A URL shortener is a service that takes a long URL and returns a shorter, unique alias that redirects to the original URL.
![notion image](https://www.notion.so/image/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstackcdn.com%2Fimage%2Ffetch%2Fw_1456%2Cc_limit%2Cf_auto%2Cq_auto%3Agood%2Cfl_progressive%3Asteep%2Fhttps%253A%252F%252Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%252Fpublic%252Fimages%252F6fd33d17-c20b-4c0d-b56c-daebb20c6d39_940x1008.png?table=block&id=181dd76b-576d-811b-a994-f54061dec7b7&cache=v2)
Source: https://tinyurl.com
These services have become increasingly popular with the rise of social media platforms with character limits and the need for cleaner, more shareable links.