. But there is a smarter solution you can opt to: using a link shortener plugin.
Shortcuts ⤵️
- How a link shortener plugin works
- Link shortener plugin use cases
- Best link shortener plugins
- Conclusion
How a Link Shortener Plugin Works
A link shortener plugin is a plugin that you can use to shorten a long link into a shorter version. Much like Bitly. But it lives on your website.
The main goal of shortening a link is commonly to make a long link more readable and easier to remember. Take a look the following links:
- https://www.amazon.com/Expert-Secrets-Underground-Converting-Customers-ebook/dp/B085BT8V5P
- https://utilizewp.com/recommends/expert-secrets/
Which is easier to remember between the two links above?
You already know the answer.
Clicking the two links above will take you to the same destination. But for the second link, it takes a HTML redirection mechanism to take you from the link you see on the page to the actual link destination.
The process is handled by a shortener plugin.
Some Use Cases of a Link Shortner Plugin
Above, I have mentioned a common use case of a link shortener plugin. Let’s take another example to make it clearer.
Let’s say you have a WordPress plugin that you love so much. You want to recommend it to your audience while hoping to get the commissions from the purchase made via your affiliate link.
You write several posts in different formats to recommend the plugin: tutorial, listicle, review. You name it.
By the time you write the posts, your favorite plugin uses, say, Partnero for its affiliate program.
One day, your favorite plugin makes a decision to migrate from Partnero to another affiliate platform (e.g., PartnerStack) and you are asked to replace your affiliate link with a new one.
In a case like this, if you use a link shortener plugin to place your affiliate link to your posts, you only need to make the edit once by simply editing the destination link.
Imagine if you need to edit multiple posts only to replace the affiliate link. It can be another form of time waste.
In addition to the case above, you can also use a link shortener plugin for another goal.
Here are two common use cases of a link shortener plugin:
To Manage Affiliate Links
I have provided two common examples of how a link shortener plugin can help your affiliate marketing campaign.
First, it can be useful when your affiliate product is temporarily out of stock. Second, it can save you time in an event the affiliate program you joined migrate to another affiliate platform because you don’t need to edit every single content you have placed your affiliate link into.
Instead, you only need to replace the destination link (your affiliate link) once.
Using a link shortener plugin is even more crucial if you join multiple affiliate programs.
To Track Campaign Performance
Some link shortener plugins come with a feature that allows you to monitor how many times a shortened links was clicked.
If you have your own product and plan to run a certain campaign, you can leverage the feature to track the performance of your campaign rather than setting up a Google Tag Manager, which can take time.
Free WordPress Link Shortener Plugins at a Glance
| Standout Feature | Free Version | Pro Version | |
|---|---|---|---|
| ClickWhale | Link in bio maker | ✅ | $69/year |
| BetterLinks | Broken link checker | ✅ | $74/year |
| Lasso Lite | Auto product placement for Amazon | ✅ | $145/year |
| Easy Affiliate Links | Broken link checker | ✅ | $29/year |
| URL Shortify | Password protection and link expiration date | ✅ | $99/year |
| Pretty Links | Instant clicks count tracker | ✅ | $99/year |
| Exact Links | Simple interface | ✅ | $99/year |
| ThirstyAffiliates | Link categories | ✅ | $99/year |
List of Free WordPress Link Shortener Plugins
1. ClickWhale
ClickWhale is one of my favorite link shortener plugins. The plugin works precisely the same as the one I have elaborated above. It can shorten a long, complex link into a more readable format that is easier to remember.
Adding a ton of shortened links is not a big issue in ClickWhale as you can create categories to organize them.
Apart from being able to turn a long link into a shorter version, ClickWhale also comes with a super handy feature if you often promote your links on social media. The feature allows you to display several links into a single page — which are presented in a beautiful way.
Pretty similar to Linktree, but on your own domain.
On each link item, you can add visual element like icon, emotion, or image (you can add a logo if you have one).
