Cuttly vs URLR (2026) Which URL Shortener Is Right for You?

URLR.me and Cuttly are both European URL shorteners built around privacy, GDPR compliance and branded links. On the surface they look similar — both shorten links, generate QR Codes, support branded domains and track click analytics. Both are fully within the European Union. Both have free plans and paid tiers for individuals, marketers and teams. Look closer and the differences become significant.

This comparison covers both platforms honestly and in detail. One disclosure upfront: this article is published on Cuttly's blog. We have done our best to represent URLR accurately based on their published pricing and feature pages as of May 2026. Verify current URLR details before making a final decision.

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Company Background

Cuttly has been operating since 2018 — one of the more established independent URL shorteners still actively developed. It is a Polish company based in Gdańsk, Poland, with dedicated servers hosted in Poland, EU. Over more than a decade the platform has grown from a straightforward URL shortener into a full link management platform with Surveys, Link in Bio, Campaigns, QR Codes, deep linking and Action Pages.

URLR launched in 2019 and is hosted in France. It positions itself specifically around the French enterprise market and GDPR compliance, and has built a strong customer base among large French organisations — clients include Adecco, Cdiscount, Sennheiser and Île-de-France Mobilités. URLR's strongest reported differentiator is reactive customer support — multiple independent reviews on Capterra and GetApp specifically praise the responsiveness of their team as a deciding factor in choosing the platform.

On the question of European hosting — both platforms are genuinely European and genuinely GDPR compliant. Cuttly operates dedicated infrastructure in Poland, EU. URLR operates in France, EU. Neither has ties to US multinationals. This is a non-issue when comparing the two.

Free Plan Comparison

Both Cuttly and URLR offer free plans, but with meaningfully different structures.

URLR's free plan includes 10 links per month, 1,000 tracked visits per month, QR Codes, API access and full analytics access. The tracked visits cap is important — URLR counts click data only up to the monthly limit. Clicks above that limit are not recorded in analytics. URLR does not include a branded custom domain on the free plan.

Cuttly's free plan includes link shortening, QR Codes, basic analytics and Link in Bio. There is no tracked visits cap — all clicks are recorded. The free plan does not include a branded custom domain. API access is available on paid plans.

For developers who need API access without paying, URLR's free plan is the better choice. For users who need Link in Bio or want unlimited click tracking without a monthly cap, Cuttly's free plan serves better.

Pricing Comparison

The pricing gap between Cuttly and URLR is consistent and significant at every tier below Team level.

Cuttly's paid plans run at $12/month (Starter), $25/month (Single) and $99/month (Team), with a Team Enterprise option at $149/month. All Cuttly paid plans include unlimited links with no monthly link creation cap and no tracked visits cap.

URLR's paid plans run at $19/month (Starter — 300 links/month, 10,000 tracked visits/month, 1 branded domain, 2 users), $39/month (Pro — 2,000 links/month, 100,000 tracked visits/month, 2 branded domains, 3 users, dynamic routing) and $99/month (Team — 10,000 links/month, 500,000 tracked visits/month, 5 branded domains, 5 users, SSO, App Links and Universal Links in beta).

At the entry level: Cuttly Starter at $12 versus URLR Starter at $19. At the mid tier: Cuttly Single at $25 versus URLR Pro at $39. At Team level: both charge $99/month, but Cuttly includes Surveys, Link in Bio and Action Pages that URLR does not offer at any price. URLR's link and visit caps also mean the pricing comparison is not purely apples to apples — at any meaningful campaign volume, Cuttly's uncapped model delivers more for less.

Analytics Depth

Both platforms provide solid per-link analytics: total clicks, unique clicks, geographic breakdown by country, referrer sources, device types, browsers and operating systems. Both show time-based click patterns. Both retain analytics history.

Cuttly adds two analytics capabilities that URLR does not have. First, Campaigns — a feature that groups multiple links by campaign tag and shows aggregated performance across all links in a campaign simultaneously. A marketer running a cross-channel campaign with links in email, social, print and paid advertising can see total campaign performance in one view, while also drilling into individual link performance. URLR's analytics are per-link only — there is no campaign aggregation layer.

Second, bot filtering. Cuttly automatically filters non-human traffic — crawlers, automated tools, monitoring bots — from click analytics. Without bot filtering, click counts can be inflated by 20-40% or more. Cuttly's analytics reflect genuine human clicks. URLR does not specifically document bot filtering in their feature set.

Branded Domains and Custom Links

Both platforms support branded custom domains. Both require DNS configuration to connect a domain — Cuttly uses an A record and TXT record; URLR uses a similar DNS setup process. Both support custom slugs across paid plans.

