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TinyURL VS Calendly

Compare TinyURL VS Calendly and see what are their differences

TinyURL

The first notable URL shortener, online since 2002. Branded short links on your own domain, with click analytics that count human and bot traffic separately, QR codes, editable destinations, bulk creation and a REST API.

Rating
0 reviews
Pricing
Freemium $11 / Monthly (Pro - 125 links/mo)
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Alternatives Is it good?
Calendly

Say goodbye to phone and email tag for finding the perfect meeting time with Calendly. It's 100% free, super easy to use and you'll love our customer service.

Rating
5.0 · 1 review
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Alternatives Is it good?
meetergo
GDPR-compliant meeting scheduling hosted in Germany. Booking pages, built-in video calls, lead routing, CRM and payments in one tool, with all data stored in Frankfurt and a data processing agreement (DPA/AVV) included. sponsored
Note: These products don't have any matching categories. If you think this is a mistake, please edit the details of one of the products and suggest appropriate categories.

Which is more popular?

Based on our record, Calendly seems to be a lot more popular than TinyURL. While we know about 120 links to Calendly, we've tracked only 6 mentions of TinyURL.

social mentions
6 vs 120
URL Shortener popularity
100% vs 0%

Base details

Website, pricing, platforms and company facts side by side.

TinyURL
Calendly
Website tinyurl.com calendly.com
Pricing
Freemium $11 / Monthly (Pro - 125 links/mo) Official pricing
Official pricing
Company Startup from the United States · 20 - 49 employees · 2002 Startup from the United States · 100 - 249 employees · 2013
Listed in
Link Management URL Shortener Branded URLs Links +1
Appointments and Scheduling Appointment Scheduling Appointment Booking Event Scheduling +1

About TinyURL and Calendly

In their own words, as submitted to SaaSHub.

TinyURL
Calendly

TinyURL is a URL shortening and link management platform, and was the first notable URL shortener when it launched in January 2002. It now serves over 4.4 million registered users and has created billions of links. Free accounts cover 30 links a month, with links that never expire. Paid plans...

Read more about TinyURL

No description of Calendly yet.

Features and specs

What each product offers, as listed by its team.

TinyURL 8 features
Calendly 5 features
  • Ease of Use
    TinyURL offers a very simple interface that allows users to create shortened URLs quickly without needing to register or log in.
  • Custom Aliases
    Users have the option to create custom aliases for their shortened links, making them more memorable and meaningful.
  • Link Analytics
    Every link reports clicks over time, referrer, geography, device type, operating system and browser, with human and bot clicks counted separately and two years of history retained.
  • Links That Never Expire
    Links created on the free plan do not expire, so shortened URLs stay valid in print, packaging and archived content.
  • Branded Domains
    Shorten links on your own custom domain or subdomain rather than a shared one. One branded domain on the free plan, three on paid plans.
  • Editable Destinations
    A link destination can be changed after the link has been shared, so a URL already printed or posted can be repointed without being reissued.
  • QR Code Generation
    Generate QR codes for shortened links, for packaging, print and other offline placements.
  • REST API and Bulk Creation
    Documented REST API (OpenAPI 3.0, bearer-token auth) for link creation, updates and analytics retrieval, plus bulk batch endpoints for high-volume workflows.
  • User-Friendly Interface
    Calendly has an intuitive and easy-to-use interface, which simplifies the process of scheduling meetings for both the scheduler and invitee.
  • Integration Capabilities
    Calendly integrates seamlessly with various calendar services (Google Calendar, Outlook, iCal) and other tools like Zoom, Slack, and Salesforce.
  • Customizable Availability
    Users can set their availability preferences down to the minute, allowing for precise control over when they are available for meetings.
  • Automated Reminders
    Calendly automatically sends out reminders to meeting participants, thereby reducing no-shows and ensuring everyone is prepared.
  • Group and Collective Scheduling
    Calendly supports scheduling for groups and teams, making it easier to coordinate meetings with multiple participants.

