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TinyURL VS DEV.to

Compare TinyURL VS DEV.to 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)
Alternatives Is it good?
DEV.to

Where software engineers connect, build their resumes, and grow.

Rating
2.0 · 1 review
Alternatives Is it good?
visitto.me
Every shortener counts clicks. visitto.me attributes them — which link, visitor or source drove each one. Turn one link into thousands of unique tracked codes (a code + QR per visitor, placement or source), then attribute every click and scan. 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, DEV.to seems to be a lot more popular than TinyURL. While we know about 696 links to DEV.to, we've tracked only 6 mentions of TinyURL.

social mentions
6 vs 696
URL Shortener popularity
100% vs 0%

Base details

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

TinyURL
DEV.to
Website tinyurl.com dev.to
Pricing
Freemium $11 / Monthly (Pro - 125 links/mo) Official pricing
—
Company Startup from the United States · 20 - 49 employees · 2002 Startup from the United States
Listed in
Link Management URL Shortener Branded URLs Links +1
CMS Blogging Blogging Platform Website Builder +1

About TinyURL and DEV.to

In their own words, as submitted to SaaSHub.

TinyURL
DEV.to

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 DEV.to yet.

Features and specs

What each product offers, as listed by its team.

TinyURL 8 features
DEV.to 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.
  • Community Engagement
    DEV.to offers an active and supportive community of developers where users can share knowledge, seek advice, and collaborate on projects. This fosters a sense of belonging and continuous learning.
  • Ease of Use
    The platform provides a straightforward and user-friendly interface, making it easy for users to publish content, engage with other posts, and navigate through various resources.
  • Content Diversity
    DEV.to features a wide range of topics related to software development, from beginner tutorials to advanced technical articles. This diversity makes it a valuable resource for developers at all skill levels.
  • Open Source and Transparency
    DEV.to is built on open-source software, which promotes transparency and allows users to contribute to the platform’s development. This aligns with the core values of many developers.
  • Cross-Posting Capabilities
    Users can easily cross-post articles from their personal blogs or other platforms, increasing their content’s reach and visibility without significant additional effort.

Possible disadvantages

  • Content Quality Variation
    Given its open nature, the quality of content on DEV.to can be inconsistent. Users may need to sift through a mix of high-quality and less useful posts to find valuable information.
  • Platform-Specific Features
    Some features and optimizations are tailored specifically for the DEV.to platform, which might not translate well if the content is shared elsewhere.
  • Limited Advanced Customization
    While the platform is user-friendly, it offers limited customization options for articles and personal profiles compared to more robust blogging platforms.
  • Visibility Challenges
    With a large user base, it can be challenging for new users or less popular posts to gain traction and visibility unless they are highly engaging or promoted.
  • Distraction Potential
    The platform's social features, such as discussions and notifications, can sometimes be distracting, potentially impacting productivity for users who are easily sidetracked.

Analysis

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

TinyURL
DEV.to

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

  • Yes, DEV.to is considered a good platform for developers looking to connect with peers, stay updated with industry trends, and share their knowledge.

Why this product is good

  • DEV.to is a popular online community for software developers where they can share articles, tutorials, and insights related to programming and technology. It's known for its supportive environment, user-friendly interface, and the diversity of content, making it a good resource for learning and networking.

Recommended for

  • Aspiring software developers seeking learning resources and mentorship.
  • Experienced developers looking to share knowledge and contribute to the community.
  • Individuals interested in keeping up with the latest trends and discussions in technology.

Videos

Walkthroughs and reviews on video.

TinyURL 0 videos + Add
DEV.to 1 video + Add

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

Ben Halpern founder of Dev.To & The Practical Dev

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
DEV.to
100% 100%
URL Shortener
0% 0%
0% 0%
CMS
100% 100%
100% 100%
Link Management
0% 0%
0% 0%
Blogging
100% 100%

Questions & Answers

As answered by people managing TinyURL and DEV.to.

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 DEV.to. 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
DEV.to 2.0 · 1 review

View more

  • Best Forums for Developers to Join in 2025
    www.notchup.com · Dec 2024

    The 'dev.to' forum is a great place for developers to find answers, share their knowledge, and learn from others. It's a place for people to talk about their projects, ask questions, and get feedback.

  • Top 10 Developer Communities You Should Explore
    www.qodo.ai · Apr 2024

    One of Dev.to’s unique features is its focus on the human side of coding. Developers often share their personal stories, career journeys, and lessons learned, creating a sense of camaraderie within the community. The...

  • It is a nice mini-blog, it's for free and such but
    SaaSHub review
    · Apr 2020

    As a mini-blog, it is a nice alternative for Medium to publish and share information about programming. However, the community and the organization are biased toward social justice (and they are open to it). You can...

Social recommendations and mentions

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

TinyURL 6 mentions
DEV.to 696 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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  • How I test SMS OTP flows in Cypress (the cy.task trick)
    In the previous post I showed how I test SMS OTP flows in Playwright without sending real texts. A few people asked about Cypress, and Cypress needs one extra trick, so here it is. - Source: dev.to / 6 days ago
  • Talk to my bots through Alexa: building an Alexa skill for Grok Bot
    Content: a blog post bot that publishes to debbie.codes and Dev.to, bots for LinkedIn, X and YouTube, and a video editor bot that recuts my screen recordings. - Source: dev.to / 1 day ago
  • Welcome to AI Engineer New York
    Later, as a "quantamental" analyst at a hedge fund, I built trading and data pipelines and worked with alternative data, managing a >$1B portfolio in an era before Airflow, Modal, or Temporal. I saw how formalizing our PM's investing... - Source: dev.to / 6 days ago

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Alternatives to TinyURL and DEV.to

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

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