# b59.link

> Free short links with click stats, a QR code generator, a cookie-free page-view tracker with a view counter badge,
> and waitlist / newsletter / contact lists. Everything has a REST API and an MCP server; bots sign up with an email code.
> By Biz59 LLC, New York, NY. No subscriptions.

## Tools
- [Short links](https://b59.link/): shorten a URL, get a QR code and click stats
- [Campaign link set builder](https://b59.link/tools/campaign-links): one destination and a list of places in, one UTM-tagged short link with its own click stats per place out, CSV export
- [Receipt QR sizer](https://b59.link/tools/receipt-qr): a link, 58 or 80 mm paper, 203 or 180 dpi and error correction level -> QR version, printed width at 1-8 printer dots a square with a verdict (under 0.3 mm too small, 0.45 mm+ comfortable, too wide for the paper), the recommended size, a PNG at the printer's exact dots, the ESC/POS GS ( k bytes and a python-escpos snippet. Runs in the browser
- [Slide QR sizer](https://b59.link/tools/slide-qr): a link, the screen height (or width and aspect) and the back row (row count on 36-inch centres from a front gap, or a distance) -> the share of the slide height the code needs at 3 and 2 camera pixels a square (1,445 px per metre at 1 m for a 1920-pixel phone frame), whether it fits with its margin, a verdict per row, PowerPoint inches and a 1920 x 1080 PNG. Runs in the browser
- [Badge QR sheet](https://b59.link/tools/badge-qr): an attendee CSV (name, company, optional link; header row or that order), 4 x 3 or 4 x 6 inch badges, one per page or 6/2 per US Letter or A4 sheet (backs mirrored for a long-edge duplex flip) -> a double-sided PDF: names on the front, the event short link code on the back with what it opens and up to 4 lines, each attendee's own link code on the front sized at level M, with how close a phone must come (3 camera pixels a square) and warnings for long, duplicate or sequential links. Runs in the browser; nothing uploaded
- [Booking page](https://b59.link/tools/booking): a booking page in the owner's look (plans paid once, per session or monthly; times in the visitor's time zone; payment to the owner's own Stripe account; emails and reminders to both sides; customer and admin pages to move or cancel). Set up with the owner through biz59.net/contact
- [EPC payment QR code](https://b59.link/tools/epc-qr): name, IBAN (length and check digits), BIC (required outside the EEA), euro amount, purpose, RF reference or text -> the EPC069-12 payload line by line (version 002, UTF-8, at most 331 bytes) and a level M QR code drawn in the browser, SVG/PNG; bank details are not sent
- [Add-to-calendar link builder](https://b59.link/tools/calendar-link): event title, start/end (or all-day first/last day), IANA time zone, place, description, page -> Google Calendar link (local times + ctz), Outlook.com and Microsoft 365 links (UTC), an RFC 5545 .ics file (UTC, UID, SEQUENCE, escaped and folded) and HTML buttons for an event page; warns about times skipped by clock changes (browser only)
- [Spoken link name checker](https://b59.link/tools/spoken-name): a short link name you'll say out loud (podcast, radio, talk) -> numbers, sound-alike words, hyphens, capitals, doubled letters, UK/US spellings and spelled-out letters that blur over audio, the spare names to register, and the name read by the browser's voice (browser only)
- [UTM link checker](https://b59.link/tools/utm-check): paste tagged links, see capital letters, spaces, misspelled, repeated or missing utm tags and one value typed several ways, copy a cleaned list (browser only)
- [Page-view tracker](https://b59.link/tracker): one image tag, views, visitors, pages, referrers, devices; no cookies
- [View counter badge](https://b59.link/tools/view-counter): SVG badge with a public tracker's view count, whole site or one path (https://b59.link/badge.svg?id=TRACKER_ID&path=/page)
- [QR codes that never expire](https://b59.link/qr): plain codes need no server; tracked codes are plain 302 redirects with no trial, no ad page, no subscription
- [Will this QR code die?](https://b59.link/tools/qr-check): decode a QR photo in the browser and see if it depends on a generator's redirect domain (dynamic) or holds the address itself (plain)
- [QR print size calculator](https://b59.link/tools/qr-size): smallest print size for a QR code from its content, error correction level and scan distance, quiet zone included (browser only)