Possible disadvantages

  • Limited Free Plan Features
    The free version of Calendly offers limited features, such as restricted event types and fewer integration options compared to the paid versions.
  • No Option for Meeting Notes
    Calendly does not have built-in functionality for adding detailed meeting agendas or notes directly within the booking system.
  • Learning Curve for Advanced Features
    While basic usage is straightforward, some users may find a steeper learning curve when trying to utilize Calendly's more advanced features.
  • Dependency on Internet Connection
    Calendly relies on a stable internet connection for real-time updates and notifications, which can be a drawback in areas with unreliable connectivity.
  • Privacy Concerns
    Sharing available time slots publicly can sometimes raise privacy concerns, especially for users who are particular about their personal information.

Analysis

An editorial look at what each product does well and who it suits.

TinyURL
Calendly

Overall verdict

  • TinyURL is considered a good and reliable service for those who need to create short URLs for personal or professional purposes. It is especially valuable for its simplicity and no-cost offering, appealing to users who need straightforward URL shortening without additional features.

Why this product is good

  • TinyURL is a popular URL shortening service that allows users to convert long, cumbersome URLs into shorter, more manageable links. This is particularly useful for sharing links on social media, in emails, or in printed materials where space is limited. TinyURL is easy to use, doesn't require an account, and offers free shortening services. The ability to create custom aliases also adds a layer of personalization and memorability to the links.

Recommended for

    TinyURL is recommended for individuals, small businesses, and organizations that need a quick and simple way to shorten URLs for social media posts, email campaigns, print materials, or casual link sharing without requiring advanced tracking or analytics features.

Overall verdict

  • Calendly is considered a good choice for individuals and businesses looking for an efficient way to manage appointments and streamline their scheduling process. Its ease of use and robust feature set make it a valuable tool for enhancing productivity.

Why this product is good

  • Calendly is a highly regarded scheduling tool due to its user-friendly interface, seamless integrations with other calendar apps like Google Calendar and Outlook, and its ability to automate appointment scheduling. It eliminates the back-and-forth emails needed to find a convenient meeting time. Users appreciate the numerous customization options, such as setting availability, buffer times between meetings, and limiting the number of meetings per day.

Recommended for

  • Professionals who need to manage multiple appointments and meetings.
  • Businesses seeking to provide clients with a straightforward way to schedule consultations.
  • Teams that require coordination and scheduling across different time zones.
  • Freelancers looking to automate client booking processes.

Videos

Walkthroughs and reviews on video.

TinyURL 0 videos + Add
Calendly 3 videos + Add

No TinyURL videos yet. You could help us improve this page by suggesting one.

Calendly Sucks! Here's What I'm Using Now Instead...

More videos

  • - Calendly Tutorial: Book Yourself Solid on Autopilot
  • - Review: Calendly

Category popularity

How often each product is chosen within a category, 0–100% relative to the other.

Score bands 0–20 21–40 41–50 51–60 61–100
TinyURL
Calendly
100% 100%
URL Shortener
0% 0%
0% 0%
Appointments and Scheduling
100% 100%
100% 100%
Link Management
0% 0%
0% 0%
Appointment Scheduling
100% 100%

Questions & Answers

As answered by people managing TinyURL and Calendly.

What makes your product unique?

TinyURL's answer

TinyURL has been running continuously since January 2002, which makes it the first notable URL shortening service and one of the oldest still operating. For a link shortener that longevity is the product, not trivia: a short link is only useful for as long as it still resolves, and links created here don't expire.

Three things set it apart day to day:

  • Human and bot clicks are reported separately. Most shorteners report raw click totals that quietly include crawlers and link-preview bots, so reported traffic reads higher than the real audience. Separating them means the numbers can be trusted for attribution.
  • Destinations stay editable after a link is published. A link already printed on packaging or posted to social can be repointed without reissuing it.
  • A permanent free tier, not a trial - 30 links a month, one branded domain, links that never expire.

Why should a person choose your product over its competitors?

TinyURL's answer

Three practical reasons, depending on what you need:

  • You want attribution you can trust. Analytics cover clicks over time, referrer, geography, device, OS, browser and language, retained for two years, with bot traffic separated out.
  • You want your own brand on the link. Bring your own domain or subdomain on any plan, with up to three branded domains on paid tiers.
  • You want links that outlive the campaign. Twenty-four years of continuous operation, and a free tier that doesn't expire, matter when a link is printed on something you can't reprint.

