The Bitly API
Ready to jump right in? See the API reference for all endpoints.
What you need to get started
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Product knowledge. Check out our Help Center for basics. When working with end-users, be aware that some terms that they see in the web app are abbreviated on the backend. The two most common (and their API translations) are short links (Bitlinks) and custom domains (Branded Short Domains, or BSDs). -
A Bitly account. Have access to an account and check your plan's link limits.
Shorten your first link!
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Generate an access token . -
You'll use the POST method to the /v4/shorten endpoint. Append your access token as a header in your request. Here's an example: Authorization: Bearer {token} . POST https://api-ssl.bitly.com/v4/shorten { "group_guid": "Ba1bc23dE4F", "domain": "bit.ly", "long_url": " https://dev.bitly.com/ " } A successful response will return the shortened link in the link object. -
Go to our API reference to view all available endpoints.