See where a short link really leads — without clicking it.
How to use it
Check an affiliate product from an email
You get an email promoting a product. Paste the link from the email here and instantly see which affiliate network (e.g. Digistore24) it runs on — without being redirected to the sales page first.
Check your own links
Quickly verify where your own short links actually redirect — without clicking them yourself.
Unmask other people's links
Found a link somewhere that jumps straight to a sales page? See the full chain and which offer or affiliate program is behind it.
Safely check suspicious links
Not sure a link is legit? Resolve it here and see the real destination before you click.
What does this tool do?
Paste a short link or any redirecting URL. The tool follows every redirect and shows you where the link actually ends up — so you don't have to open it yourself.
A URL resolver (also called a URL expander or redirect checker) takes a shortened link – from bit.ly, t.co, tinyurl.com, ow.ly, goo.gl or lnkd.in – and follows every redirect to the real destination URL. You see the final landing page and the complete redirect chain before you even click the link.
Short URLs hide their destination – and that is exactly what phishing, malware and tracking links exploit to disguise the real endpoint. With the URL resolver you expose the hidden target in a second and decide for yourself whether the link is trustworthy.
The tool follows the redirects server-side and safely – without running any JavaScript from the target page. You see the address without actually visiting it: no script, no tracking pixel and no cookie from the target lands on your device.
Anything can sit behind an innocent-looking bit.ly or t.co link – a legit site, an affiliate redirect with ten tracking hops, or a phishing trap. Resolving means: see where it goes first, then click.
The URL resolver follows the HTTP redirect – no matter which service it comes from. The best known:
And any other address that redirects via 301/302 – including multi-step chains and custom short domains.
Paste the short link
Drop the short link (bit.ly, t.co, t.ly, lnkd.in etc.) into the field. The http(s):// is optional – the tool takes the input as is.
Follow the redirect
The tool sends a server-side request and follows all redirects. Some services hop multiple times (302 to 301 to 200) – only the real final destination is reported.
Run it
You get the final URL (the resolved landing page) and the HTTP status of the last response: 200 = resolved, 4xx/5xx = the target reports an error.
Check before clicking
Look at the final URL before you open it. If the domain looks suspicious, do not open it in your main browser – and never enter passwords there.
Anywhere you meet a shortened or opaque link and want to know where it really goes:
Suspicious emails
A link in an email you did not expect? Resolve first, then decide – so you do not fall for phishing.
Social media DMs
Short links in Instagram, X or LinkedIn messages do not show their target. Resolving exposes spam and fakes.
QR codes
QR codes hide the URL entirely. Paste the scanned link into the resolver and see the real destination.
Affiliate & ad links
See how many tracking hops a link runs through and which page it lands on in the end.
Comment links
Links under posts or in forums often go through shorteners – check the target before you click.
Before sharing
Before you pass on someone else's short link, check where it leads – your reputation is on the line.
Find broken links
A 4xx/5xx status instantly shows whether a short link leads nowhere.
Understand tracking
The redirect chain reveals which services read along before you reach the target page.
Some links look like gibberish: %20 is a space, %C3%A4 is the letter ä, %2F is a slash. That is URL encoding (percent-encoding) and it is actually harmless – it just lets special characters travel safely through the web.
Still, it is often used to make a destination look unreadable and harmless. When you resolve the short link here, you see the final address in plain text – and instantly recognise which domain you would really land on.
Want to create short links people actually trust? With promolinks you build branded short URLs with click stats, a QR code and no throwaway domain – transparent instead of opaque.
Open the URL shortenerPaste the bit.ly link into the field above and run the resolver. The tool follows the redirect and shows you the real destination URL plus the complete chain – without opening the link itself.
Same thing. t.co is the shortener of X (Twitter) – the tool follows the redirect to the original address behind the t.co link.
Yes. The tool is not tied to a single provider – it follows the HTTP redirect. So it resolves tinyurl.com, ow.ly, goo.gl, lnkd.in, buff.ly, rebrand.ly, cutt.ly, t.ly, is.gd and practically every other shortener.
Yes. The tool calls the link server-side and runs no JavaScript from the target page. You see the address without actually visiting it – no script, no tracking pixel and no cookie from the target reaches your device.
No. Only the HTTP redirect is followed. Active content of the target page (JavaScript, trackers) does not run – that makes resolving much safer than a normal click.
A 301 is a permanent, a 302 a temporary redirect. Many short links hop through several such stops before they reach the target. The chain shows every intermediate stop – so you see which services are involved along the way.
A 4xx (e.g. 404) means the target no longer exists; a 5xx is a server error at the target. The short link did resolve, but the target page reports a problem of its own.
It is the percent-encoding for special characters: %20 = space, %C3%A4 = ä, %2F = slash. It is normal and harmless, but is sometimes used to make a destination unreadable. After resolving you see the address in plain text.
The tool is for checking, not collecting. It sets no tracking cookies and uses your input only to resolve the redirect.
You resolve one link per run. With a free promolinks account you can use the tool without limits and as many times in a row as you like – no daily cap.
Yes. Without signup you resolve 1x per day for free. With a free account usage is unlimited – plus your own short links with click stats and a QR code.
With a free promolinks account you resolve short links without limits – and turn any address into your own short, branded link with click stats and a matching QR code.
Create free account