Bitly API

Url Shorteners / OAuth Advanced HTTPS
Varies by plan (check documentation)

Overview

Bitly is one of the most popular URL shortening and link management platforms, offering an API to create, track, and manage short links programmatically. It uses OAuth for secure authentication, and once set up you can shorten URLs, create custom branded links, and retrieve click analytics. Bitly is a great choice when you need reliable link tracking alongside shortening.

💡

Beginner Tip

Get your API access token from the Bitly developer portal and include it as a Bearer token in the Authorization header for all requests. Start with the /v4/shorten endpoint to create your first short link.

Available Data

shortened URL
original URL
click count
creation date

Example Response

JSON Response
{
  "id": "abc123",
  "short_url": "https://short.ly/abc123",
  "long_url": "https://example.com/very/long/url/path",
  "clicks": 1542,
  "created_at": "2025-01-10T14:30:00Z"
}

Field Reference

id The Bitlink identifier in the format domain/hash
link The full shortened URL including https://bit.ly/
long_url The original long URL that was shortened
created_at ISO 8601 timestamp of when the Bitlink was created
custom_bitlinks List of custom short link aliases associated with this Bitlink

Implementation Example

const url = "http://dev.bitly.com/";
// Replace headers or query params with the values required by this API.
const response = await fetch(url, {
  headers: {
  "Authorization": "Bearer YOUR_API_KEY"
  }
});
if (!response.ok) throw new Error(`Request failed: ${response.status}`);
const data = await response.json();
console.log(data);

What Can You Build?

Note: These code examples are AI-generated and unverified. Always refer to the official API documentation for accurate usage.

Common Errors & Troubleshooting

401 Unauthorized Missing or incorrect Bearer token in the Authorization header
Include the header "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_ACCESS_TOKEN" in every API request
422 Unprocessable Entity The long URL provided is invalid or not properly formatted
Validate that the URL includes the scheme (https://) and is properly URL-encoded
429 Too Many Requests Exceeded the rate limit for your Bitly plan
Implement exponential backoff and check your plan rate limits in the Bitly developer dashboard

Matrix Score Breakdown

🌐 Reachability 30/30
⚡ Speed 15/20
🔒 Security 15/15
🛠 Developer XP 3/20
✓ Reliability 10/15

Partially tested on Apr 5, 2026

Technical Specifications

Auth OAuth
HTTPS REQUIRED
CORS UNKNOWN
Category Url Shorteners
Difficulty Advanced
Verified: 2026-04-07

Alternatives to Bitly

Technical alternatives for different use cases.

1pt

Minimalist URL shortener with no registration

Better For

Simplest possible URL shortening integration

Trade-off

Analytics, branded links, and link management

No authentication required, simple POST to shorten

Better For

Quick URL shortening without API key setup

Trade-off

Click tracking and link management

Free URL shortener with click analytics

Better For

Simple link shortening with basic analytics for free

Trade-off

Enterprise features and branded short domains

Recipes Using Bitly

Build something with this API. Each recipe includes step-by-step instructions and code outlines.

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