- [GS1 Digital Link builder](https://b59.link/tools/gs1-link): a GTIN (EAN/UPC, check digit verified, padded to 14 digits) with optional batch, serial and expiry -> the address a 2D code on packaging should hold on your own domain, its QR code, printed width at GS1's square sizes, and the nginx/Apache/Caddy redirect rule
- [Guest Wi-Fi sign](https://b59.link/tools/wifi-sign): Wi-Fi network name and password checked (length, ASCII, the \ ; , : " characters the WIFI: format escapes, hidden networks, WEP) -> the WIFI: text, a QR code drawn in the browser and a printable sign sized for the scan distance; the password is not sent
- [Contact QR for a business card](https://b59.link/tools/contact-qr): contact details -> vCard 3.0 and MECARD side by side, characters each line adds, grid size, whether the code fits on an 85 x 55 mm card, compared with a short link to a contact page; QR, SVG, PNG and .vcf drawn in the browser
- [Contact page](https://b59.link/tools/contact-page): signed-in accounts make a public page at b59.link/c/<name> with their contact details, a Save contact (.vcf) download at /c/<name>/card.vcf and a QR code for the address; the owner can edit, hide or delete it; not offered to search engines
- [Redirect checker](https://b59.link/tools/redirect-check): follows a link hop by hop from the server (public addresses only, up to 10 hops) -> each hop's status, Location and Cache-Control, and whether every click is counted and the destination can be changed (POST https://b59.link/api/tools/redirects {"url": ...})
- [Link list checker](https://b59.link/tools/link-check): up to 25 links, each followed from the server through the redirect checker (ten a minute) -> works, worth a look, dead, no answer or refused, with where it ends and a CSV made in the browser; nothing stored
- [Printed-link watch](https://b59.link/tools/printed-link-watch): up to 25 printed links (QR codes, short links, any vendor) checked once a day from the server -> dead, lands somewhere new, deactivated/parking page, redirect changed or certificate expiring, a shareable result page at b59.link/w/<slug> and optional email alerts (POST https://b59.link/api/watch {"links": [{"url": ...}]}; MCP watch_printed_links, get_watch_report; docs https://b59.link/docs/printed-link-watch)
- [Reference list archiver](https://b59.link/tools/ref-archive): a pasted reference list (up to 50 web addresses, doi: names too) -> the newest Wayback Machine copy of each, or the one closest to a cited date, from archive.org's availability API called by the browser; flags old copies, copies of errors and pages with no copy (with a save-page-now link); CSV and Markdown table made in the browser; nothing stored
- [Printed code register](https://b59.link/tools/code-register): a list of signs and the address each printed QR code should hold (saved in the browser, CSV in and out) -> walk-round photos decoded in the browser and matched: holds the right address, close but not the same (http, capitals, extra tags, lookalike domain), not on the register, no code found; signs not yet photographed; printable checklist. Nothing uploaded
- [QR code generator](https://b59.link/tools/qr): links, Wi-Fi, email, phone, SMS; PNG or SVG (https://b59.link/api/tools/qr?data=hello)
- [Waitlist](https://b59.link/wl), [Newsletter](https://b59.link/nl), [Contact list](https://b59.link/cus)

## For developers and agents
- [API docs](https://b59.link/api-docs): REST API; without a key 2 requests a minute, with a session key 300
- [MCP server](https://b59.link/mcp): the same functions as MCP tools, 10 requests a second with or without a key
- [Analytics](https://b59.link/analytics): signed-in view of your own trackers and short links

## Articles
- [Links in a PDF price list or trade catalogue: order pages that keep working when the prices change](https://b59.link/articles/pdf-price-list-trade-catalogue-links): Trade customers order from last year's PDF. One distributor's 2026 list shows 31 price increases from 22 manufacturers, one item up almost 30% in a year. One short link per section (24 to 64 links, not 640), what our test found Chrome and Firefox do with addresses that aren't real links, QR sizes for a dense page, a discontinued-item page instead of a 404, and reading the clicks.