You can further decorate the “link in bio” page by changing the background, adding your site logo, and more.
Furthermore, ClickWhale comes with a migration feature which you can use to migrate from the similar plugins like BetterLinks, Pretty Links, to ThirstyAffiliate. Statistics feature is also available to allow you to track your link performance.
The free version of ClickWhale is available on WordPress.org.
Key Features of ClickWhale:
- Ability to add a frefix
- Link categories
- Statistics
- Migration
- Link in bio maker
- Integration with form builder plugins
ClickWhale Pros:
- Super easy to use
- On-point features
- Free version is available
ClickWhale Cons:
- The integration is still limited
2. BetterLinks
BetterLinks is a WordPress plugin from WPDeveloper, who also develops other WordPress plugins such as Essential Addons, BetterDocs, to EmbedPress. BetterLinks has the same core feature as ClickWhale, that is to shorten long links.
When adding a new link, you can assign it to a certain category or tag. Pretty similar to the default post type of WordPress. You can use these parameters to better organize your links.
The stats feature is available to allow you to track the performance of your links.
You can even monitor which social media platforms that drive more traffic, devices used to click your links, to referrers. Hoverer, upgrading to the pro version is required to access these metrics.
Same as ClickWhale, the free version of BetterLinks is also available on WordPres.org.
If you already use link shortener plugin, BetterLinks offers a migration feature you can leverage.
Key Features of BetterLinks:
- Ability to add a prefix
- Link categories and tags
- Statistics
- Migration
- Broken link checker
- Role management
BetterLinks Pros:
- Advanced statistics features
- Has the ability to monitor broken link
- Free version is available
BetterLinks Cons:
- Complex user interface
3. Lasso Lite
Lasso Lite is the free version of Lasso, a popular enough plugin among Amazon affiliates. The core functionality of Lasso is a bit different to ClickWhale and BetterLinks.
The plugin is designed specifically to make it easy for Amazon affiliates to add a new affiliate product to their blog. You can simply paste the URL of the product you want to add and the plugin will add the necessary elements automatically.
Such as product image and price.
After all the necessary elements are imported, you can add other elements of your choice. From description, button text, and so on.
However, you need to provide and setup the API key to able to use the core feature I mentioned above. Otherwise, you need to do everything manually.
Lasso also comes with a feature that allows you to shorten long links. Links can be organized using groups.
You can get Lasso Lite on WordPress.org just like the first two plugins above.
A little note. On WordPress.org, Lasso Lite is listed as “Simple URLs” (the old plugin name). But after you install the plugin, you will see the “Lasso Lite” label on WordPress side panel.
Key Features of Lasso Lite:
- Link groups
- Comparison table maker
- Auto product placement for Amazon
Lasso Lite Pros:
- Built specifically for Amazon
- Free version is available
Lasso Lite Cons:
- Complex ongoing process
- Complex link addition process
4. Easy Affiliate Links
Easy Affilaite Links is a simple link shortener plugin for WordPress that is not designed specifically for a specific affiliate program like Lasso. It doesn’t offer complex features like Lassso or BetterLinks, but does a great job in shortnening your long affiliate links.
If you plan to shorten a bunch of affiliate links, then you can organize the links using categories.
Easy Affiliate Links also allows you to monitor your links, but you need to upgrade to the pro version.
Other features offered by this plugin include export/import, ability to set the prefix, and broken link checker.
Key Features of Easy Affiliate Links:
- Link categories
- Ability to add prefix
- Statistics
- Broken link checker
Easy Affiliate Links Pros:
- Simple interface
- Has the ability to monitor broken link
- Free version is available
Easy Affiliate Links Cons:
- Stats is only available on the pro version
5. URL Shortify
URL Shortify is a feature-rich link shortener plugin for WordPress. Not only you can use it to shorten links, but you can also protect the links with a password.