Pricing starts free and goes to $9/month billed annually ($11 month-to-month) for 125 links a month with unlimited tracked clicks. Bulk plans handle 50,000 links a month for agencies and high-volume senders, and there's a REST API for automating the whole lifecycle.

How would you describe the primary audience of your product?

TinyURL's answer

  • Marketing teams running campaigns across several channels who need per-link attribution rather than a single lumped traffic figure
  • Social media managers and creators working inside character limits, who want a branded link rather than a generic one
  • Agencies managing links for multiple clients, each on its own branded domain
  • Developers automating link creation and analytics through the REST API
  • Enterprises needing SLA-backed uptime and compliance support
  • Educational Institutions
  • The healthcare industry

It also has a long tail of individual users who simply need a link shortened, which the free tier covers without an account upgrade.

What's the story behind your product?

TinyURL's answer

Kevin Gilbertson, a web developer, launched TinyURL in January 2002 so he could link directly to newsgroup postings, which at the time had long and unwieldy addresses. It was the first notable URL shortening service, and it arrived years before shortening became a category.

Twitter used TinyURL as its default shortener until May 2009, which put it in front of a mass audience during the period when character limits made short links essential.

Since then it's grown from a single-purpose utility into a link management platform: branded domains, click analytics with two years of retained history, editable destinations, QR codes, bulk creation and a REST API. It now serves over 4.4 million registered users and has created billions of links.

Which are the primary technologies used for building your product?

TinyURL's answer

TinyURL is a cloud-hosted web application, accessible from any browser with no install. Its public interface is a REST API (v2.4.2) published as an OpenAPI 3.0 specification and authenticated with bearer tokens, covering link creation, editing, destination changes, analytics retrieval and bulk batch processing.

Who are some of the biggest customers of your product?

TinyURL's answer

Twitter used TinyURL as its default URL shortener until May 2009.

User comments

Share your experience with using TinyURL and Calendly. For example, how are they different and which one is better?

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Reviews and articles

External articles and on-site reviews we used to compare the two products.

TinyURL no reviews yet
Calendly 5.0 · 1 review

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Social recommendations and mentions

Recommendations tracked on public social media and blogs since March 2021.

TinyURL 6 mentions
Calendly 120 mentions
  • 🔐 Design a TinyURL System (Like Bit.ly) — From Scratch
    Import string Class TinyURL: def __init__(self): self.url_to_code = {} self.code_to_url = {} self.counter = 1 self.alphabet = string.ascii_letters + string.digits def encode_base62(self, num): ... - Source: dev.to / over 1 year ago
  • URL shorteners and why would you need one?
    Choose a shortener: Pick a link shortener that fits your needs---many offer options like custom branding, QR code creation, and analytics. Ziplink, Short.io, and Bitly are all capable of that. If you are looking for something really... - Source: dev.to / over 1 year ago
  • Building a Scalable URL Shortener with Node.js (Part 1/2)
    I'm sure you're familiar with URL shortener tools like TinyURL and Bitly, as they are widely used online. It simply takes a long URL and creates a shorter, unique alias that redirects to the original link. - Source: dev.to / about 2 years ago

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  • Build vs Buy an Event Booking System: How to Decide
    Existing tools such as ticketing platforms like Eventbrite, scheduling tools like Calendly, and booking plugins for WordPress cover the common cases quickly. Their strengths are real:. - Source: dev.to / about 1 month ago
  • AI Almost Sold Me a Subscription I Didn't Need
    Claude took a different path but landed in the same place. It suggested Calendly, Cal.com (open source), and SavvyCal as products I can subscribe to. When I explained that my work calendar was behind corporate SSO and I cannot use my... - Source: dev.to / 9 months ago
  • Tools for Building a Modern JavaScript Booking Application
    However, if you are looking for an out-of-the-box solution with minimal technical involvement, it is reasonable to consider SaaS platforms such as Appointedd, Calendly, and Scheduly. These products may not provide the same level of... - Source: dev.to / almost 2 years ago

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Alternatives to TinyURL and Calendly

When comparing TinyURL and Calendly, you can also consider the following products.

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