- [An insert card in the parcel with a QR code: reviews, reorders and what Amazon, Etsy and eBay allow](https://b59.link/articles/package-insert-card-qr-code-amazon-etsy-ebay-rules): What Amazon's, Etsy's (rewritten 5 October 2026) and eBay's own policies say about review requests, QR codes and links on insert cards, the $4-$6 fee on a repeat order that explains them, what the code should open on each channel, scans per 100 orders and how long to test two card versions, a 20-25 mm code size, and print runs from 250 to 5,000 when the destination might change.
- [A QR code on a class timetable at the gym, studio or dance school: booking links that change every term](https://b59.link/articles/class-timetable-qr-code-gym-studio-booking-link): Why the Book link you copied may open one class from last July (we checked five: four did), what each printed place should open, how big the code must be to read from a metre (70 mm for a short link, 85 mm for a booking-system address), one code per class type to see demand, trial-offer links, and keeping last term's printed codes and a booking-system move pointing at the current timetable.
- [Links in a product's instruction leaflet: setup videos, spare parts and warranty registration that outlive the print run](https://b59.link/articles/instruction-leaflet-qr-code-setup-video-warranty-registration): The leaflet is printed in thousands and sealed in boxes, but its link gets scanned for a dozen years. What breaks (YouTube made pre-2017 unlisted videos private in 2021), one link per product and language (12 links for six products, not 288), warranty registration numbers (13% average on US cards; 15,000 scans gave 1,000 sign-ups, then 5,100 with a shorter page), what US law says you can't tie to registration, and what the EU's 2027 machinery rules let you move online.
- [We timed 11 link shorteners from 3 cities: the short link cost 34 ms to over a second before the page began](https://b59.link/articles/link-shortener-redirect-speed-11-shorteners-3-cities): Does a short link slow the page down? We clicked test links on 11 shorteners 20 times each from Chennai, eastern France and St. Louis and timed the first hop. Two answered in under 100 ms everywhere; from Chennai, five took over half a second, ours included. The table, the three reasons, and how to time your own.
- [A QR code on a machine or piece of equipment: the manual, the service log and reporting a fault](https://b59.link/articles/equipment-qr-code-label-manual-fault-report): One code per machine opening one page: how-to, manual and a fault form. How far away a phone reads each payload on 19, 25 and 38 mm asset tags (a short link from 36 cm on a 1 × 2 inch tag, a pre-filled form only from 20 cm), our test of scratched, greasy and torn labels at every error correction level, label materials from $0.78 to $2.94 a tag, moving a manual without relabelling, and what a public code should never open.
- [A QR code on a wedding invitation or save-the-date: the RSVP form, the gift list and the page after the day](https://b59.link/articles/wedding-invitation-qr-code-rsvp): What a wedding invitation code should open from save-the-date to thank-you, how big it must be on a 5 × 7 card (a short link is 25 squares, a pre-filled Google Form 49), our test of foil (a lamp reflection across a fifth of the code stops every read) and letterpress ink spread, one link per batch to chase replies, and what reply cards cost to post in 2026 ($0.82 a stamp).
- [A QR code on a conference badge or name tag: the contact swap, the session list and what organisers can count](https://b59.link/articles/qr-code-conference-name-badge): What a badge code should open for each job (contact swap, lead scan, agenda), how close a phone must be for each payload (50 cm for a short link, 24 cm for a full vCard on a 30 mm code), our test of badges turned 35-50° away, what lead scanning costs exhibitors ($800 for three app licences at one 2026 show) and keeping links working after the event.
- [QR codes on a market stall: price cards, allergens and the shop that's open after Saturday](https://b59.link/articles/market-stall-qr-code-price-card-allergens-shop): What a market customer scans for (mostly the shop, after the market), what UK and US allergen rules say about information behind a code, a 6 cm code with a short link on an A6 price card, our glare test (a white patch over a tenth of a glossy code stops level M every time), signal at rural and crowded markets, and one link per market to see which pitches bring customers back.
