Slash vs Chhoto URL
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted url shorteners options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Slash
Open-source, self-hosted bookmarks and link shortener
VS
Chhoto URL
Fast, lightweight and FOSS URL shortener in Rust
| Feature | Slash | Chhoto URL |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | Under-an-hour setup |
| Health score | 69 · Good | 82 · Excellent |
| Category | URL Shorteners | URL Shorteners |
| License | MIT | MIT |
| Language | TypeScript | Rust |
| Setup difficulty | Easy | Easy |
| Min. RAM | 256 MB | 64 MB |
| Deployment | docker | docker |
| GitHub stars | ★ 3,181 | ★ 978 |
| First released | 2023 | 2023 |
| Replaces | Bitly, go links | TinyURL, Bitly |
What are Slash and Chhoto URL?
Slash
Slash is an open-source, self-hosted platform for sharable links and bookmarks. It lets teams create short, memorable links and organize collections of resources.
- Shareable short links
- Bookmark collections
- Team workspaces
- Browser extension
Chhoto URL
Chhoto URL is a simple, fast, and lightweight self-hosted URL shortener written in Rust, forked from Simply Shorten. It uses minimal resources and offers an optional public mode.
- Tiny Rust binary
- SQLite storage
- Optional public mode
- Simple REST API
Slash vs Chhoto URL: key differences
Slash is written in TypeScript, while Chhoto URL is built with Rust. Chhoto URL is the lighter option, starting around 64 MB of RAM against 256 MB for Slash. Slash has the considerably larger community, at 3,181 GitHub stars versus 978.
Why pick each one
Choose Slash if…
- Released under the MIT license
- Easy to set up — beginner-friendly
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Active community (3.2k GitHub stars)
Choose Chhoto URL if…
- Released under the MIT license
- Easy to set up — beginner-friendly
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Written in Rust
Frequently asked questions
Is Slash or Chhoto URL better?
Neither is universally better. Slash has the larger community; both share a easy setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.
Are Slash and Chhoto URL free and open-source?
Yes. Slash is licensed under MIT and Chhoto URL under MIT. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Slash and Chhoto URL with Docker?
Slash: yes. Chhoto URL: yes.
Which is lighter on resources, Slash or Chhoto URL?
Chhoto URL has the smaller minimum footprint at 64 MB of RAM, compared to about 256 MB for Slash. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.