Migrate from Google URL Shortener to Flyn
goo.gl is discontinued, recreate your short links in Flyn and get unlimited links, custom domains, and analytics goo.gl never had
Last updated: September 2026
Previewing is free on every plan. Importing needs Pro, Lifetime or Team.
Already have a Flyn account? Open the importer
Pre-Migration Checklist
Complete these steps before starting the migration to ensure a smooth transition.
- 1Compile a list of your goo.gl short links and the destination URL each one pointed to (the original codes are not needed, only the destinations)
- 2Check which goo.gl links still redirect and which now 404, so you know what must be recreated from your own records
- 3Audit where your goo.gl links are published (docs, emails, social bios, printed QR codes) so you can swap them later
- 4Check your Flyn plan: previewing an import is free, creating the links needs Pro, Lifetime or Team
- 5Notify your team that goo.gl links are being replaced with Flyn links
Step 1: Export from Google URL Shortener
First, get your existing links out of Google URL Shortener so you can import them into Flyn.
Understand that goo.gl is shut down
Google stopped accepting new goo.gl users in 2018 and closed its console on March 30, 2019, and on August 25, 2025 deactivated links that were inactive in late 2024, those now return a 404. The original short links cannot be exported from a live console or transferred, so migration means recreating your links in Flyn.
Gather your goo.gl links and destinations
Collect a list of your old goo.gl short links and the long destination URL each one pointed to. Good sources: a spreadsheet you kept, the goo.gl console's Download CSV file (if you saved one before the console closed on March 30, 2019), links embedded in your docs, emails, or printed QR codes, or your browser history.
Recover any still-resolving links
For goo.gl links that still redirect (active links and some Google-app links were preserved), open each one and note where it lands, that is the destination you will recreate in Flyn. For dead links that 404, use your own records to find the original destination.
Build a simple CSV
Put your destinations in a CSV, one per row, optionally with a column for a desired back-half and one for tags. Flyn finds the URL column from its contents; name the optional columns slug and tags, or pick them in the Review step. This is all Flyn needs to recreate working short links, you do not need the old goo.gl codes themselves.
Step 2: Import into Flyn
Upload your export and Flyn detects the format, maps the columns (you can change any of them), and previews every link before anything is created. Previewing is free; importing needs Pro, Lifetime or Team.
Using your own branded domain? Add it in Settings > Domains before you import (Step 3 lists the DNS records), so the preview can match those links to it. Want to look first? Drop the file on the migration page: it is read in your browser and nothing is uploaded.
Create a Flyn account
Sign up at flyn.to/signup, no credit card required. Uploading and previewing an import is free on every plan; creating the links needs Pro, Lifetime or Team.
Open Links > Import links
In the Flyn dashboard, open the Links page and choose Import links, or go straight to flyn.to/links/import.
Upload your list of destinations
Drag and drop the file onto the importer, click to browse, or paste the rows (CSV, TSV and plain text all work). Flyn has no fixed template for this export, so it finds the destination and short link columns from their contents, whatever the headers are called. If your list is short, you can also add links one by one in the dashboard. You can change any column mapping in the Review step.
Preview, then import
Preview the new links, choose whether a taken back-half is skipped or renamed (existing links are never overwritten), and start the import. Each link gets analytics from the first click, and the report lists every new short link.
Step 3: Domain & DNS Migration
Only links on your own branded domain can keep working after the move. Add the domain in Flyn and import its links before you switch DNS, so the links are already there when traffic arrives. Links on domains Google URL Shortener owns stay with Google URL Shortener, and printed QR codes that encode those links keep pointing there.
Decide on a custom short domain
goo.gl links lived on Google’s shared domain, which you never controlled. With Flyn you can use your own branded short domain (e.g., go.yourcompany.com) so your links never depend on someone else’s product lifecycle again. Custom domains are included on Pro, Lifetime and Team.
Add your domain in Flyn
In the Flyn dashboard, go to Settings > Domains > Add Domain and enter your branded short domain. Flyn shows the DNS records to add.
Add the DNS records
In your domain registrar (GoDaddy, Cloudflare, Namecheap, etc.), add the TXT record _flyn.yourcompany.com with the flyn-verify value Flyn shows, plus a CNAME from your short subdomain to cname.flyn.to (or an A record to 76.76.21.21 for a root domain).
Verify the domain
Click Verify. DNS changes usually apply within minutes but can take up to 48 hours. Flyn shows a green checkmark once the domain is active, and you can then choose it when you create links.