- [A QR code on a noticeboard poster for a club, class or community event: what to link and when to take it down](https://b59.link/articles/noticeboard-poster-qr-code-club-class-event): How long library, council and parish boards keep posters up (2 weeks to 60 days, A4 or letter), England's 28-days-before and 14-days-after rule for outdoor event signs, a 6-8 cm code with a short link versus 10 cm for a full Google Form address, why two-thirds of over-60s aren't comfortable scanning, what the link should open as the event fills, happens and ends, and one link per board to see which boards work.
- [Links in an email signature: which ones get clicked, and the ones that land you in spam](https://b59.link/articles/email-signature-links-clicks-spam): Signature click rates (0.5 to 4 per 100 emails, all from vendors), the SpamAssassin rules a signature can trip (a short link scores 0 until it points somewhere bad; image-only mail up to 2.8 points), a 6.5 KB generator signature that gets a thread clipped by Gmail after about 13 messages instead of 63, why 80-95% of clicks from business inboxes are scanners, and one link per person that survives someone leaving.
- [QR codes on plant labels and garden-centre signs: care pages that survive sun, water and a season outdoors](https://b59.link/articles/qr-code-plant-labels-garden-centre-signs): How big a QR code can be on a 13, 16, 20 or 25 mm plant stake (0.55 mm squares with a short link on 20 mm, 0.32 mm with a tagged care-page address), how close people must hold it, which label materials and inks last outdoors, why faded print on a dirty label fails when either alone doesn't, a care page that changes with the month, and counting scans per variety.
- [A QR code in a holiday rental: the house guide, check-out steps and the review, on one card by the door](https://b59.link/articles/holiday-rental-qr-code-house-guide-checkout): What guests ask hosts (from 10 million messages: 18.4% of those asking for the Wi-Fi password had already been sent it), what goes on the card by the door and what never should, a web page instead of a PDF, updating the guide between bookings without reprinting, one link per property to see if guests read it, the check-out steps, the review rules, and why the door code stays off.
- [Links in letters home from school or a club: forms, payments and the link that has to work next term](https://b59.link/articles/qr-code-school-letter-newsletter-permission-slip): Who reads the letter (91% of US adults have a smartphone, 29% of lower-income ones have no other internet), why form addresses fail on paper (an 82% chance a forms.gle ID holds a look-alike character), one printed link pointed at a new form every term, pre-filled links to count replies per class, translated letters, and where old letters' links should go.
- [A QR code on the last slide of a talk: how long people need, what it should open and counting who scanned](https://b59.link/articles/qr-code-on-presentation-slide-talk): How big a code must be on a projected slide for row 20 (half to two-thirds of the slide height with a short link; a long address can't fit), the 12.4 seconds people take to scan in a usability test and why to stop talking for 30, what the code should open, why the link must work when the recording goes up 12 weeks later, and one link per talk to compare events.
- [A QR code on a van, shop shutter or window: reading distance, glass and what to put behind it](https://b59.link/articles/qr-code-on-van-shop-window-shutter): Who can scan a code on a van (people on foot or parked, never the driver behind), how wide it must be from 1.5 to 15 m (16 cm at 3 m for a short link, 26 cm for a long address, from our camera and decoder test), letter heights for the phone number, reflections and perforated film on glass, shutters seen only after closing, and one link per van to see which one brings in work.
- [A no-cost contact list: 20 form tools priced at 1,000 and 10,000 entries](https://b59.link/articles/contact-form-tools-cost-free-alternative-formspree-typeform): What Formspree, Typeform, Jotform, Tally, Formcarry and 15 other form tools cost at 1,000 and 10,000 entries a month, over two years, and a free contact list on b59.link with what it doesn't do.
