Slash vs Sink
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
Sink
Serverless URL shortener with built-in analytics
| Feature | Slash | Sink |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | ≈5-minute setup |
| Health score | 69 · Good | 91 · Excellent |
| Category | URL Shorteners | URL Shorteners |
| License | MIT | MIT |
| Language | TypeScript | Vue |
| Setup difficulty | Easy | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 256 MB | 128 MB |
| Deployment | docker | source, one-click |
| GitHub stars | ★ 3,181 | ★ 7,155 |
| First released | 2023 | 2024 |
| Replaces | Bitly, go links | Bitly |
What are Slash and Sink?
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
Sink
Sink is a fast and minimal URL shortener built to run on Cloudflare Workers and KV but also self-hostable. It includes link analytics powered by an analytics engine.
- Built-in link analytics
- Minimal fast redirects
- Edge deployment
- Clean dashboard
Slash vs Sink: key differences
Slash is written in TypeScript, while Sink is built with Vue. Sink is the lighter option, starting around 128 MB of RAM against 256 MB for Slash. Sink has the considerably larger community, at 7,155 GitHub stars versus 3,181. Slash lists first-class Docker deployment; Sink does not.
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 Sink if…
- Released under the MIT license
- One-click install on common self-host platforms
- Mature project with 7.2k GitHub stars
- Written in Vue
Frequently asked questions
Is Slash or Sink better?
Neither is universally better. Sink has the larger community, while Slash is simpler to set up (easy difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are Slash and Sink free and open-source?
Yes. Slash is licensed under MIT and Sink under MIT. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Slash and Sink with Docker?
Slash: yes. Sink: check the project docs for container support.
Which is lighter on resources, Slash or Sink?
Sink has the smaller minimum footprint at 128 MB of RAM, compared to about 256 MB for Slash. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.