Another security feature offered by the plugin is the ability to set a link expiration date. With these features, you can use URL Shortify to share sensitive content on your website more safely.
Not only you can shorthen a link on the website where the plugin is installed, but you can also shorther a link from a different website (different domain).
Standard features like link categories and the ability to add link prefix are available on the plugin.
A simple, yet useful feature you will love about is that you can instantly check how many clicks a link have earned from the link management screen.
If you need to view more advanced metrics like location, referrer, browser, and device, you can upgrade to the pro version.
But for basic link shortening needs, the free version is more than enough.
Key Features of URL Shortify:
- Link categories
- Ability to add prefix
- Statistics
- Password protection
- Link expiration date
Easy URL Shortify Pros:
- Security features
- Lots of features on the free version
- Advanced statistics
Easy URL Shortify Cons:
- No easy import from other plugins
6. Pretty Links
Pretty Links is a probably the most popular link shortener plugin for WordPress. According to the stat on WordPress.org, the plugin has over 300,000 active installations.
Despite being the most popular link shortener plugin, Pretty Links doesn’t offer a great first impression for new users. Basic features like link categories and link tags are only available on the pro version.
Also, Pretty Links doesn’t allow you to add a link prefix, whereas link prefix is crucial enough to distinguish a regular links (e.g., post links) to shortened links.
Key Features of Pretty Links (Free version):
- Instant clicks count tracker
- Statistics
Easy Pretty Links Pros:
- Instant click count tracker
Easy Pretty Links Cons:
- No prefix
- Almost everything requires pro version
7. Exact Links
Exact Links is a bit similar to Lasso. It is designed specifically to help Amazon affiliates to shorten the Amazon affiliate links. Also, affiliates can create a dedicated box content to display the Amazon product with their affiliate link on it.
If you are not an Amazon affiliate, you can also use Exact Links to shorten the affiliate links of any affiliate program you joined.
Exact Links has no feature to add link prefix. To organize your links, the plugin offers tags you can leverage.
Key Features of Exact Links:
- Link tags
- Statistics
Easy Exact Links Pros:
- Simple interface
Easy Exact Links Cons:
- No prefix
8. ThirstyAffiliates
ThirstyAffiliates is owned by the same company as Pretty Links. No wonder if you will find the similar behavior between the two on your WordPress dashboard. After activating the plugin, you will be greeted with a big banner, asking you to upgrade to the pro version.
Also, most basic features are locked.
Thankfully, it still allows you to create categories, which is crucial enough to organize links. Also, you can set a link prefix — which is not available on Pretty Links. Other than these, you need to upgrade to the pro version to unlock the features.
Another minor thing about ThirstyAffiliates is that is adds a new item on the text formatting bar on block editor/Gutenberg, which is annoying enough.
Key Features of Exact Links:
- Link categories
- Ability to set prefix
Easy Exact Links Pros:
- Allows users to better organize links
Easy Exact Links Cons:
- Too aggresive in promoting the pro version
- No statistics feature on the free version
Conclusion – Which Link Shortener Plugin Should You Use?
If you are an affiliate marketer, chances are you mention the same product multiple times on your blog posts. Problem comes when your affiliate provider suddenly changes the link of your affiliate product.
Instead of editing every single content where you have mentioned your affiliate product on, only to change the link, you can work more smartly by using a link shortener plugin.
With a link shortener plugin, you only need to make the edit once in a case like the one above. Thanks to HTML redirection mecanism, you only need to change the destination URL.
There are a bunch of link shortener plugins for WordPress out there you can choose from. I strongly recommend you consider the following features if you want to install one:
- Link categories/tags
- Prefix
- Stats
A little thing to note that WordPress already has a feature to add a link attribute (nofollow, sponsored,etc.). So, this feature is not too crucial.
ClickWhale is a great plugin if you have zero interest to use a paid plugin only to shorten several links. It has a cleaner interface compared to other free versions of other plugins on the list.
But, everyone has a choice.