- [A no-cost newsletter: 20 tools priced at 1,000 and 10,000 subscribers](https://b59.link/articles/newsletter-tools-cost-free-alternative-substack-mailchimp): What Mailchimp, Beehiiv, Kit, Substack, MailerLite and 15 other newsletter tools cost at 1,000 and 10,000 subscribers, over two years, and a free newsletter on b59.link with what it can't do.
- [A no-cost alternative to GetWaitlist: 20 waitlist tools priced at 1,000 and 10,000 sign-ups](https://b59.link/articles/waitlist-tools-cost-free-alternative-getwaitlist): GetWaitlist closed its free plan to new accounts. What it, LaunchList, Viral Loops and 17 other tools cost at 1,000 and 10,000 sign-ups, and a free waitlist on b59.link with what it can't do.
- [A QR code on a till receipt: feedback, returns and the next order, and what thermal paper does to it](https://b59.link/articles/qr-code-on-receipt-thermal-printer-feedback): What a receipt code should open, how many customers use one (45.9% never noticed the survey offer on theirs), one link per till compared per 100 receipts, how wide the code prints on 58 and 80 mm thermal printers for three typical links (12.4 mm to 57 mm), our decode test (2 dots a square fails, 3 works), what fading and scuffing do to it, and what counts as a scan.
- [Links on a CV or portfolio PDF: what recruiters click and how to know they did](https://b59.link/articles/links-on-cv-portfolio-pdf-track-clicks): Our test of what a PDF parser keeps from a hidden 'Portfolio' link versus a printed address, how to write CV links that survive the applicant system, the printout and Print to PDF, one short link per application (64 links for a month at 16 applications a week) to see which company opened your work, how to read the clicks (scanner clicks in the first minutes) and keeping the links alive for the whole job hunt.
- [QR codes on museum labels and walking-tour stops: pages that load on one bar of signal](https://b59.link/articles/museum-label-walking-tour-qr-code-light-page): What visitors want behind the code on a museum label or a trail post (a short text, audio, one picture), our test of how small a stop page can be (31 KB against a 2,311 KB median page: 0.6 s versus 47 s on a 3G-speed link), audio that streams, offline fallbacks, code size, height and angle on a plinth or a post, and one link per stop to see where visitors drop off.
- [A 'we are hiring' sign in the shop window with a QR code: what it should open](https://b59.link/articles/hiring-sign-qr-code-job-application): A jobs board listing that disappears after 30 days, a form, or a one-page job post: what the code on a hiring sign should open, what the sign must say about pay (New York City, New York State, Maryland and 11 more US rules compared), how big to print it for a window, one code per window to see which brings applicants, and what to do the day the job is filled.
- [A QR code on a tip jar or donation box: which payment link to put behind it](https://b59.link/articles/tip-jar-donation-qr-code-payment-link): PayPal, Venmo, Cash App, a Stripe payment link or a bank code behind the QR code on a tip jar or collection box: what a stranger needs to give in ten seconds, what each one keeps from a $2 tip, why a link you control should sit in front of the payment page, and how to count scans against gifts.
- [Someone stuck a fake QR code over yours: quishing, tamper-proof stickers and checking your printed codes](https://b59.link/articles/fake-qr-code-sticker-quishing-check-printed-codes): Fake QR stickers on parking meters, posters and table signs send people to a page that takes their card. What the scam needs to work, why tamper-evident labels don't stop it, what does (the code printed into the sign, the address printed under it, a name people recognise), a walk-round check, and what to tell customers.
- [A QR code on a for-sale or for-rent sign: what it should open, and how to count interest per sign](https://b59.link/articles/for-sale-sign-qr-code-real-estate): A sign code is scanned by people on foot, not drivers, and it outlives the listing. Why it should hold a short link you control rather than the portal's address, how big it has to be from the pavement, what sun and rain do to it, one link per sign to see where interest comes from, and what it should open once the place is sold or let.
- [A payment QR code on an invoice: the EPC code European banking apps read](https://b59.link/articles/epc-qr-code-invoice-sepa-girocode): The square code on German and Austrian invoices that fills in a bank transfer is the EPC QR code, also sold as GiroCode. What its twelve lines hold, the 331-byte limit and level M, which countries' banking apps read it, what it can't do (cards, the till, anything outside the euro), and five checks before it goes on your invoice.
