Short Links

Short links are the core of H0p. Transform long URLs into memorable, trackable links with advanced features like custom slugs, analytics, QR codes, and smart routing.

Creating a short link

Every short link has a destination (where it redirects to) and a slug (the unique identifier).

Open the link creator

Navigate to Links in the sidebar and click Create Link.

Choose your domain

Select which domain to use for your link. You can use h0p.co or any custom domain you’ve configured.

Enter your destination

Enter the URL, email address, or phone number you want the link to redirect to.Supported destination types:

URL - Standard web addresses (https://example.com)
Email - Opens mail client (mailto:hello@example.com)
Phone - Opens phone dialer (tel:+1234567890)

Set your slug

Choose a custom slug or let H0p generate a random 6-character one.

Good slugs are short, memorable, and relevant. Use h0p.co/promo instead of h0p.co/winter-2024-promotional-campaign-landing-page.

Save your link

Click Create to save. Your link is immediately active.

Link settings

Basic settings

Every link has these core settings:

Setting	Description
Destination	Where the link redirects to
Slug	The unique path after your domain
Domain	Which domain hosts this link
Folder	Organization folder (Premium)
Tags	Labels for filtering and categorization

UTM parameters

Add UTM parameters to track campaign performance:

Parameter	Description	Example
`utm_source`	Traffic source	`newsletter`, `twitter`
`utm_medium`	Marketing medium	`email`, `social`, `cpc`
`utm_campaign`	Campaign name	`spring_sale`
`utm_term`	Paid keywords	`running_shoes`
`utm_content`	Content variant	`header_link`

UTM parameters are automatically appended to your destination URL. H0p tracks these in analytics.

Premium features

The following features require a Premium subscription.

Password protection

Restrict access to your links with a password:

Enable password protection

In the link settings, toggle on Password Protection.

Set a password

Enter a password between 5 and 25 characters.

Share securely

Share the password separately from the link for security.

When someone visits a password-protected link, they’ll see a form to enter the password before being redirected.

Expiration settings

Control when and how links become inactive:

Date expiration
Click limit

Set a specific date and time when the link expires:

Link works normally until the expiration date
After expiration, visitors see an error page
You can extend or remove expiration at any time

Cloaking

Display your destination in an iframe instead of redirecting:

Original URL stays in the browser address bar
Content from destination loads in the page
Useful for affiliate links or white-labeling

Some websites block iframe embedding. Test your destination before relying on cloaking.

Custom meta tags

Control how your links appear when shared on social media:

Field	Description	Character limit
Title	The headline shown in previews	200 characters
Description	Supporting text below the title	500 characters
Image	Preview image (1200x630px recommended)	1MB max

Smart routing rules

Route visitors to different destinations based on their characteristics:

Geographic routing

Send visitors to different URLs based on their country:

Show localized content (/en vs /fr vs /de)
Region-specific pricing pages
Comply with regional regulations

Uses ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 country codes (US, GB, FR, etc.)

Device routing

Different destinations for different operating systems:

iOS - App Store link
Android - Play Store link
Desktop - Website

Supported: Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, Android

Language routing

Route based on browser language preferences:

Match content to user’s preferred language
Improve user experience without redirects
Uses ISO 639-1 language codes (en, fr, es, etc.)

How rules work:

Rules are evaluated in priority order (0 = highest)
First matching rule determines the destination
If no rules match, the default destination is used

{
  "rules": [
    {
      "priority": 0,
      "destination": "https://example.com/ios",
      "osTypes": ["ios"]
    },
    {
      "priority": 1,
      "destination": "https://example.com/android",
      "osTypes": ["android"]
    }
  ]
}

Deep linking

Send mobile users directly into your app:

Platform	Field	Example
iOS	`iosDeepLink`	`myapp://product/123`
Android	`androidDeepLink`	`myapp://product/123`

Configure Apple App Site Association and Android Asset Links on your domain for Universal Links support.

Automatic deep linking

When your destination URL points to a supported app, H0p automatically generates deep links to redirect mobile users directly into the native app instead of the website. How it works:

You create a link to a supported platform (e.g., https://open.spotify.com/track/...)
H0p detects the platform and extracts the content ID
When a mobile user clicks, they’re redirected to the native app
Desktop users are redirected to the website as normal

Supported platforms:

We will add a lot of apps in the future, keep updated !

Music

Spotify
Apple Music

Video

YouTube
Twitch

Social

Instagram
TikTok
Facebook
X (Twitter)
LinkedIn

Messaging

Shopping

Amazon

Other

Pinterest
Reddit
Discord

Automatic deep linking works out of the box. No configuration required - just paste your destination URL and H0p handles the rest.

QR codes

Every link includes an auto-generated QR code. Premium users can customize:

Basic QR code

Available to all users
Standard black and white design
PNG download

Customized QR code (Premium)

Colors

Custom colors for dots, background, and corners. Gradient support with linear or radial options.

Patterns

Different dot styles: square, rounded, dots, classy, classy-rounded, extra-rounded.

Logo overlay

Add your brand logo in the center. Supports PNG, JPEG, WebP, SVG (max 500KB).

Corner styles

Customize corner squares and dots with different shapes and colors.

Analytics

H0p tracks comprehensive analytics for every click:

Available metrics

Metric	Description
Total clicks	All-time click count
Unique visitors	Deduplicated by visitor hash
Countries	Geographic distribution
Cities	City-level location data
Devices	Mobile vs desktop breakdown
Browsers	Chrome, Safari, Firefox, etc.
Operating systems	Windows, macOS, iOS, Android, etc.
Referrers	Where traffic comes from
UTM data	Campaign tracking breakdown
QR vs direct	QR code scans vs direct clicks

Data retention

Plan	Retention
Free	30 days
Premium	2 years

Viewing analytics

Go to Dashboard

The main dashboard shows aggregate analytics across all links.

Filter by link

Use filters to view analytics for specific links, domains, folders, or tags.

Adjust date range

Select your preferred time period using the date range picker.

Organization with folders and tags

Folders (Premium)

Group related links into folders:

Marketing - Campaign links
Product - Product page links
Support - Help center links

Each organization gets one default folder. Premium users can create up to 100 folders.

Best practices

Choose memorable slugs

Use short, descriptive slugs that hint at the content. h0p.co/pricing is better than h0p.co/p1x2y3.

Use consistent naming

Establish naming conventions for your team:

Campaigns: campaign-name-channel (e.g., spring-sale-email)
Products: product-feature (e.g., api-docs)

Organize early

Set up folders and tags before creating many links. Retroactive organization is tedious.

Test before sharing

Monitor analytics

Check analytics regularly to understand what’s working. Use the data to optimize your campaigns.

API access

Create and manage links programmatically with the H0p API:

curl -X POST https://api.h0p.co/short-link \
  -H "x-api-key: YOUR_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "destination": {
      "type": "link",
      "value": "https://example.com"
    },
    "slug": "my-link",
    "domainId": "your-domain-id"
  }'

See the API Reference for complete documentation.

Getting Started

Features

Integrations

Short Links

Creating a short link