An honest comparison
Datacenter vs Bitly.
Bitly is a long-running link shortener, with features for big companies. Datacenter is small and new. It shows what happens on your site after the click, and which links bring sales.
Facts about Bitly last checked October 21, 2026 on its own pages. Sources are linked next to each one.
| Question | Datacenter | Bitly |
|---|---|---|
| Unmetered clicks | Allowance | Yes, Bitly |
| SSO | Agency and Custom | Enterprise |
| Group permissions | No | Enterprise |
| Own short domain, monthly | $49 | $35 |
| 2 years of history | Yes, Datacenter | 4 months on Growth |
| Website analytics | Yes, Datacenter | Not listed |
| Sales tied to each link | Yes, Datacenter | Not listed |
Every row is explained below, with sources.Checked October 2026.
Where Bitly leads
Bitly is ahead here.
The strongest reasons to choose Bitly today. Each one links to Bitly's own page.
- Paid plans have unlimited clicks and scans. Bitly: pricing
- Enterprise adds SSO and user management with group permissions. Bitly: pricing
- Premium adds mobile deep linking and city-level data. Bitly: pricing
- Growth and up include bulk link creation and branded links. Bitly: pricing
- Core and up include Bitly Assist, an AI helper for links. Bitly: pricing
Where Datacenter fits
Where Datacenter fits.
Things you can check in the docs and on the pricing page.
- Your own short domain, like go.yourbrand.com, on Solo, with website analytics and sales on the same plan.
- Tracking presets for SMS, email and ads, with per-ad templates for Meta, Google, TikTok and Microsoft.
- 2 years of click history. Bitly Growth keeps 4 months.
- Monthly billing on every paid plan. Bitly Core is yearly only.
- Website analytics and the visits after each click.
- Sales tied to each link, and sent to Meta.
- Team roles on every paid plan, an activity log of who changed what, and two-step sign-in you can require for the whole team. SSO with OpenID Connect on Agency and Custom; no SAML or SCIM.
Side by side.
Monthly billing. Bitly facts checked October 2026.
| Feature | Datacenter | Bitly |
|---|---|---|
| Custom short domain from | $49 a month (Solo) | $35 a month, or $29 yearly (Growth) |
| Monthly billing | Every paid plan | Not on Core |
| Click history | 30 days free, 2 years paid | None free, 30 days Core, 4 months Growth |
| Clicks | In your monthly allowance | Unlimited |
| Links | 5 active free, 250 on Solo | 5 a month free, 100 a month on Core |
| QR codes | One for every link | 1 free, 5 a month on Core |
| Website analytics | Yes | Not listed |
| Sales tied to links | Paid plans | Not listed |
| SSO | OpenID Connect on Agency and Custom | Enterprise |
Sources for Bitly, last checked October 21, 2026
Which one to pick.
Pick Bitly if
- Your company needs group permissions.
- You need mobile deep links into apps.
- You send huge click volumes and want them unmetered.
Pick Datacenter if
- You want your own domain on links and your site stats on one plan.
- You want to keep more than a few months of history.
- You want to see the visits and sales after the click.
More comparisons.
Other short links tools, side by side.
Make up your own mind.
A comparison written by one side is only a start. Read the docs, then try it on one site.