- [Coloured QR codes and logos in the middle: how far you can go before scanners give up](https://b59.link/articles/coloured-qr-code-logo-contrast): We drew one QR code in 17 colour pairs and with logos at every error correction level, then read them under simulated poor light. What failed: low grey contrast (red and black, yellow, our own green), light-on-dark codes, logos over about a tenth of the area. The numbers, and a five-minute test before you print.
- [An add-to-calendar link or QR code for an event: .ics files, Google and Outlook links](https://b59.link/articles/add-to-calendar-link-qr-code-event): There's no single add-to-calendar link: Google, Outlook and Apple each want their own. The three forms with a worked example, the all-day and time zone mistakes that put events on the wrong day, why the QR code on a poster should open a page with all three, and what to do when the time changes after printing.
- [A sign-up QR code by the till: growing a mailing list from people who are already in the shop](https://b59.link/articles/qr-code-email-signup-in-store): Customers at the counter are the best mailing list you'll never have. What the till code should open (one field on a page you control, not an app), what to offer, what the UK, EU, US, Canadian and Australian rules say about consent, card wording that gets scans, one short link per counter or event, and a first email the same day.
- [A QR code on a pet tag, luggage or a lost item: what to put on it without printing your address](https://b59.link/articles/pet-tag-luggage-qr-code-lost-item): A finder needs a way to reach you, not your home address. What belongs on the page behind a pet tag or luggage QR code and what still has to be engraved, why a page you can edit beats details baked into the code, how many squares fit on a 25 mm tag, how wear and scratches hit small codes, and what a scan alert can really tell you.
- [Links in a printed book, course handout or report: references that still work in ten years](https://b59.link/articles/links-in-printed-book-handout-report-references): About a third of the web pages from 2013 can't be reached any more, and most cited pages that still open have changed. What to print for each web reference, how to save an archived copy when you cite, when a short link helps a reader of paper and when it adds a risk, and a yearly check that keeps a printed reference list honest.
- [One link in your bio: a link page, your own site or a single destination](https://b59.link/articles/link-in-bio-link-page-own-site-single-link): Instagram allows five profile links but shows one; TikTok gives some accounts none. When a single destination beats a link page, when a page on your own site is worth the bother, why the link in your bio should be one you can repoint, and how one short link per entry shows which one gets the tap.
- [QR codes on restaurant tables: menu PDFs, ordering pages and what happens when the menu changes](https://b59.link/articles/restaurant-table-qr-code-menu): The code on the table outlives the menu it was made for. A new season, a new supplier, a new ordering system, and the sticker printed two years ago still has to open the right thing. What the code should hold, why the PDF is the weakest choice, how big to print it for a table, stickers that survive the cleaning spray, and counting scans per table.
- [Short links in text messages: why carriers block shared shortener domains, and what to send instead](https://b59.link/articles/short-links-sms-carrier-filtering): A text with a bit.ly link can vanish without a trace: no bounce, no error on the customer's phone, just a status line in your sending dashboard. Why US carriers treat shared shortener domains as a spam signal, what the industry guidelines actually say, what to send instead, how the link eats into your 160 characters, and how to test before the whole list gets it. Our own domain is a shared one too, and we say where not to use it.
- [A link people hear, not see: short links for podcasts, radio and talks](https://b59.link/articles/short-links-podcast-radio-spoken): A link said out loud has to survive a car, a kitchen and a listener's memory before anyone types it. How to pick a name people spell right the first time, which letters and numbers trip them up, why you should also register the likely mistakes, and what those typed visits look like in your stats.
- [A QR code that opens your Google review box: the exact link, and where customers will actually scan it](https://b59.link/articles/google-review-qr-code-link): "Find us on Google and leave a review" asks a happy customer for six taps, and most of them won't do it. One link opens the star box straight away. This guide covers the two forms that link takes, how to find your place ID, why the code belongs on the receipt and not by the door, the Google rules that can cost you every review, and how to count scans without guessing.
