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For sure, onelink.to is one of the most popular services to merge and promote two or more app store links into one. But what if we tell you that a switch will give you more features and also make your marketing activities more trackable – also with an excellent usability?
That’s why we created this post: So that you can get in the future and a better service for your app promotion.
Spoiler alert: it’s absolutely possible to find a better alternative to onelink with the same functionalities (and more!).
Based on the cheapest rate, we looked at a total of 3 competitors and compared them. We looked at costs for link clicks, link amount, statistics and important additional features.
You want to find an onelink.to alternative, save money and get better functionalities? Then you will find suitable answers in the following article!
At a glance, the best OneLink alternatives are:
onelink.to is one of the most popular solutions and offers a free starter plan. However, the plan comes with a catch: after 3 months, ads are served after 1,000 link clicks or QR code scans. This is super annoying for users and in the worst case could even lead to user bounce (= poor user experience). So as soon as your links are clicked or scanned frequently, you need to quickly move to one of the paid plans.
If you want to run multiple campaigns (e.g. via email, the website and social meida) with different links, you will have to switch to one of the higher plans relatively quickly.
As an onelink user, you may also have noticed that you don’t have an option to split links into different campaigns, but you find all links in a single list. As soon as you use multiple links (e.g. in an A/B test) you lack a segmentation function. This can quickly become confusing.
Another thing you should keep in mind with onelink is that the plans increase in a manageable price range, however, they don’t offer any advanced features starting with the team plan.
You’ll probably reach your limits pretty quickly with a few CONS from onelink and look at the competition from onelink.to for the following reasons:
Basic plan includes 20.000 clicks/month, 30 links/month, custom back-halves, QR-Code and link click statistics. Starts at 29 € / month (just € 0.0015 / click). For sure (because Germany ): 100 % GDPR compliant.
usemerge.com comes up first! If you think that onelink is a good service but there it is more than a little old school (UX, Ads, missing marketing-Features) Merge will strengthen your back!
Firstly, Merge greatest benefit is that you pay a similar price for a way more modern, marketing focused service. When you make the change, you will find a nice looking interface, easy to manage, smart link campaigns and a custom backhalfes (mrg.to/custom) in every tier. Merge provides you – in comparison to all other services mentioned here – a 100 % GDPR compliant & non-PII Service build in Germany, which provides 3 different server locations (Germany, Usa, Finland).
Main andvatages over onelink:
Or you can just try it out for yourself by signing up for a free trial. You’ll get 20.000 clicks/month and amazing link tracking insights.
Paid plans start at €29/month for up to 20.000 links clicks / month. Among others, you’ll get access to QR-Code, custom back-half, the campaign feature, 30 links/month, advanced reporting, UTM-Feature, and more.
You can start with a free trial to check out everything with no risk.
Both for small to medium size app marketing teams.
Every member who have to drive app downloads or lead users to specific app-sceens should use Merge. Use Case examples:
1link.io is another affordable onelink solution with an qr-code. Compared to some other onelinks alternatives, it has pretty low link clicks/month in its free plan (only 100). There are also missing some important campaign structure features linke tagging or folders. They also do not provide the option to add UTM-Parameters. That said, it has everything you need to create and share onelink campaigns with a short link (+ link tracking). The price plans are quite similar from both solutions.
1LINK´s main advantage over onelink.to in the free version is that it offers a customizable short handle and a landing page for desktop devices. The paid plan offers you a custom domain feature, a url shortener and a REST API or Zapier intergration. One significant advantage that may appeal to many users is that 1link.io’s paid plan (lower tiers) provides unlimited link creation, rather than simply unlimited traffic. This makes it an excellent option for small businesses and individuals who prioritize having a vast number of links at their disposal.
Main andvatages over onelink:
1link offers a free plan, where you get up to 100 clicks/month and 5 links in total. If you need more features, you can jump on a paid plan starting at $9 / month for up to 5,000 link clicks/month and 100 links.
Small to medium size app marketing teams
URL GENIUS promotes itself as App Linking for Marketers. The main focus of the business is the deep linking feature for most important apps like amazon, youtube or instagram. If you want to promote for example products as an affiliate, it could help to use their software to get better conversions through avoding the “open app in browser” problem. Beside that, they also provide a solution to merge your own appstore links to one shortlink.
url.genius linking tool is optimized with this audience in mind, which need which mainly need the feature to promote other apps.
Before we dive deeper we have to point out one big disadvantage in advance: You only get the first 500 clicks for free – then they start charging at least $0.02 / click.
Overall, url.genius has a ton of features, but to be honest, the sheer abundance of options can sometimes feel overwhelming rather than helpful. On the plus side, they do have a free plan available, but it’s pretty limited in what it can do. One of the biggest differences is, that you only get your first 500 clicks for free.
