URL Shorteners · head-to-head
Kutt vs Mgnet.me
Kutt is a free, open-source, self-hostable URL shortener supporting custom domains, link expiration, password protection, and per-link statistics. The public instance and REST API live at kutt.to (authenticated with an X-API-Key header), and the AGPL-licensed codebase can be self-hosted for full control. Note that the old kutt.it domain is no longer operated by the project — its maintainers warn it may now be a phishing site — so integrations should target kutt.to.
Mgnet.me is a niche shortener for BitTorrent magnet URIs rather than web pages: a GET or POST to /api/create with a magnet parameter returns a short mgnet.me link that redirects back to the original magnet. The API is keyless and can return JSON, XML, or plain text (with JSONP callback support), but the service is HTTP-only — no TLS is available on its endpoints.
| Kutt | Mgnet.me | |
|---|---|---|
| Authentication | API Key | None |
| Pricing | free | free |
| Formats | JSON | JSON, XML, Text |
| CORS | yes | no |
| HTTPS | Yes | No |
Mgnet.me needs no API key, while Kutt requires API Key — pick Mgnet.me to start without signup.