- [Why your newsletter's links get clicked seconds after you send it: mail security scanners and click counts](https://b59.link/articles/newsletter-link-clicks-mail-security-scanners): The newsletter goes out at 9:00 and by 9:00:06 every link in it has been clicked, the unsubscribe link included. Those aren't readers. Company mail filters open links to check them before a person can. How to recognise their clicks, what our own log of 69 clicks looked like once we sorted it, what a fair count leaves out, why opens are in worse shape, and the one-click links scanners can set off by accident.
- [Links opened inside Instagram, TikTok and LinkedIn: what the in-app browser changes](https://b59.link/articles/in-app-browser-links-instagram-tiktok-linkedin): Tap a link in a social app and the page opens inside the app, in a browser that has never met your visitor before. They arrive signed out, with an empty cart, and sometimes can't download a file or sign in with Google. What an in-app browser is, what breaks in it, what your stats show, how to test your own link in each app, and why a tagged short link still tells you where the click came from.
- [Retiring a campaign page without breaking the links that point to it](https://b59.link/articles/retire-campaign-page-without-breaking-links): The sale ends and the page is deleted, but the flyer, the old newsletter and a partner's blog post keep sending people to it for years. How to find out what still points at a page, where to send those visitors, when to answer 302, 301 or 410, the server rules for each, and a once-a-year check that keeps the list short.
- [When a link shortener shuts down: what happened to goo.gl and git.io links, and how to keep yours working](https://b59.link/articles/link-shortener-shut-down-goo-gl-git-io): Google gave goo.gl links a year's notice and then changed its mind at the last minute. GitHub gave git.io links four days and changed its mind in two. Other shorteners simply stopped answering. What each ending did to links already in print, five things to check before you trust a shortener (ours included), and a ten-minute yearly check for the links you depend on.
- [A vCard QR code for a business card: the fields phones read, and why the code gets so dense](https://b59.link/articles/vcard-qr-code-business-card): A contact QR code holds every letter of the contact, and a business card is 85 mm wide. vCard 3.0 or MECARD, which fields phones put where, how each line grows the grid (41 squares a side for a name and mobile, 77 with an address and note), whether it fits the card, and when a short link to a contact page is the better choice.
- [A Wi-Fi QR code for guests: the format, the characters that break it, and where to put the sign](https://b59.link/articles/wifi-qr-code-guest-sign): A Wi-Fi QR code saves guests typing the password, until a semicolon in it, a hidden network or a code the size of a stamp stops it working. What the WIFI: text holds, which characters need a backslash and why it's simpler to avoid them, what iPhone and Android do on a scan, and how big to print the sign for where it hangs.
- [UTM names that stay consistent: a one-page naming sheet for source, medium and campaign](https://b59.link/articles/utm-naming-sheet-source-medium-campaign): Analytics stores UTM tags letter for letter, so Email, email and e-mail become three rows for one newsletter. What goes in source and what goes in medium, the medium words Google Analytics actually sorts into channels (and the ones it leaves Unassigned), how to write the values, and a one-page sheet to copy.
- [301 or 302: which redirect a short link should use, and what it does to your click counts](https://b59.link/articles/301-vs-302-short-link-redirect): A short link answers with a three-digit number before it sends anyone anywhere. That number, and the cache line under it, decide whether repeat clicks are counted and whether a changed destination ever reaches people. What 301, 302, 307 and 308 mean, what eight well-known shorteners really send, and how to check any link with curl.
- [A Bitly alternative with no subscription: what you get, and what you give up](https://b59.link/articles/bitly-alternative-no-subscription): Bitly's free plan now makes 5 links a month and puts an ad page in front of them. If all you need is a short link, a QR code and a click count, here is what b59.link does without a plan, a side-by-side table that includes the rows we lose, and when you should stay with Bitly.
