Creating Links with the API

Learn how to create and manage short links programmatically using the Smartlinks API.

Basic Link Creation

The simplest way to create a link is to provide a destination URL:

JavaScript

async function createLink(destinationUrl) {
  const response = await fetch('https://api.smartlinks.io/v1/links', {
    method: 'POST',
    headers: {
      'Authorization': `Bearer ${SMARTLINKS_API_KEY}`,
      'Content-Type': 'application/json'
    },
    body: JSON.stringify({
      destination_url: destinationUrl
    })
  });
  
  const link = await response.json();
  console.log('Created link:', link.short_url);
  return link;
}

// Usage
createLink('https://example.com/my-long-url')
  .then(link => console.log('Short URL:', link.short_url));

Python

import requests
import os

def create_link(destination_url):
    url = 'https://api.smartlinks.io/v1/links'
    headers = {
        'Authorization': f'Bearer {os.getenv("SMARTLINKS_API_KEY")}',
        'Content-Type': 'application/json'
    }
    payload = {
        'destination_url': destination_url
    }
    
    response = requests.post(url, json=payload, headers=headers)
    link = response.json()
    
    print(f'Created link: {link["short_url"]}')
    return link

# Usage
link = create_link('https://example.com/my-long-url')
print(f'Short URL: {link["short_url"]}')

Custom Short Links

Create branded short links with custom slugs:

async function createCustomLink(destinationUrl, customSlug) {
  const response = await fetch('https://api.smartlinks.io/v1/links', {
    method: 'POST',
    headers: {
      'Authorization': `Bearer ${SMARTLINKS_API_KEY}`,
      'Content-Type': 'application/json'
    },
    body: JSON.stringify({
      destination_url: destinationUrl,
      custom_slug: customSlug,
      title: 'My Custom Link',
      tags: ['marketing', 'campaign-2024']
    })
  });
  
  return await response.json();
}

// Usage
createCustomLink('https://example.com/product', 'summer-sale');
// Creates: https://smrt.lnk/summer-sale

Link with Expiration

Create temporary links that expire after a certain time:

async function createExpiringLink(destinationUrl, expiresInDays = 7) {
  const expiresAt = new Date();
  expiresAt.setDate(expiresAt.getDate() + expiresInDays);
  
  const response = await fetch('https://api.smartlinks.io/v1/links', {
    method: 'POST',
    headers: {
      'Authorization': `Bearer ${SMARTLINKS_API_KEY}`,
      'Content-Type': 'application/json'
    },
    body: JSON.stringify({
      destination_url: destinationUrl,
      expires_at: expiresAt.toISOString(),
      title: 'Limited Time Offer'
    })
  });
  
  return await response.json();
}

Bulk Link Creation

Create multiple links efficiently:

async function createBulkLinks(urls) {
  const promises = urls.map(url => 
    fetch('https://api.smartlinks.io/v1/links', {
      method: 'POST',
      headers: {
        'Authorization': `Bearer ${SMARTLINKS_API_KEY}`,
        'Content-Type': 'application/json'
      },
      body: JSON.stringify({ destination_url: url })
    }).then(res => res.json())
  );
  
  const links = await Promise.all(promises);
  return links;
}

// Usage
const urls = [
  'https://example.com/page1',
  'https://example.com/page2',
  'https://example.com/page3'
];

createBulkLinks(urls)
  .then(links => console.log('Created', links.length, 'links'));

Updating Links

Modify existing links:

async function updateLink(linkId, updates) {
  const response = await fetch(`https://api.smartlinks.io/v1/links/${linkId}`, {
    method: 'PATCH',
    headers: {
      'Authorization': `Bearer ${SMARTLINKS_API_KEY}`,
      'Content-Type': 'application/json'
    },
    body: JSON.stringify(updates)
  });
  
  return await response.json();
}

// Update destination URL
updateLink('link_123', {
  destination_url: 'https://example.com/new-destination',
  title: 'Updated Title'
});

Error Handling

Always implement proper error handling:

async function createLinkWithErrorHandling(destinationUrl) {
  try {
    const response = await fetch('https://api.smartlinks.io/v1/links', {
      method: 'POST',
      headers: {
        'Authorization': `Bearer ${SMARTLINKS_API_KEY}`,
        'Content-Type': 'application/json'
      },
      body: JSON.stringify({ destination_url: destinationUrl })
    });
    
    if (!response.ok) {
      const error = await response.json();
      throw new Error(error.message || 'Failed to create link');
    }
    
    return await response.json();
  } catch (error) {
    console.error('Error creating link:', error.message);
    throw error;
  }
}

Next Steps

• Setting Up Webhooks
• Link Analytics
• API Reference