Resolution model
When you submit a shortener URL, Link Skipper opens it in an isolated server-side environment, follows the redirect chain the shortener itself defines, and returns the final destination URL. It never modifies the destination and never asks the visitor to interact with an ad wall. Results are cached: once a link has been resolved, subsequent requests for the same link return the stored destination instantly.Providers and tiers
Each supported shortener belongs to a provider, and every provider has a tier that reflects how expensive it is to resolve:Standard
Resolved directly. Fast and inexpensive. Costs 1 credit per resolve.
Premium
Harder targets that require extra processing to get through. Costs more credits per
resolve. Best-effort and slower.
tier and resolve_cost of every provider are returned by the providers endpoint, so
you always know the cost before you call.
Credits
Resolving a link spends credits from your balance. The amount depends on the provider’s tier — standard links cost less than premium ones. A request is only charged when it results in a resolved destination; unsupported links and errors are not charged. If your balance is too low to cover a resolve, the request fails with anout_of_credits error and nothing is charged. You can top up credits in the
developer dashboard.
Synchronous vs asynchronous
Cached links resolve synchronously
If the link has been resolved before, the destination is returned in the same response.
New links are queued
A link we have not seen is queued for background resolution and the response returns a
job you can track.