DNS Record Summary
| Field | Before | After |
|---|---|---|
| Type | None | CNAME (subdomain) or A (root domain) |
| Host | None | go (no change), or @ for a root domain |
| Target | None (goo.gl had no custom domains) | cname.flyn.to or 76.76.21.21 |
| Ownership (TXT) | None | _flyn.yourcompany.com with the flyn-verify= value from Settings > Domains |
What Transfers
Here is what carries over from Google URL Shortener to Flyn and what needs to be reconfigured. A back-half can be reused when it uses only letters, numbers, hyphens and underscores and is not reserved for Flyn's own pages; the preview flags the rest, and those links get a new random back-half.
| Item | Transfers | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Destination URLs | Recreate | You re-enter the long URLs, they become brand-new Flyn links |
| goo.gl short codes | goo.gl is shut down, original codes cannot be transferred or revived | |
| Custom slugs | Recreate | Choose new slugs in Flyn (goo.gl never allowed custom slugs) |
| Custom domains | New | goo.gl had none, add your own in Flyn, point it there (CNAME cname.flyn.to) and click Verify |
| Click analytics | goo.gl analytics ended with the service, new clicks tracked in Flyn | |
| QR codes | Regenerate | Old goo.gl QR codes point to dead links, regenerate free in Flyn |
| Inactive goo.gl links | Deactivated Aug 25, 2025 (404), recreate from your own records |
Post-Migration Verification
After completing the migration, work through this checklist to verify everything is working.
- Verify 5-10 of your new Flyn links resolve to the correct destinations
- If you added a custom domain, confirm it shows a green checkmark in the Flyn dashboard
- Check that new clicks are appearing in Flyn analytics
- Regenerate any QR codes, old goo.gl QR codes point to dead links
- Replace published goo.gl links (docs, emails, social, print) with the new Flyn links
- Set up redirects from any goo.gl links you embedded on pages you control
Troubleshooting
Common issues and how to resolve them.
My old goo.gl link returns a 404
That link was inactive in late 2024 and Google deactivated it on August 25, 2025. It cannot be revived. Find the original destination from your own records (spreadsheet, docs, email) and recreate it as a new link in Flyn.
I cannot create a new goo.gl link to compare
goo.gl stopped accepting new users in 2018, closed its console on March 30, 2019, and the service is shut down. There is no way to create one. Create the equivalent short link in Flyn instead; it works immediately and includes analytics goo.gl never offered.
A goo.gl link still works but I want it in Flyn
Some active links (including some Google-app links) were preserved. Open the link, note where it redirects, and recreate that destination in Flyn. Then update wherever the old link is published to point to the new Flyn link.
Columns mapped to the wrong fields
Save the file as UTF-8 CSV with one clear column of long destination URLs. Flyn finds URL columns from their contents; if it picks the wrong one, change the mapping in the Review step.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I migrate from Google URL Shortener to Flyn?
Because goo.gl is discontinued, you recreate rather than transfer. Gather your old short links and their destinations, sign up at flyn.to/signup, and import or re-add them in Flyn (previewing an import is free, importing needs Pro, Lifetime or Team). You get fresh working links with far richer analytics, and you can put them on your own custom domain.
Can I transfer my actual goo.gl short links to Flyn?
No, the goo.gl service is shut down, so the original short codes cannot be transferred or revived. You recreate the links in Flyn using the destination URLs they pointed to. The new Flyn links work immediately and include analytics goo.gl never had.
My goo.gl links return 404, can I get them back?
Not through Google. Links inactive in late 2024 were deactivated on August 25, 2025 and cannot be restored. If you still know the original destination, recreate the link in Flyn and update wherever it was published.
Do my goo.gl analytics transfer to Flyn?
No. goo.gl’s click data ended with the service and was never portable. Once you create links in Flyn, all new clicks are tracked with richer data, real-time streams, city-level geo, device breakdowns, and referrers.
Will my old goo.gl links keep working during migration?
Some active goo.gl links were preserved and still redirect; inactive ones now 404. Either way, your new Flyn links are independent and work the moment you create them, so there is no downtime on the Flyn side, just swap the old links wherever you published them.
Is there a limit on how many links I can import?
Previewing an import is free on every plan, and on the free plan you can still create 25 links a month by hand. Importing needs Pro, Lifetime or Team, with no cap on how many links you import. Accounts less than 7 days old may have a daily limit on new links, an abuse safeguard; if an import reaches it, the importer stops cleanly and lets you download the rows that were not imported, to import once 24 hours have passed. The REST API takes one destination per request (Create Many only copies a single destination) and is rate limited, so the importer is the way to move a whole account.
How do I stop depending on a service that might shut down again?
Use your own custom domain in Flyn (e.g., go.yourcompany.com). Because you control the domain, your short links are portable and never disappear with a third party’s product sunset the way goo.gl did.
Ready to Migrate from Google URL Shortener?
Create a free Flyn account and preview your Google URL Shortener import at no cost. No credit card required to sign up. Importing needs Pro, Lifetime or Team, and most imports take minutes. Accounts in their first week may have a daily limit on new links; if an import reaches it, the importer stops and lets you download the remaining rows as a file to import once 24 hours have passed.
Already have a Flyn account? Open the importer