Uitly URL Shortener converts any long web address into a clean 5-character short link that runs entirely in your browser. No account required, no server storage, no expiry. Includes QR code export and local link history.
Paste any URL and get a short, shareable link that works anywhere email, social media, print, or QR code. Your URLs are never sent to a server. Everything runs in your browser using localStorage, so there is nothing to sign up for and nothing to pay.
Most URL shorteners store every link you create on their servers and disable your links if you stop paying. Uitly takes the opposite approach: your links live in your browser and stay active for as long as you keep them.
| Feature | Uitly (this tool) | Typical shorteners |
|---|---|---|
| Account required | No | Usually yes |
| URL stored on server | Never | Always |
| Links expire on payment | No expiry | Yes, subscription |
| Watermark on output | None | Common on free tiers |
| Scan analytics | Not tracked | Tracked server-side |
| Privacy of original URL | Fully private | Server-visible |
| Works offline | Yes | No |
Paste any long URL below. The short link appears instantly, with QR export and history built in.
Here is exactly what happens, step by step, with a realistic URL that includes tracking parameters.
Starting point
You have a product page URL with tracking parameters: https://shop.example.com/products/running-shoes?ref=newsletter&utm_source=email&utm_campaign=spring
Paste and shorten
Paste the full URL into the input field above and click Shorten URL. The tool validates the protocol, generates a 5-character ID using your browser's cryptographic random number generator, and saves the mapping locally.
Result
You get something like uitly.pro/go/k7Hq2 — 19 characters total, regardless of how long the original URL was. The tracking parameters are preserved in the redirect, so your analytics still work correctly.
Use it
Paste the short link into your newsletter, print it on a flyer, or generate a QR code from it. Every format benefits from the shorter, cleaner string.
A quick checklist that prevents the most common short-link mistakes.
Being upfront about the trade-offs of a browser-based shortener, so you can decide if it fits your use case.
Because the redirect map lives in localStorage, a short link created on your laptop will not resolve if someone clicks it from data stored on a different device. The link itself can be shared and clicked by anyone, but the lookup happens wherever the link was generated.
If you clear your browsing data, reset your browser profile, or switch to a private/incognito window, your previously created short links and their history will no longer be retrievable from that browser.
Because nothing is logged server-side, this tool does not track how many times a link was clicked, who clicked it, or from where. If you need click analytics, add UTM parameters to your original URL before shortening so your destination's own analytics platform captures the data.
Browsers typically allocate 5 to 10 MB per origin for localStorage. At roughly 100 to 200 bytes per saved link, you have effective capacity for tens of thousands of entries, though the tool keeps your visible history capped at the most recent 20 for usability.
No account. No watermark. Local history included.
A URL shortener takes a long web address and maps it to a much shorter one. When someone visits the short link, a redirect mechanism looks up the mapping and sends the visitor to the original destination automatically. The entire process completes in milliseconds and is invisible to the person clicking the link.
Most URL shorteners, including well-known services, store this mapping in a central database on their own servers. Every link you create becomes a row in their database, and the service controls whether that link continues to resolve. Uitly takes a different architecture: the mapping is generated and stored entirely inside your own browser using localStorage, a standard web storage API that every modern browser supports natively.
This matters for two practical reasons. First, your original URLs are never visible to Uitly or transmitted over a network at all, which is meaningfully more private than a server-based alternative. Second, because the link's fate is not tied to a company staying in business or you maintaining a subscription, the redirect keeps working for as long as you keep that browser data intact.
Understanding the mechanics helps explain both the tool's privacy guarantee and its practical limitations covered further down this page.
ID generation
The tool calls the Web Crypto API's getRandomValues method to generate 5 cryptographically random bytes, then maps each byte to one of 62 alphanumeric characters (a to z, A to Z, 0 to 9). This produces roughly 62 to the power of 5, or about 916 million possible combinations, making accidental collisions extremely unlikely even with thousands of saved links.
Collision check
Before saving, the tool checks whether the generated ID already exists in your local URL map. If it does, by extremely rare chance, a new ID is generated and checked again until a free one is found.
Storage
The ID and your original URL are saved as a key-value pair inside a JSON object in localStorage under a fixed key. This is the same storage mechanism websites use to remember login state or preferences, except here it stores your link map.
Redirect lookup
When the short link is visited, a dedicated redirect route reads the ID from the URL path, looks it up in the stored map, and immediately navigates the browser to the matching original URL using a client-side redirect.
