Back in 2019, one of the most popular URL shortening services was shut down, leaving many users with broken links they still need to address. These broken links can have a huge impact on your SEO, traffic, and overall user experience. But don't worry, you're not alone in this — there are solutions to recover, fix, and even replace these links. In this guide, we’ll walk you through the steps to recover broken shortened links, restore your traffic, and optimize your old URLs for 2025. Plus, we’ll cover the best tools, Chrome extensions, and alternative shortening services to replace the old ones
1. Understanding the Impact of Broken Shortened Links
How Broken Links Affect Your SEO
Search engines love efficient, smooth-running websites. When a user or a bot encounters a broken link, like one that leads to a dead page, it sends a negative signal to search engines. This means that your site could get penalized in rankings, and the effort you put into building SEO may be wasted. That’s why fixing broken links is critical for maintaining good SEO health
The Traffic Loss That Follows
For businesses, marketers, and content creators, a broken link can also mean lost opportunities. Imagine you’ve spent time crafting content that’s designed to drive traffic, but that content gets interrupted by broken links. This impacts both the user’s journey and your website's traffic flow. As users navigate through your site and encounter broken links, they’re more likely to leave, which causes a higher bounce rate and missed conversion opportunities
Why Some Shortened Links Break
A big reason for broken shortened links is the expiration or deactivation of the URL shortening service. Some services give shortened URLs an expiration date, meaning they will stop working after a certain time. Other times, a service might shut down completely, leaving the links behind without an easy way to recover them. Many users don’t realize this until it's too late, so it’s important to stay proactive and track your links regularly
2. How to Recover Shortened Links
Checking Your Link History with Your Provider
If the shortened link you used was part of a service that has archived its data, you may be able to retrieve your link history through the provider's console. For those who have accounts with the service, accessing past data could be as simple as logging in, searching for the old links, and exporting the original URLs
Third-Party Tools for Link Recovery
If you don’t have access to the original shortening service or you find that your links are no longer retrievable, third-party tools could be your best bet. Some of these services specialize in tracking and recovering shortened links, and they can help you find where your traffic is being redirected
3. Fixing Broken Shortened Links
Using Link Repair Tools
There are several handy tools designed to help you restore broken links. These tools often offer automatic link repair by identifying where the original URL was meant to lead and reconfiguring the link’s redirection. Here are a few of the most reliable tools:
Link Rebuilder: A user-friendly tool that automatically fixes broken link redirections
SEO Audit Tools: Tools like SEO crawlers can help you find all the broken links on your site, including old shortened ones, and allow you to manually correct them
Manual Fixes Using Redirects
Sometimes, the best way to fix a broken link is through good old-fashioned manual redirection. By setting up a redirect (typically a 301 redirect) in your website’s server settings or through your .htaccess file, you can tell the browser and search engines to take visitors directly to the new URL. This method is especially useful when a link has permanently changed
Redirects for Better SEO
Using redirects is not just about fixing broken links; it’s also a great way to preserve SEO value. When you set up redirects properly, you ensure that link equity (the SEO value from the old URL) is passed to the new one, helping maintain your search rankings and avoid losing traffic
4. Best Chrome Extensions for Link Redirection
Here are some Chrome extensions that can help you troubleshoot and fix broken redirects in real-time:
Link Redirect Trace
This extension allows you to trace the full path a URL takes when clicked, helping you spot redirection issues and quickly identify if a link is broken
Redirect Path
This extension shows you the HTTP response headers of any URL, which is great for spotting redirect chains and finding out if there’s a problem with your links
Short URL Redirector
A simple tool that alerts you when a shortened URL is about to expire or when it redirects to a page that may cause issues, helping you replace outdated links before they stop working
5. Link Reviver Review: A Tool to Fix Broken Links
What is Link Reviver?
Link Reviver is an online tool designed specifically for recovering broken or expired shortened links. It works by automatically scanning a broken link and finding the correct destination URL
How Link Reviver Works
You enter the broken shortened link into the tool’s search box
Link Reviver scans the link’s original source and suggests fixes
The tool provides you with the updated, working URL that redirects users to the right destination
Pros of Link Reviver
Simple to use, no technical expertise required
Efficient link recovery process
Ideal for restoring lost links with minimal effort
Cons of Link Reviver
Limited to recovering shortened links only
Free version may have limitations on the number of links you can restore
6. How to Get Traffic from Old Shortened Links
Use Analytics to Track Historical Data
Even if your shortened links no longer work, you can still retrieve valuable data from past analytics tools. Google Analytics or other tracking systems can show you how much traffic those links were generating before they broke, so you can understand the impact they had on your site
Repost Old Links on Social Media
If you’ve used shortened links in past social media campaigns, consider reposting the content with updated, functional URLs. You can even announce that the old link is no longer working, which helps keep your audience informed
Repurpose Old Content
Take old blog posts or promotional content that previously used broken shortened links, and repurpose it with new, functioning links. You can even update the original content to attract fresh traffic
Build New Links for Better Engagement
Start creating new inbound links to your site by replacing broken links with new, updated URLs. This could be a chance to give older content a boost and introduce it to a new audience
7. SEO Tools for Fixing Redirects
Ahrefs
Ahrefs is an excellent tool for scanning your site and identifying broken links and redirect issues. It provides detailed reports that help you fix any errors that might harm your SEO
SEMrush
SEMrush’s Site Audit tool offers a comprehensive scan for broken links and redirects, providing clear reports and recommendations on how to fix any issues
Screaming Frog SEO Spider
Screaming Frog is a powerful desktop tool that crawls your entire website and identifies any broken URLs or faulty redirects. It’s perfect for large websites with many links to monitor
8. Alternatives to Traditional URL Shorteners in 2025
If you’re looking to replace an old shortened URL service, consider these popular alternatives:
Bitly
Bitly remains a top choice in 2025, offering advanced features like analytics, custom short URLs, and management tools for businesses
TinyURL
TinyURL provides a simple, reliable alternative for creating short links, and it’s still a favorite for many users due to its straightforward design
Rebrandly
For businesses seeking customized branded links, Rebrandly offers an easy way to create and manage short URLs with your own domain
BL.INK
BL.INK is a powerful link management tool for enterprises, offering scalable solutions with detailed analytics and API integrations
Conclusion
In summary, recovering broken shortened links and fixing redirects in 2025 requires a combination of tools, manual fixes, and proactive strategies. Whether you use a link recovery tool, manually set up redirects, or explore new URL shortening services, taking action now will help preserve your SEO rankings and keep traffic flowing smoothly. Don’t forget to try alternatives like Bitly or Rebrandly, which offer more sustainable solutions for managing links in the future
Final Thoughts for SEO Optimization
Keyword Optimization: Integrate keywords naturally throughout the content, especially in headings and body text
Meta Description: Write a compelling meta description using target keywords like “recover broken links” and “SEO tools for redirects”
Internal and External Linking: Link to relevant internal content and credible external sources
Images and Alt Text: Add relevant images and optimize with descriptive alt text to improve accessibility and engagement
