The price anchor
| Trimly | Bitly | |
|---|---|---|
| Monthly | $0 — no subscription | $29/mo |
| Annual | $0 after purchase | $348 |
| 5-year total | $79 | $1,740 |
| 10-year total | $79 | $3,480 |
Subscription figures from the vendor's published pricing ($29/mo, ~$348/yr); the Trimly column is the full price, paid once.
Break-even analysis
Three months of Bitly's custom-domain plan costs more than Trimly does once.
- After 1 year: Trimly has cost you $79 total — Bitly has cost $348.
- After 3 years: Trimly is still $79 — the subscription is at $1,044.
- After 5 years: Trimly is still $79 — the subscription is at $1,740.
What you get for $79 once
- Branded short links. Auto-generated or custom slugs on your own domain.
- Click analytics. Total + unique clicks, clicks-over-time chart, top referrers, devices, browsers, countries.
- QR code for every link. Downloadable PNG and SVG.
- 301 / 302 per link. SEO-permanent or trackable-temporary — your call, editable any time.
- UTM builder. Built into the create form — tag campaigns without a spreadsheet.
- No renewal, ever. The license does not expire and there is no per-seat meter — $79 is the whole price.
Pricing questions
Is it really free on GitHub?
Yes — MIT source at github.com/bensblueprints/link-shortener-mvp. The $79 buys the packaged 1-click installer, updates and setup support.
Do I need a server for public links?
Yes — public short links need a public host, so budget a $5/mo VPS. Desktop mode works fully offline for QR generation and campaign planning. Even VPS + Trimly year one costs less than 3 months of Bitly.
Can I migrate from Bitly?
Yes — bulk CSV import is built in. Export from Bitly, paste, done. Printed QR codes keep working because destinations stay editable.
How accurate is the geo data?
Country detection reads Cloudflare's free CF-IPCountry header — no paid geo API. Without Cloudflare in front, country data degrades gracefully to unknown.
Trimly — $79, one time
Or get Trimly plus every other app in the suite: the OneTimeSuite bundle is currently $97, one time.