Domain availability by plan tier: URLR Starter includes 1 domain, Pro includes 2, Team includes 5. Cuttly Single includes 1 domain, Team includes multiple domains. For agencies or businesses managing many branded domains simultaneously, both platforms offer Enterprise options with expanded domain allowances.

QR Codes

Both platforms generate a QR Code automatically for every short link and support dynamic QR Codes — where the destination can be changed without creating a new QR Code or reprinting materials. URLR's QR Code customisation includes logo embedding on paid plans and export in PNG, JPEG, WebP and SVG formats. Cuttly's QR Code generator includes colour customisation, logo embedding, multiple visual styles and export in print-ready formats including SVG.

Deep Linking

URLR offers Universal Links (iOS) and App Links (Android) on their Team plan at $99/month, currently marked as BETA. This covers standard deep linking for users who already have the app installed.

Cuttly supports both App Links and Universal Links plus deferred deep linking. Deferred deep linking handles the case where the user does not have the app installed — the user is sent to the appropriate app store, and after installing the app they are automatically routed to the specific in-app destination they originally clicked towards. This complete implementation covers both existing app users and new installs — essential for user acquisition campaigns and any marketing that drives app downloads. Cuttly's deep linking is available from the Single plan at $25/month, significantly below URLR's Team requirement of $99/month.

Dynamic Routing

URLR's Pro plan at $39/month includes dynamic routing — the ability to send a single short link to different destination URLs based on the visitor's geographic location, browser language or device type. This is a genuinely powerful feature for international campaigns.

Cuttly offers device targeting — routing based on iOS, Android or desktop — from the Single plan. For geographic and language routing, check Cuttly's current feature page for availability by plan tier.

Surveys

Cuttly includes a native Surveys feature. Users can build questionnaires with multiple question types, distribute them via short links or QR Codes, and collect and analyse responses within the Cuttly platform. URLR does not offer surveys at any price point — if surveys are part of your workflow, this is an exclusive Cuttly capability.

Link in Bio

Cuttly includes Link in Bio pages available at cutt.bio — branded micro-sites containing multiple links, the standard solution for Instagram, TikTok and other platforms where only one URL can be placed in a profile. Cuttly's Link in Bio pages support custom branding, multiple links organised into sections, profile images, video embedding and per-link analytics. URLR does not offer Link in Bio at any tier.

Action Pages

Cuttly's Action Pages turn a short link into a standalone call-to-action landing page — accessible via the /c/ path on cutt.ly or on a branded custom domain. An Action Page can include a title, description, background image or colour, logo, embedded video, countdown timer and a CTA button. This is the capability of a simple landing page builder built directly into the link management platform. URLR does not offer Action Pages or any equivalent landing page capability.

Support

URLR's most consistently cited strength in independent reviews is support responsiveness. The name of their support contact — Hugo — appears in multiple reviews as a specific reason users chose and stayed with URLR. For businesses where having a responsive, knowledgeable human available quickly is a primary concern, URLR's track record here is genuine and worth weighting in your decision.

Cuttly offers support via email and in-platform channels. For Team and Enterprise plans, dedicated support is available.

Head-to-Head Summary

Starting price: Cuttly $12/month — URLR $19/month. Cuttly wins on price at every tier below Team.

Tracked visits cap: Cuttly none on paid plans — URLR 10,000/100,000/500,000 by tier. Cuttly wins for high-volume campaigns.

Bot filtering: Cuttly yes — URLR not documented. Cuttly wins on analytics accuracy.

Campaign aggregation: Cuttly yes — URLR no. Cuttly only.

Surveys: Cuttly yes — URLR no. Cuttly only.

Link in Bio: Cuttly yes — URLR no. Cuttly only.

Action Pages: Cuttly yes — URLR no. Cuttly only.

Deferred deep linking: Cuttly yes from $25/month — URLR basic only, beta, $99/month. Cuttly wins on depth and price.

Dynamic routing (geo/language/device): URLR yes from $39/month — Cuttly device routing confirmed, check current page for geo/language. URLR has an edge here at the Pro tier.

Support responsiveness: URLR documented track record — Cuttly solid. URLR has an edge here.

European hosting: Both yes. Equal.

Founded: Cuttly 2014 — URLR 2019. Cuttly has more platform maturity.

Which Platform Should You Choose

Choose URLR if you are a French-market business where a French-speaking, highly responsive support team and a local vendor relationship are decision factors. If dynamic routing across geography, language and device is central to your workflow and you do not need surveys, Link in Bio or Action Pages, URLR Pro at $39/month covers this well.

Choose Cuttly if you want a broader platform at lower prices. If you need Surveys, Link in Bio, Action Pages, full deferred deep linking or campaign-level aggregated analytics — these are Cuttly-exclusive capabilities that URLR does not offer. Create a free Cuttly account to get started. Registration required; free plan available with no credit card needed.