If you need more advanced features, url.genius has a paid plan that charges per use. It starts at $0.02 per click and comes with some seriously cool deeplinking features that can really boost the user experience. If you’re a power user and need even more advanced tools, there’s a custom plan available, but I couldn’t find any info on how much it costs publicly.
Small to medium size app marketing teams with focus on promoting other apps (not the own) and need a bunch of special features.
If you’re new to app marketing and comparing onelink app marketing services, the variety of tools available can be overwhelming. However, you can simplify your selection process by asking yourself the following questions:
Do I need a simple onelink tool or could I also benefit from a more advanced tool with other marketing capabilities? Or do I need something completely different?
As I pointed out in the article, there are some important features and points to consider when choosing the right tool. If you are a marketer who mainly need to promote your own app through different channels and don´t want to be overwhelmed with a ton of features, you definitely should take a deeper look into a marketing focused onelink tool.
This will help you safe time in promoting your own app, drive more installs and engange better with your customers. At the end you will these will be a great way to centralize your marketing operations, reduce time of copy pasting different app store links, and cut down on your marketing expenses.
Keep in mind what your main points are: Do you need a lot of links? How much traffic do you think will come? Are predictable costs important? Is usability a key point for you? Is segmentation for a better overview important? Do you have to analyze and report a lot? How will our app marketing develop in the long term?
Ask yourself the questions to choose the right tool, then you will be happy with it in the long run.
There are two main things you have to diffenciate:
Needs | Recommended Tool |
Promot your own app with one single link (and link options) |
Onelink-Tool & Tracker (like Merge) |
Promote your own app and other apps via deeplinking (like amazon, youtube, instagram, etc.) | Deep-Linking-Tool & Onelink-Feature |
Promote other apps via deep lining (like amazon, youtube, instagram, etc.) | Deep-Linking-Tool |
Basic single link tracking (like a tool with bitly) |
URL-Shortener & Tracker |
When it comes to choosing an alternative to onelink.to, one important factor to consider is how many links you actually need. This can vary depending on your business goals and marketing strategies.
The main point would have to think about is how many different campaigns on different plattforms you will do. Think about, where you will share your link. At Merged we think about 3 layers of sharing:
1. Convert – Bring users to download your app. Examples: Welcome Mails, Social Media Posts & Ads, YouTube Description, Website, Offline Promo (via QR-Code)
2. Engange – Direct users into the app or directly to an appropriate in-app screen. Examples: Update Mails, Social Media Posts, SMS, Website, Support requests, Reactivation campaigns (e.g. via diret mail)
3. Support – Reply to users with (prefab) links to specific screens so they don’t have to click through unnecessarily. Examples: Support requests (Support Tool, Social, Chatbot), Circular mailing with important information, SMS
When choosing an alternative to onelink.to, it’s important to consider how many clicks you can expect per month. This will help you find the right tool and tier that fits your needs and budget.
To estimate the number of clicks you’ll receive, think about how often you’ll be sharing your links and how many people will be clicking on them. For example:
As an app marketer, it’s essential to evaluate your marketing goals and skills before deciding whether to use a basic “get the job done” tool or a more advanced solution.
To determine the right approach for your app marketing, it’s crucial to evaluate your goals and expertise as a marketer. For many small businesses, prioritizing simplicity, efficiency, and affordability is key. If this resonates with you, it’s likely that the most basic onelink tier will be a suitable option.
For experienced marketers seeking advanced insights, time-saving reporting, or the ability to build structured link campaigns with segmentation, a marketing-focused tool like Merged is recommended.
If you’re tasked with managing multiple link campaigns, including those beyond your own apps or with a focus on tech/dev, you’ll likely require a more advanced tool. Services that offer a wide range of features, settings, integrations, and team settings will better meet your needs. This is typically accompanied by an increase in both price and time spent.
It’s essential to be honest with yourself regarding your actual needs and limitations, both in terms of resources and time. Only then can you identify a tool that meets your requirements while also being manageable in terms of time and data handling.
At the end the only way you will find the perfect machting link tool for you is to test. Test fast. Get first impressions. If you test different tools, you quickly will get a feeling of what kind of points are important for you.
Take action now and take advantage of free plans and free trials. Then you are able to see different features, usability and pricing which help you find the perfect match.
I hope this guide has helped you to find the right onelink alternative.
Basic plan includes 20.000 clicks/month, 30 links/month, custom back-halves, QR-Code and link click statistics. Starts at 29 € / month (just € 0.0015 / click). For sure (because Germany ): 100 % GDPR compliant.
Use Cases
Convert
Drive more App-Dowloads
Engange
Drive more App-Dowloads
Support
Drive more App-Dowloads