Short links and QR codes · updated October 11, 2026
Bitly pricing explained, plan by plan
Bitly sells a Free plan with ads, three self-serve paid plans (Core, Growth and Premium) and a custom Enterprise offer. The prices below come from Bitly's own pricing page, read on 2026-10-11 in US dollars. Core is sold on annual billing only, and the page shows the yearly charge next to each paid plan.
What surprises people is how the plans are measured. Bitly does not count how many links or codes you hold. It counts how many you create each month, plus how many times you may change a destination and how many days of click data you can look at. Those monthly caps, more than the headline price, decide which plan you end up on.
What Bitly costs
Prices from Bitly's public pricing page, in USD, checked on October 11, 2026. Taxes excluded. Vendors change prices; follow the source links to see today's.
| Plan | Billed monthly | Billed yearly |
|---|---|---|
| Freesource, 2026-10-11 | $0/mo | $0/mo |
| Coresource, 2026-10-11 | not listed | $10/mo |
| Growthsource, 2026-10-11 | not listed | $29/mo |
| Premiumsource, 2026-10-11 | not listed | $199/mo |
| Enterprisesource, 2026-10-11 | not listed | n/a |
What forces an upgrade
Each row links to the Bitly page it comes from.
| From | To | What pushes you there |
|---|---|---|
| Free | Core | You need more than 2 QR codes or 5 links a month, 30 days of click data, a UTM builder, or the ability to redirect a link or code to a new page.source, 2026-10-11 |
| Core | Growth | You want links on your own domain, which the page lists from Growth, or you hit 100 links, 5 QR codes or 5 redirects in a month. Growth also adds bulk creation and 4 months of data.source, 2026-10-11 |
| Growth | Premium | You need city-level and device data, campaign-level tracking, mobile deep linking, a year of history, or more than 500 links or 10 QR codes a month.source, 2026-10-11 |
| Premium | Enterprise | You need several users with permissions, SSO, high-volume API and webhook access, or volumes above Premium's 3,000 links a month.source, 2026-10-11 |
What you pay over 1 to 3 years
Computed from the prices above, assuming they never go up. Taxes excluded.
| Scenario | 1 year | 2 years | 3 years |
|---|---|---|---|
| Core, annual billingCore, billed yearly | $120 | $240 | $360 |
| Growth, annual billing, for a branded domainGrowth, billed yearly | $348 | $696 | $1,044 |
| Premium, annual billingPremium, billed yearly | $2,388 | $4,776 | $7,164 |
What Bitly does well
An API and teams
Enterprise lists API and webhook access, multiple users with group permissions and SSO. If several people create links or you feed them into other software, that is what the subscription buys.
Landing pages and deep linking
Every plan includes custom landing pages, and Premium adds mobile deep linking to send people into your app. A short link and QR code tool does not replace either.
A long history of click data
Premium keeps a year of click and scan data, with city and device detail and campaign-level tracking. If you report on campaigns, 30 days of totals will feel short.
Bulk creation at volume
Growth uploads 100 links at a time and Premium 3,000, and Premium allows 3,000 links a month. Teams that make links all day need that headroom.
What each Bitly plan changes
Free is meant for trying the product: 2 QR codes and 5 links a month, with ads. Core is the first plan with a UTM builder and the ability to redirect a link or code, but redirects stop at 5 a month and data covers 30 days.
Growth is where branding starts. It lists branded links, a complimentary custom domain, bulk creation and 4 months of data. Premium is the analytics and scale plan, with 200 QR codes and 3,000 links a month, city and device data and a year of history.
Monthly caps, not totals
Every limit in the comparison table is per month. Core allows 100 new links and 5 new QR codes each month, so a year of steady use adds up to 1,200 links and 60 codes, but a launch week with 30 codes does not fit.
Redirects are the cap to read twice. Changing where a link or QR code points is the reason many people pay for a dynamic code, and Core allows it 5 times a month, Growth 20 and Premium 110.
Billing: annual first
Core has no monthly option at all: the page says Annual Only, $10 a month, with an annual charge of $120. Growth is $29 a month on yearly billing, $348 for the year, and Premium is $199 a month, $2,388 for the year.
The page has a toggle for monthly billing and says annual plans save up to 34 percent. From our server it showed prices in euros, so we did not record a monthly dollar price for Growth or Premium. Expect monthly billing to cost more than the yearly rate, and check the toggle yourself before you pay.
What one plan costs over one, two and three years
Core on annual billing is $120 after a year, $240 after two and $360 after three. Growth is $348, $696 and $1,044. Premium is $2,388, $4,776 and $7,164. These figures assume Bitly keeps today's prices, which it can change at any time.
They cover one account. Multiple users are listed only on Enterprise, so a team should expect a quote rather than a multiple of these numbers.
Who can pay once instead
If you need short links and dynamic QR codes on your own domain with basic scan counts, LimeQR is a one-time purchase: $19 for Solo with 100 codes, or $39 for Pro with 1,000 codes. Scans are shown per day, country and device type for the last 30 days.
It does not offer landing pages, deep linking, teams or a long data history, and an agency running campaigns will outgrow it. For a business that prints a few dozen codes on menus, flyers or packaging, the yearly Core price is the comparison that matters.
FAQ
How much does Bitly cost per month?
Core is $10 a month, Growth $29 and Premium $199 on yearly billing, charged as $120, $348 and $2,388 a year. Core is annual only. Free is $0 with ads, and Enterprise is custom. Read from bitly.com/pages/pricing on 2026-10-11.
Does Bitly have a free plan?
Yes. Free includes 2 QR codes and 5 links a month, 2 custom landing pages and 3 custom back-halves a month, with ads. Clicks and scans are listed as unlimited.
Can I pay for Bitly monthly?
Core cannot be bought monthly: the page says Annual Only. Growth and Premium show a monthly toggle, but we could not read their dollar price, so we list only the yearly rate. Monthly billing costs more than yearly.
How many times can I change where a Bitly QR code points?
The comparison table lists redirects at 5 a month on Core, 20 on Growth and 110 on Premium. Free shows a dash, which means the page does not list it.
Does Bitly sell a one-time or lifetime plan?
Not on its pricing page, which lists only annual and monthly billing. If you want to pay once, see the section above on who can pay once instead.
Pay once. Keep it.
LimeQR is $19 one time. The bundle is $29 one time and includes LimeQR and our other live apps, with future updates.
Questions? Write to martin@fcksubscription.com. A human (the founder) answers.
More comparisons: Bitly alternative, all alternatives.