Polr vs Shlink
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted url shorteners options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Shlink
The definitive self-hosted URL shortener
| Feature | Polr | Shlink |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | Under-an-hour setup |
| Health score | 21 · At risk | 90 · Excellent |
| Category | URL Shorteners | URL Shorteners |
| License | GPL-2.0 | MIT |
| Language | PHP | PHP |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 256 MB | 256 MB |
| Deployment | docker, bare-metal | docker, kubernetes, bare-metal |
| GitHub stars | ★ 5,095 | ★ 5,302 |
| First released | 2014 | 2016 |
| Replaces | Bitly | Bitly, Rebrandly |
What are Polr and Shlink?
Polr
Polr is a self-hosted link shortener built with Laravel that offers a minimalist interface, an API, and basic analytics. It is designed to be quick to deploy and easy to use.
- Minimalist link shortener
- Developer API
- Basic click analytics
- Laravel-based
Shlink
Shlink is a self-hosted URL shortener with a powerful REST API, detailed visit analytics, QR codes, and a separate web client. It supports custom domains and tags for organizing links.
- Powerful REST API
- Detailed visit analytics
- QR code generation
- Multi-domain support
Polr vs Shlink: key differences
Both projects are written in PHP. Licensing differs — GPL-2.0 for Polr versus MIT for Shlink. Polr is the more established project (first released 2014), while Shlink arrived in 2016.
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
Choose Shlink if…
- Excellent API
- Geolocation analytics
Watch out for
- Web UI is a separate component
Frequently asked questions
Is Polr or Shlink better?
Neither is universally better. Shlink has the larger community; both share a medium setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.
Are Polr and Shlink free and open-source?
Yes. Polr is licensed under GPL-2.0 and Shlink under MIT. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Polr and Shlink with Docker?
Polr: yes. Shlink: yes.