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LinkCentral – URL shortener, Affiliate Links & Custom Link Shortener with Link Tracking

by Design for WP · Analytics

Also makes 1 other plugin · 460+ installs across the portfolio →

The easiest URL shortener, short links manager, and link tracking plugin. Fast and optimised for better redirects, affiliate links and click tracking.

How scoring works →
89 Health · A
Maintenance 100/100
Rating quality 90/100
Support 70/100

89 health vs 64 average across 1,029 Analytics plugins

Directory ranking optimization

How it's scored →

How well this listing is tuned to rank in WordPress.org search, on the factors an owner controls. Not popularity, optimization.

95 / 100

Excellent listing optimization

Well tuned across the board

Update recency 100/100
WP compatibility 100/100
Rating quality 79/100
Listing tuning 100/100

Daily downloads

Since 2024-10-06 · 692 days · wp.org + Plugin Pulse archive

-13% vs prior 30d
22Downloads · Aug 26

30-day downloads

Rolling 30-day volume · peaks are release surges

723

now · peak 1.1K

70430d downloads · Aug 26

Directory rank vs rivals

wp.org popularity rank over time · higher is better · when a rival's line climbs above yours, they've overtaken you

LinkCentral · #9393 you ShortLinks Pro · #14116 PrettyLinks · #223 BetterLinks · #1292

Update activity

How busy the existing users are, measured as downloads in the last 30 days for every 1,000 active sites. A spike means a new release everyone's pulling; a long, slow decline means an aging user base that updates less.

1.8Kper 1k installs · Aug 26

Release cadence

Actively maintained
from wp.org release tags

How often this plugin actually ships. A steady rhythm is the maintenance signal a single "last updated" date can't show.

14

releases in the last 12 months

2mo ago

latest release · v1.7.2

40

tagged releases on record

Recent releases

1.7.2 · 2mo ago1.7.1 · 2mo ago1.7.0 · 2mo ago1.6.3 · 3mo ago1.6.2 · 3mo ago1.6.1 · 5mo ago1.6.0 · 5mo ago1.5.3 · 6mo ago1.5.2 · 8mo ago1.5.1 · 9mo ago1.5.0 · 11mo ago1.4.7.1 · 11mo ago1.4.7 · 11mo ago1.4.6 · 12mo ago

What its installed base runs

via wordpress.org

Share of active installs on each version of this plugin. Green is the current release; a big slice on older versions is a user base that has stopped updating.

v1.7 58%
v1.6 28%
v1.5 14%

Estimated active installs

The public count shows “400+”. Our estimate pins where the real number sits.

tracked estimate
400–500 ≈470

Refined from the date this plugin crossed into its current band.

At the current install trend, crossing 500+ in roughly 125 days.

Install history · since 2024-10-05 · 685 observations

400Installs · Aug 26

Estimated value

What this plugin might earn a year, and what it might sell for. Modeled from public signals; we don't see anyone's books.

Est. annual revenue

N/A

Est. acquisition value

N/A

No paid tier is visible, so we don't put a figure on revenue or sale value: that would be guessing. The install base is a real asset to an acquirer, just not one public data lets us price. A small install base leaves thin data to model from.

Details

Version
1.8.0
Last updated
15d ago
Added
2024-10-05 · 1 yr old
Requires WP
6.2
Tested up to
7.1
Requires PHP
7.4

Recent reviews

All reviews on wp.org ↗
  1. naturovital
    5mo ago

    Really happy with this plugin giving me custom Links & short URLs directly inside my wp backend. Super happy with this tool so far <3

    Read on wp.org ↗
  2. Ryan
    5mo ago

    I originally came across the free version of Link Central and, to be honest, I wasn’t expecting much at first. There are quite a few link management plugins out there, and a lot of them either feel clunky or overcomplicated. But this one surprised me straight away. The free version alone is genuinely very good. It covers all the basics you’d expect—creating short links, managing them properly, and tracking clicks—all in a really clean and simple interface. It’s one of those plugins where you don’t need to watch tutorials or spend hours figuring things out. You install it, and within minutes, you’re up and running.  After using it for a bit, I decided to go for the Premium version, and I’m glad I did. What really stands out for me is how easy everything is. The whole plugin feels like it was built with real users in mind. No unnecessary fluff, no confusing settings—just straightforward tools that actually help. Managing links, especially affiliate links, can quickly become messy, but Link Central keeps everything organised in one place. If you’re doing any kind of digital marketing, this plugin is extremely useful. Whether it’s affiliate links, promotional offers, or just tracking how people interact with your content, it handles it all very smoothly. The analytics side is also a big plus—you can actually see what’s working instead of guessing.  Another thing I noticed is how polished it feels for a relatively newer plugin. It already has very strong feedback from users, with consistently high ratings, which says a lot about how reliable it is.  Overall, upgrading to the Premium version felt like a natural step rather than a forced upsell. The free version proves the value, and the Premium version simply builds on that in a meaningful way. If you run a WordPress site and deal with links regularly—especially in affiliate marketing or promotions—I’d definitely recommend giving it a try. It’s one of those tools that quietly becomes essential once you start using it. This topic was modified 3 months, 3 weeks ago by Ryan. Reason: Correction from Pro to Premium