- [Make short links and QR codes from your AI assistant over MCP](https://b59.link/articles/short-links-qr-codes-ai-assistant-mcp): If you already plan a launch in a chat with an AI assistant, it can make the links too. How to connect the b59.link MCP server, what its seven tools do, how the session key works, a real exchange with the output it returned, and the limits worth knowing before you rely on it.
- [QR codes on packaging: what to encode so it outlives the box](https://b59.link/articles/qr-codes-on-packaging-what-to-encode): A flyer is finished in a weekend. A jar, a bottle or a tool box sits in someone's cupboard for years, and the code on it can't be reprinted. What address to put in it, how GS1 Digital Link shapes that address, why it belongs on your own domain, and what curved and glossy packs do to a scan.
- [Why a shortened link shows the wrong preview card in Slack, WhatsApp and LinkedIn](https://b59.link/articles/short-link-wrong-preview-card-slack-whatsapp-linkedin): You paste a short link and the card under it shows an old title, no image, or the shortener's logo. The card isn't made by the short link. It's made by a robot that follows the redirect and reads your page, then remembers what it saw. Who fetches what, how long each app keeps it, how to refresh it, and the one thing a shortener can really break.
- [A QR code in an email or HTML page with one img tag](https://b59.link/articles/qr-code-img-tag-email-html): You don't need a library or a design tool to put a QR code on a page or in an email. One image address does it. The parameters worth knowing, why email wants PNG and not SVG, what the reader sees when their mail app blocks images, and when to stop hot-linking and host a copy.
- [We decoded 77 QR codes from the generators' own websites. 67 of them don't hold a destination](https://b59.link/articles/decoded-77-qr-codes-generator-redirect-domains): A printed QR code that stops working was usually never pointing at your website. We read the sample codes that 13 QR generators show on their own pages: 67 of 77 hold a short address on a domain the generator owns, across 16 domains you've probably never heard of. What that means for anything you print, and how to read your own code in ten seconds.
- [Where did that click come from? One short link per flyer, post and podcast](https://b59.link/articles/one-short-link-per-channel-click-sources): Clicks from QR codes, chat apps, email and podcasts arrive with no referrer, so analytics files them under "direct" and you can't tell the flyer from the newsletter. Why the referrer goes missing, and the old, boring fix that still works: a separate short link for every place your link appears.
- [Printing a QR code that scans: size, distance, quiet zone, and when error correction makes it worse](https://b59.link/articles/print-qr-code-size-scan-distance): How big a printed QR code has to be depends on two things people rarely check: how far away it's scanned from, and how long the link inside it is. The 10:1 rule, the blank margin every code needs, why "High" error correction can make a small code harder to read, and a test to run before the print order.
- [A view counter for your portfolio or docs page that doesn't need a database](https://b59.link/articles/view-counter-badge-portfolio-docs): A visible "views: 1,204" on a portfolio or a docs page, without writing a counter table or a serverless function. How the b59.link view counter badge works, how to count one page instead of the whole site, and why a counter shouldn't promise to be instant.
- [A contact list you can export any time: add people by hand or from your site](https://b59.link/articles/contact-list-export-csv-b59-link): Keep a contact list on b59.link, add contacts by pasting addresses or through a sign-up panel, and export the whole list as CSV whenever you need it.
- [Collect launch subscribers, then write and send the newsletter from the same place](https://b59.link/articles/launch-newsletter-html-editor-b59-link): A newsletter list on b59.link: a subscribe panel for your site, an HTML editor with a live preview, and a campaign that queues one email for each active subscriber.
- [A launch waitlist with one line of HTML, and the list stays yours](https://b59.link/articles/waitlist-page-for-launch-b59-link): Collect sign-ups before your product ships: create a waitlist on b59.link, paste one snippet on your site, see who joined, and export the list any time.
- [One b59.link tag on every page: how per-page tracking works, and 3 things that break it](https://b59.link/articles/one-tracker-tag-many-pages): Yes, you can use one b59.link tracker tag across your whole site: every page is counted under its own path. How it works, what one tag covers, and the three cases (Safari with the image tag, single-page apps, duplicate tags) where it can lose track of pages.