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Get more clicks with Ow.ly link shortener

Shorten and track the performance of your links with the best link shortening tool out there.

Trim

No more wasting precious caption space with long, unruly URLs. Shorten links with Ow.ly for a tidier look in your social posts.

Track

See how many people click links in your posts. Plus, view how they drive website visits, conversions, and engagement.

Analyze

Create reports showing traffic and clicks from Ow.ly links and view data in Google Analytics and Adobe Analytics.

Ow.ly slays (and we don’t just mean long links).

Every other part of your post represents your brand, and your URL should too. With Hootsuite, you can create custom vanity URLs to make your posts more memorable.

Want to know if more people are clicking your links from one social network vs. another? Create unique parameters to track the post, social network, or account where visitors came from. 

Get in-depth reporting on Ow.ly link clicks from within Hootsuite Analytics. View tables showing clicks, traffic from Ow.ly links, and the posts with links that performed the best on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.

Link shortening and tracking are simple ways to support your social media goals. They can help drive more traffic to your website, leading to more sales, sign-ups, leads, and more.

A url "www.somosbank.com" shortened to "ow.ly/somos"
adding utm_source google analytics tracking to the link "ow.ly/somos"
create report based on post metrics
Boost your stats fast

btw, Hootsuite is way more than just a website link shortener.

Get in-depth social media analytics, post scheduling, an AI caption and hashtag writer, social listening tools, and more with your Hootsuite plan.

  • Professional Plan

    per month
    Free 30-day trial
    or
    • 1 User
    • 10 social accounts
    • instagramfacebooktwitteryoutubelinkedinpinteresttiktok
    • Features included:


      Unlimited post scheduling

      Best time to post recommendations

      Foolproof image size templates

      Hashtag generator

      One inbox for all social accounts

      Custom analytics and reports

      Competitive benchmarking tool

      ...and much more!

  • Most popular

    Team Plan

    per month
    Free 30-day trial
    or
    • 3 users
    • 20 Social accounts
    • instagramfacebooktwitteryoutubelinkedinpinteresttiktok
    • Everything in PROFESSIONAL, plus:


      Link in bio tool

      Suspend scheduled posts

      Team roles and permissions

      Assign DMs to teammates

      One custom-branded URL

      Automatic link tracking

      Up to $2,000 limit for post boosting

      ...and much more!

  • Enterprise Plan

    Custom
    • 5 Users
    • 50 Social Accounts
    • instagramfacebooktwitteryoutubelinkedinpinteresttiktok
    • Everything in TEAM, plus:

      Approval workflow & asset mgmt.

      Advanced content curation

      Organic & paid campaign mgmt.

      Added automation tools in Inbox

      Level up with these add-ons:

      + Social Listening

      + Advanced Analytics

      + Employee Advocacy

      + Advanced Inbox

      + Review Management

* Prices displayed in USD, based on annual billing, but do not include applicable taxes.

Frequently asked questions

Ow.ly is Hootsuite’s built-in URL shortener. It allows you to shorten links for free as you compose and plan posts in the Hootsuite dashboard. Each link can be customized with the tracking parameters needed to monitor success using the analytics tools you know and love, like Google Analytics or Adobe Analytics.

You’ve probably seen Ow.ly links while scrolling your own social media feeds. That’s because Ow.ly is one of the most popular web link shorteners out there. When you see one of your favorite brands sharing a post with an Ow.ly link, that means they use Hootsuite to trim links and track their social performance. (Those geniuses!).

Link shortening is a neater, smarter way to share URLs linked in social media posts or profiles. 

A URL shortener trims and tidies links so they don’t take up as much precious caption space. Users are still directed to the original link destination, but they won’t have to waste time copy-and-pasting a long, complicated URL.

All social networks have character limits, and lengthy links can eat into them quickly. On top of that, many social media platforms don’t allow you to put hyperlinks in captions. That means that users have to copy the URL text and paste it into their browser to navigate to the page you’re sharing. Or worse: type it out by hand.

Not only does shortening lengthy URLs with the Ow.ly link shortener help you tidy up your posts and track performance, but it can also boost your credibility on social media. Long links look spammy and untrustworthy, so people are less likely to click on them. Plus, vanity URLs can help boost brand awareness and keep your business top-of-mind.

Hootsuite’s link shortener does more than just truncate links so they look nicer in your social posts. It also adds key information to each link so you can monitor and analyze performance. Ow.ly tracks how much traffic comes from each link. It also helps you identify which networks drive the most traffic and the types of content that win you the most engagement.

We’re partial to Ow.ly, of course, but there are plenty of top-notch link shorteners out there. We’ve put together a list of the best link shorteners to help you decide which one is best for you.

Absolutely! If you already use Bit.ly, you can still easily track your link clicks and performance with Hootsuite Business and Enterprise plans. When you’re in the Composer window within the Hootsuite dashboard, you’ll see an option to add tracking to your Bit.ly links as you’re drafting content.

Ow.ly is found in the Hootsuite Composer. When you add a link to the content box of Composer, Hootsuite will automatically give you the option to shorten with Ow.ly and add tracking parameters.

Very easy. The Hootsuite dashboard is designed to be user-friendly, so shortening links and tracking clicks is a cinch. 

Lots! Hootsuite is the most popular social media management platform on earth and lets you manage all your social accounts in one place, schedule messages in advance, track important conversations, create a link in bio, and, of course, use the Ow.ly link shortener.

We sure do! Hootbio is our link in bio tool that will help you create a tidier look in your Instagram and TikTok profiles. It lets you create a stylish and easy-to-navigate hub that houses links to your blog, website, or referral links. Hootbio is available in Hootsuite Team, Business, and Enterprise plans.

Want more information on how to use Ow.ly to its full potential? Visit the Hootsuite help center.

Yes, you can create custom links with Ow.ly as long as you have a Team plan or above. Create a vanity URL in Hootsuite by navigating to Account & Settings and then selecting Vanity URLs.

Previously, Ow.ly was available to everyone. However, to increase security for our users, we’ve moved the Ow.ly link shortener into the Hootsuite dashboard. To access it, sign up for a free Hootsuite trial here and create a shortened link right away.

You’re one click away from becoming a link legend

It only takes a minute to sign up and start shortening your links right away.