URL expander: see where a short link goes
Paste a bit.ly, t.co, TinyURL or any other short link to unshorten it. The expander follows up to 8 redirects server-side, shows each hop and its HTTP status, and tells you the final destination without you ever opening the page.
We request each hop with HEAD (GET as fallback), never download page content, and do not store the URLs you check. Private and internal addresses are refused.
What this tool does (and doesn't)
- Does: follow up to 8 HTTP redirects, show every hop and status code, flag known shorteners, HTTPS-to-HTTP downgrades and long chains.
- Doesn't: run JavaScript or meta-refresh redirects, scan page content, or check malware blocklists. A clean chain is not a guarantee the destination is safe.
Short links people can trust before they click
Elido links run on your own branded domain, show a preview page on request, and are scanned against abuse lists when created. Free up to 50 active links.
Create a free Elido accountHow to expand a short URL
- 01
Copy the short link without opening it
Long-press or right-click the link and copy the address. Opening it is exactly what you want to avoid if you are unsure where it leads.
- 02
Paste it and press Expand
The tool requests the link from our server, reads the Location header of each redirect, and stops as soon as a page answers without redirecting.
- 03
Read the final destination first
The final URL is the page your browser would land on. Check the domain carefully: lookalike spellings and long subdomains are the usual tricks.
- 04
Check the hints and the hop list
A chain through several shorteners, an HTTPS-to-HTTP downgrade, or a page that ends in an error are reasons to stop and think before clicking.
What a URL expander can and cannot tell you
JavaScript redirects are invisible
Some pages forward visitors with a script or a meta refresh after loading. Those happen in the browser, so a header-based expander shows the intermediate page as the destination.
Destinations can depend on who asks
Smart links route by country, device or time. Our server sits in the EU and identifies as a bot, so a phone in another country may land somewhere else.
Clean does not mean safe
A short, direct chain to a domain you do not recognise can still be phishing. Treat the expander as a way to see the address, not as a verdict on it.
Some sites block HEAD requests
Servers that reject HEAD get a GET instead, but a few bot-protected sites still answer with 403. That status describes our request, not necessarily what you would see.
Questions about expanding short links
How do I see where a shortened link goes without clicking it?
Paste it into the URL expander above. It follows the redirects from our server and shows the final address, so nothing loads in your browser and the destination never sees your device.
Does unshortening a link count as a click?
Usually yes: the shortener records a request from our server. It will show up as a bot or as a visit from the EU, not from you, and nothing identifying you is passed on.
Which shorteners does it support?
Any service that uses standard HTTP redirects, which covers bit.ly, t.co, TinyURL, ow.ly, rebrand.ly, Short.io, Elido and nearly every other shortener and tracking domain.
Why does it stop after 8 hops?
Legitimate links rarely need more than three. A cap keeps the tool fast and stops redirect loops; if you hit it, the hint tells you the real destination may be further along.
Can I use it to check internal or localhost URLs?
No. The expander refuses private, loopback, link-local and cloud-metadata addresses at every hop, so it cannot be used to probe internal networks.