Shlink Web Client vs YOURLS
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted url shorteners options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
YOURLS
Your own URL shortener with stats and plugins
| Feature | Shlink Web Client | YOURLS |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | Under-an-hour setup |
| Health score | 78 · Good | 94 · Excellent |
| Category | URL Shorteners | URL Shorteners |
| License | MIT | MIT |
| Language | TypeScript | PHP |
| Setup difficulty | Easy | Easy |
| Min. RAM | 128 MB | 128 MB |
| Deployment | docker | docker, bare-metal |
| GitHub stars | ★ 398 | ★ 12,243 |
| First released | 2018 | 2009 |
| Replaces | Bitly | Bitly |
What are Shlink Web Client and YOURLS?
Shlink Web Client
Shlink Web Client is the official browser-based interface for managing one or more Shlink servers. It provides link creation, analytics dashboards, and tag management.
- Manage multiple Shlink servers
- Visual analytics dashboards
- Tag and domain management
- No backend of its own
YOURLS
YOURLS is a small set of PHP scripts that lets you run your own URL shortening service with click statistics, a plugin system, and a developer API. It is one of the most popular self-hosted shorteners.
- Custom and random short URLs
- Click statistics
- Plugin architecture
- Developer API
Shlink Web Client vs YOURLS: key differences
Shlink Web Client is written in TypeScript, while YOURLS is built with PHP. YOURLS is the more established project (first released 2009), while Shlink Web Client arrived in 2018. YOURLS has the considerably larger community, at 12,243 GitHub stars versus 398.
Why pick each one
Choose Shlink Web Client if…
- Released under the MIT license
- Easy to set up — beginner-friendly
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Written in TypeScript
Choose YOURLS if…
- Mature and stable
- Rich plugin ecosystem
Watch out for
- Dated admin interface
Frequently asked questions
Is Shlink Web Client or YOURLS better?
Neither is universally better. YOURLS has the larger community; both share a easy setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.
Are Shlink Web Client and YOURLS free and open-source?
Yes. Shlink Web Client is licensed under MIT and YOURLS under MIT. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Shlink Web Client and YOURLS with Docker?
Shlink Web Client: yes. YOURLS: yes.