T.ly vs cutty.dev — a sincere comparison of two URL shorteners

One click. That is all it takes for T.ly to record someone's IP address on the other side of the Atlantic. And if you run a newsletter for 4 thousand subscribers in the EU, that is 4 thousand such clicks per month passing through US jurisdiction before you even have time to think about it.

You have a T.ly account. You export CSV, you plugged the API into a script, it works. And suddenly someone from the legal department asks where that data is physically located. That's when the conversation begins that you would rather avoid.

This is not a text about how T.ly is bad. Because it isn't. It is a mature, American shortener that does its job. cutty.dev is a smaller European player with a different set of priorities. Below, I compare the two fairly: where T.ly wins, where it loses, and when it actually pays to look for an alternative to T.ly.

Where did this come from

T.ly grew when the big players started closing their free plans. It took in refugees who wanted something cheap and with an API. And it must be admitted: it delivers. Browser extension, bulk shortening, editable back-half, statistics. Are you simply looking for a "shortener with a dashboard that works"? Case closed.

The stairs begin with the requirements that, in 2026, ceased to be a whim. Where is the data located. Whose law governs it. What exactly do you record about the person who clicked.

Here is the real difference, not in the number of buttons

T.ly operates under US law. This means exposure to the CLOUD Act and the entire American mode of data access. Regardless of what their intentions are (and they are probably good).

For half of the projects, it is completely irrelevant. You shorten a link to a meme, who cares. But an agency serving a public sector client? A medical newsletter? Someone who simply doesn't want to explain data transfers across the ocean to lawyers? Red flag.

cutty.dev sits on the other side of this line. Hosting is kept within the EU, so data and logs do not leave European jurisdiction. The visitor's IP does not exist in plain text, but is hashed. What matters is a unique click, but you are not creating a profile of a specific person. Statistics give you numbers (clicks, country, source), not a digital fingerprint.

You really only feel this difference when someone requests a record of processing activities from you. With a hashed IP and a server in Europe, this conversation takes one minute.

Account on entry

T.ly wants an account for practically everything that makes sense. In itself, this is not a flaw. But it raises the bar: before you test anything, you are already creating a profile.

In cutty, you can do basic things without forced registration. You shorten, check if the tool suits you, and only then decide. Have you ever done a link migration from one platform to another? Then you know that what's most expensive isn't money, but dead links scattered across old materials. Of which you will never catch them all. That is why it is worth treating a shortener as something you can exit without bloodshed.

A function that saves campaigns

One thing makes a difference in daily work: replaceable link target. The same short address can be redirected elsewhere even after publication.

Imagine a flyer with a printed QR code. The landing page has crashed or the product URL has changed. Instead of reprinting a thousand copies:

cutty.dev/promo-wiosna  →  (dziś)  /lp/oferta-A
cutty.dev/promo-wiosna  →  (jutro) /lp/oferta-B

Code on paper stays, you change the goal in the panel in five seconds. T.ly also allows editing some links, true. Except in cutty it's not an add-on, but the core: a short link, QR, and a branded suffix as one permanent entry point that will survive any move on the destination side.

Readable extension instead of gibberish

t.ly/x7Kq vs cutty.dev/your-brand. A readable slug means a higher CTR and less distrust. People click on what they understand. A minor detail? In public content, not at all.

Who to become, who to switch to

To put it bluntly, there is no single winner here.

Stay with T.ly if you live by an extensive API, already have integrations in place, and the issue of data jurisdiction simply does not concern you. In that case, changing is a waste of time.

Jump to cutty as an alternative to T.ly, if you care about EU hosting, hashed IP, no forced account at start, and having the same link survive a destination change without reprinting materials. Want to see it for yourself with a live example? Create your first branded link in cutty.dev, it will take you less than reading this paragraph.

There is only one worst option: to choose blindly, without knowing what you are actually signing on the data side.