Dub vs Polr
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted url shorteners options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Not the right match-up?
| Feature | Dub | Polr |
|---|---|---|
| Category | URL Shorteners | URL Shorteners |
| License | AGPL-3.0 | GPL-2.0 |
| Language | TypeScript | PHP |
| Setup difficulty | Hard | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 1,024 MB | 256 MB |
| Deployment | docker | docker, bare-metal |
| GitHub stars | ★ 24,245 | ★ 5,097 |
| First released | 2022 | 2014 |
| Replaces | Bitly, Rebrandly | Bitly |
Why pick each one
Choose Polr if…
- Released under the GPL-2.0 license
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Mature project with 5.1k GitHub stars
- Written in PHP
Frequently asked questions
Is Dub or Polr better?
Neither is universally better. Dub has the larger community, while Polr is simpler to set up (medium difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are Dub and Polr free and open-source?
Yes. Dub is licensed under AGPL-3.0 and Polr under GPL-2.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Dub and Polr with Docker?
Dub: yes. Polr: yes.