    Read on wp.org ↗
  3. bee7
    5mo ago

    I have been looking for a plugin to manage my links and I found this plugin that was super easy to set up and add the links. Also, it has a dashboard where I will be able to analyze the links performance. My experience has been great and the fact that it already discovered that one of my links was broken. I recommend this plugin for anyone wanting an effective plugin to manage links. I did tried other plugins before and this one is by far the easiest to use for a non-techy person like me. I hope this review is helpful.

    Read on wp.org ↗
  4. yv360
    7mo ago

    Does what it’s supposed to do.

    Read on wp.org ↗
  5. Marty
    7mo ago

    This is becoming my favourite link management plugin. Tested it on a new site and was impressed. The feature to tone down on the auto-link replacements is great. You almost take it for granted, until you add a link replacement on another blog with a different link management plugin and see how clunky that one handles it (either all words it comes across get replaced or only the first X amount). Link Central has a much better approach. If things keep going this way, I’ll be adding Link Central to my other sites as well. Just one minor issue to fix for the dev… WP Umbrella can’t show the Link Central’s changelog due to: “The premium plugin does not allow us to retrieve its changelog. Please contact their support to be compatible with WordPress’s “plugins_api” function.” But that is just minor. This is a solid plugin. Try it and you’ll see the difference… Especially if you are familiar with other link plugins.

    Read on wp.org ↗
  6. upnorth
    8mo ago

    I tried a few competitors, but this one is easy to use + lots of great features. Definitely a keeper.Great job Design for WP!

    Read on wp.org ↗
  7. mikeshecky
    8mo ago

    Just set this up and wow, exactly what I needed. Been juggling like 6 different links for my work (portfolio, calendar, social, payment stuff) and sending people to different places was getting annoying. Took maybe 10 minutes to get everything looking decent. Clean interface, nothing complicated. Works great on mobile too which was important since most people check my links on their phones. The analytics are actually useful. can see which links people click most. Not much else to say, it does the job, looks good, and I’m not paying $20/month for it like some of the other options. If you need a simple link hub, this works.

    Read on wp.org ↗
  8. Andile M.
    8mo ago

    Love this plugin and it has all the features that I need and works as advertised. thanks to the team behind it This topic was modified 6 months, 3 weeks ago by Andile M..

    Read on wp.org ↗

Behavioral tests

via WP Hive

Automated install-time checks, tested on PHP 8.1.12 · WP 7.0

Low memory footprint
Low page-speed impact
Runs on latest PHP + WP
No PHP errors
No JS errors
Activates cleanly
No resource errors
No external HTTP errors
Optimized database use
Frequently updated

Growth timeline

Install-tier crossings we have observed, and how long each tier took to outgrow

  1. 2026-05-19 300+ → 400+ up after 1 days in tier
  2. 2026-05-18 400+ → 300+ down after 6 days in tier
  3. 2026-05-12 300+ → 400+ up after 72 days in tier
  4. 2026-03-01 200+ → 300+ up after 69 days in tier
  5. 2025-12-22 100+ → 200+ up after 47 days in tier
  6. 2025-11-05 90+ → 100+ up after 4 days in tier
  7. 2025-11-01 80+ → 90+ up after 2 days in tier
  8. 2025-10-30 70+ → 80+ up after 6 days in tier

Competes with

The plugins that solve the same job, ranked by shared tags then reach, closest match first. The letter on the right is each plugin's health grade (A best, F worst).

Compare head to head →

Embed this report card

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Preview card ↗

LinkCentral – URL shortener, Affiliate Links & Custom Link Shortener with Link Tracking: 400+ active installs, 5.0★ (19 reviews). Plugin Pulse (WP Mayor), as of 2026-08-28. https://plugins.wpmayor.com/plugin/linkcentral