Lejumo is a self-hosted URL shortener in France with no external funding or investors. Links can be permanent or configurable from 1 day to 1 year. Unlike Bitly, Goo.gl (closed in 2019) or Bit.do (closed in 2023), no external commercial decision can cause the service to shut down.
Goo.gl, Bit.do, Owly: why URL shorteners shut down
Free URL shorteners depend on advertising revenue or investor funding. When the business model collapses, the service shuts down — and all shortened links break permanently. Goo.gl, Google's URL shortener, stopped accepting new links in 2018 and went fully offline in 2019. Bit.do closed in 2023. Owly (Hootsuite) restricted access to paying customers only. Millions of links across the web were rendered useless overnight.
These closures affect not just the links themselves, but any QR code, printed material, or published document that referenced them. A broken short link cannot be fixed retroactively.
Lejumo: self-hosted, independent, no investors
Lejumo is run independently, without external investors or advertising revenue. The URL shortener runs on a dedicated server in France, operated by a single IT services company. There is no venture capital to satisfy, no quarterly growth targets, and no business model pivot that could lead to shutting down links.
Independence is a structural guarantee: the service cannot be acquired, merged, or pivoted by a third party.
Permanent or configurable duration — your choice
At link creation time, you choose the expiry: 1 day, 7 days, 30 days, 1 year, or permanent. Permanent links are stored indefinitely and will not be deleted as long as the service operates. There is no hidden expiry, no forced deletion after inactivity, and no expiry that triggers without notice.
Short-duration links (1 day, 7 days) are useful for time-limited campaigns or temporary sharing, while permanent links are suited for printed materials, QR codes, or long-lived publications.
Data hosted in France on a dedicated server
All link data is stored on a dedicated server located in France, subject to French and European (GDPR) law. No data is sent to US cloud providers. No personal data is collected at link creation: no account, no email, no tracking cookie. Click counts are recorded anonymously.
Reliability comparison
| Lejumo | Bitly | TinyURL | Defunct Goo.gl | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Service still active | ✓ Yes | Yes | Yes | ✕ Closed 2019 |
| Independent / no investors | ✓ Yes | ✕ VC-backed | ✕ Private equity | |
| Permanent links without account | ✓ Yes | ✕ No | ✓ Yes | Was yes (closed) |
| Data hosted in France (GDPR) | ✓ Yes | ✕ USA | ✕ USA | ✕ USA |
| No advertising dependency | ✓ Yes | Partial | ✕ Ads (free) | Closed anyway |
Frequently asked questions
- Is Lejumo a reliable URL shortener?
- Yes. Lejumo is self-hosted, independently operated in France, with no external investors. There is no business model that could cause a forced shutdown of the service or deletion of existing links.
- Can I create a permanent link that will never expire?
- Yes. Select "Permanent" in the expiry dropdown. Permanent links are stored indefinitely and are not subject to automatic deletion. There is no hidden inactivity timeout.
- Will my links still work in 5 or 10 years?
- Lejumo does not offer a contractual guarantee for any specific duration — no web service can. However, unlike investor-backed services, Lejumo has no financial pressure that could lead to a sudden shutdown. Permanent links are kept as long as the service operates.
- Is Lejumo a durable alternative to Goo.gl?
- Yes. Goo.gl closed in 2019 because it was a secondary Google product with no dedicated revenue model. Lejumo is the primary product of an IT services company, not a secondary feature of a larger platform.
- What happens to my links if the service closes?
- Unlike services that close without notice, Lejumo is operated by a named, contactable French company. Any operational change would be communicated with advance notice. That said, no link service can offer an unconditional lifetime guarantee.
- Is Lejumo a no-expiry URL shortener?
- Permanent links have no expiry date. However, you can also choose configurable durations (1 day to 1 year) for time-limited use cases. The choice is made at creation time and cannot be changed afterwards.
- Is this a Bitly alternative without account?
- Yes. Unlike Bitly, Lejumo requires no account to create a permanent link. Bitly requires account creation and limits the number of free links. Lejumo has no per-link quota and no mandatory registration.
- Is Lejumo an independent URL shortener?
- Yes. Lejumo is operated by a single IT services company in France, with no external investors, no advertising revenue, and no acquisition by a larger platform. Independence is structural, not just a marketing claim.
Further reading
- URL Shortener — shorten a link now
- Short Link + QR Code in One Click — short link + QR code in one click
- GDPR-Compliant URL Shortener — hosted in France, GDPR
- Free URL Shortener API — API no sign-up
- QR Code Generator — printable QR code