The same short link behaves differently depending on where you use it. Here is what changes by channel.
Twitter and X posts count every character toward the limit. LinkedIn truncates long URLs in the preview card. A 19-character short link leaves far more room for your actual message and looks cleaner in a feed.
A bare 19-character short link displays fully on every platform without truncation, regardless of how long the destination URL is.
Long URLs with query strings sometimes break across line wraps in email clients like Outlook, turning a clickable link into broken text. Short links wrap cleanly and look intentional rather than auto-generated.
Copy the link as an HTML anchor tag directly from the tool so the display text and href stay separated when pasted into your email template.
Nobody can type a 140-character URL from a business card. A short link is realistic to type manually, and it also produces a less dense, faster-scanning QR code if you generate one from it.
Export a QR code directly from your short link using the Download QR Code button, ready for business cards, posters, or packaging.
If you need to measure which channel drove traffic, add UTM parameters to your original URL before shortening, not after. The short link preserves whatever query string was present in the original URL at the time you shortened it.
Build the full URL with UTM parameters first, confirm it works in your browser, then paste the complete URL into the shortener.
Specific causes and fixes for the most common problems people run into.
This almost always means the link is being opened in a different browser or device than the one used to create it, or the browser's localStorage was cleared between creating and visiting the link.
Confirm you are testing the link in the same browser profile where you generated it. If you need the link to work across devices, consider a server-based shortener instead, which stores the mapping centrally rather than locally.
Browser data was cleared, you switched to a different browser profile, or you opened the tool in a private or incognito window, which does not persist localStorage after the session ends.
Avoid using private browsing mode if you want to keep your link history. If data is already cleared, unfortunately the mapping cannot be recovered since nothing was stored server-side.
Duplicate detection matches the URL string exactly, including trailing slashes, capitalisation in the path, and query parameter order. A URL that looks the same visually but differs by even one character is treated as a new entry.
If you need consistent duplicate detection, keep your source URLs formatted identically, including consistent trailing slashes and parameter order.
The most common cause is an invalid or incomplete URL, such as missing the domain extension, or a browser blocking the Web Crypto API in an unusual security configuration.
Confirm the URL includes a valid domain, for example https://example.com rather than just example. The tool automatically adds https:// if you omit the protocol, but the rest of the address must still be a valid hostname.
Specific answers about privacy, link persistence, troubleshooting, and how this tool works.
Yes. There is no free tier with limits and a paid tier without them. The tool is simply free, with no account, no subscription, and no per-link fee. You can shorten as many URLs as you need.
Short links remain active as long as they exist in your browser's local history. Deleting a link disables its redirect permanently. Clearing your browser's site data will also remove all your links.
No. All URL encoding and short ID generation happens inside your browser using the Web Crypto API. Your original URLs and short IDs are stored only in your browser's localStorage. Uitly has no access to the URLs you shorten.
The Uitly redirect handler reads the 5-character ID from the URL, looks up the matching original URL stored in localStorage, and forwards the visitor to that destination instantly. It works on all devices and browsers.
Yes. Short links work anywhere a URL can be shared, including Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram bios, email newsletters, SMS, WhatsApp, printed business cards, and QR codes on signage.
A static short link has a fixed destination that cannot be changed after creation; this is what Uitly creates. A dynamic short link routes through a server and can have its destination updated after printing, but it requires an ongoing subscription and goes dead if the service shuts down.
Storing links in localStorage keeps your data private by design, since no server can log, sell, or expose the URLs you shorten. It also removes latency, rate limits, and dependency on a third-party service staying online.
Uitly detects exact duplicates automatically. If the URL already exists in your local map, it returns the same short ID instead of creating a second one, which keeps your history clean.
You can share the short link itself with anyone. However, because the redirect map is stored in your browser's localStorage, the link only resolves correctly on the browser and device where it was originally created.
Find the link in your Recent Links history and click the delete icon. This removes both the history entry and the redirect mapping from localStorage at the same time, permanently disabling the link.
Yes. The tool is fully responsive and works on iOS Safari, Android Chrome, and other modern mobile browsers. Input, copy, and QR export all work normally on touchscreens.
A URL shortener converts a long web address into a compact, shareable link by mapping a short unique ID to the original URL. It is useful when long URLs break in email layouts, exceed character limits on social platforms, look unprofessional in print, or make a QR code unnecessarily dense.
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