Which URL Shortening Service is Best to Use

URL Shortening Services/ Top 10 URL Shortening Services
URL shortening services have taken strong root in the internet community. It seems that there is a lot of bias in which URL shortening service is the weapon of choice. For instance- Twitter users commonly use TinyUrl for their shortening needs. But TinyUrl is far from being the only URL shortening service out there. In fact, each service has its own very special service to offer; so don’t take sides just yet.

Doiop.com
Doiop brings something interesting to the table: you can pick your own URL. Unlike many other services that pick a random URL for you, this feature will let you remember the shortened URL. If you’ve ever tried to remember URLs of other services- you know what we mean.


SnipURL.com
SnipURL has the ability to change the URL to something more memorable- a big plus. What we liked about SnipURL was the fact that it provides traffic statistics on the newly created URL. A private key can also be created to limit access to the URL. Finally, there is just something about the “Snipped! 92% of original url,” line that makes the experience very satisfying.

DwarfURL.com
DwarfURL is an elegant yet simple AJAX application. Like SnipURL, it enables traffic statistics for submitted URLs. What really made it shine, however, was the fact that a Mozilla Firefox Add-on can be installed to use their application on the fly. Clearly, this application was optimized for speed and efficiency buffs.

MemURL.com
MemURL is the classic URL shortening service. It doesn’t bring a lot to the table, but it does get the job done. But don’t discredit it just yet- what really sets it apart from other services is its naming convention. MemURL automatically creates human-readable URLs. Sure, they aren’t real words, but they sure are fun to pronounce! Services like this will likely take over when other services that allow users to edit URLs become flooded. This alternative is much better than trying to guess a URL no one else has taken.

TinyURL.com
At long last, we get to Twitter’s dominant URL shortening service. TinyURL has the same kind of shortening service everyone else does, but it packs a punch: it includes a preview URL! How many times have you clicked on a shortened URL, only to find that it led you to a virus, disgusting picture, or web prank? With the preview functionality, that will never happen again!

TraceURL.com
Out of all the URL shortening services available, TraceURL is easily one of the most advanced. It features a highly advanced user interface that makes the process incredibly simple. Sadly, you have to register before you can use the service (which is free). It supports tracking statistics, the ability to choose your URL, and features a simple pop-up interface. If you need options, TraceURL is your shortening service.

URLTea.com
At first glance, URLTea.com is just another URL shortening service. If you’ll look at the above image more carefully, you’ll notice something more is going on behind the scenes. When you submit a URL to URLTea, it will automatically copy the new URL to your clipboard! This makes the copy and paste process a thing of the past, and we aren’t sad to see it go. Just make sure you don’t have anything important in clipboard you’d like to save before using URLTea.

NotLong.com
NotLong is yet another URL shortening service, of which offers statistics, password protection, and the ability to chose your own URL. It’s fast and simple; what more could you ask for in a URL shortening service?

XAddr.com
XAddr is an interesting URL shortening service. They offer the basics, and not much else. What they do throw into the mix, however, is extra security options much like TinyURL does. When the shortened link to a URL is clicked, you are instead brought to a landing page- not the direct URL. XAddr then gives you options to check McAfee SiteAdvisor for more information on the URL. If security is an issue, XAddr is a great alternative to TinyURL.

Azqq.com
Last but not least, we have AZQQ.com. We like this shortening service because it doesn’t do anything extra- just shorten URLs. Sometimes it isn’t about how many features you can pack into a URL shortening service, but how fast the service works. If you just want the bare bones of URL shortening, AZQQ.com is your man.


Please scream loudly in the comments if you want to propose a different/better solution. Is usage/popularity or functionality the best metric for this kind of decision? Should we have "guest" URL shortening services based on unique functionality?