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Cloud vs Self-Hosted

Choose the deployment option that best fits your needs. Both options provide identical features.

Quick Comparison​

FeatureLinkForty CloudSelf-Hosted
Setup Time5 minutes30-60 minutes
Monthly Cost$0 (Free) or $29 (Pro)Variable (your infrastructure)
MaintenanceZero - we handle itYou manage updates
Data LocationUS (SOC 2 compliant)Your infrastructure
ScalabilityAutomaticYou configure
Custom Domains✅ Yes (Pro plan)✅ Yes (unlimited)
White Labeling❌ No✅ Yes
Source Code Access❌ No✅ Yes (MIT license)
SupportEmail + CommunityCommunity

LinkForty Cloud​

Best For:

  • Startups and small teams
  • Quick MVPs and prototypes
  • Teams without DevOps resources
  • Non-technical users
  • Testing before self-hosting

Pricing​

Free Tier​

  • Cost: $0/month
  • Included:
    • Unlimited links
    • 1,000 clicks/month
    • All features (attribution, QR codes, webhooks)
    • Community support
    • 1 organization
    • Basic analytics

Pro Tier​

  • Cost: $29/month
  • Everything in Free, plus:
    • Unlimited clicks
    • Custom domains (unlimited)
    • Priority email support
    • Advanced analytics export
    • Multiple organizations
    • Team collaboration (unlimited members)
    • 99.9% SLA uptime

Enterprise​

  • Cost: Custom pricing
  • Everything in Pro, plus:
    • Dedicated support
    • Custom SLA
    • On-premise deployment option
    • Custom integrations
    • Training and onboarding
    • Contact: enterprise@linkforty.com

Advantages​

✅ Zero Setup

  • Create account and start immediately
  • No infrastructure to configure
  • No software to install

✅ Zero Maintenance

  • Automatic updates and patches
  • No security management
  • No backup configuration
  • No monitoring setup

✅ Guaranteed Uptime

  • 99.9% SLA on Pro plan
  • Redundant infrastructure
  • Automatic failover
  • DDoS protection

✅ Global CDN

  • Fast redirects worldwide
  • Edge caching for links
  • Under 50ms average redirect time

✅ Managed Database

  • Automatic backups (daily)
  • Point-in-time recovery
  • Scalable storage

✅ Built-in SSL

  • Free SSL certificates
  • Automatic renewal
  • HTTPS everywhere

✅ Support

  • Email support (Pro plan)
  • Community forums
  • Documentation
  • Regular feature updates

Limitations​

❌ Data Location

  • Stored in US data centers
  • Cannot choose region (yet)

❌ No White Labeling

  • Cannot remove LinkForty branding
  • Cannot customize deployment

❌ No Source Code Access

  • Cannot modify platform code
  • Cannot add custom features

❌ Click Limits on Free Tier

  • 1,000 clicks/month free
  • Upgrade to Pro for unlimited

When to Choose Cloud​

Choose LinkForty Cloud if you:

  • Want to get started immediately
  • Don't have DevOps/infrastructure expertise
  • Prefer managed infrastructure
  • Need guaranteed uptime and support
  • Want automatic updates and security patches
  • Are okay with US data storage
  • Don't need white labeling

Self-Hosted​

Best For:

  • Companies with strict data residency requirements
  • Teams with DevOps resources
  • High-volume applications (10M+ clicks/month)
  • White-label deployments
  • Custom integrations and modifications

Infrastructure Requirements​

Hosting Options:

You can deploy LinkForty on any infrastructure provider that supports Docker or Node.js:

  • Hetzner - CX21 (2 CPU, 4GB RAM)
  • DigitalOcean - Droplet Basic
  • AWS - t3.medium or similar
  • Vultr - Regular Performance
  • Google Cloud - e2-medium or similar

Additional Services:

  • Domain: Custom domain for your links
  • SSL: Free with Let's Encrypt or commercial certificate
  • Email Service (optional): For notifications (SendGrid, SES, etc.)
  • S3 Storage (optional): For QR code storage
  • Monitoring (optional): Application monitoring (Datadog, New Relic, etc.)

Advantages​

✅ Complete Control

  • Full source code access (MIT license)
  • Modify any feature
  • Add custom integrations
  • White-label deployment

✅ Data Sovereignty

  • Host in any region
  • Meet GDPR/CCPA/HIPAA requirements
  • Complete data ownership
  • No third-party access

✅ Unlimited Everything

  • Unlimited links
  • Unlimited clicks
  • Unlimited users
  • Unlimited organizations
  • No rate limits

✅ Predictable Infrastructure

  • No per-install fees
  • No overage charges
  • No usage-based pricing
  • Scale without vendor constraints

✅ Customization

  • Custom features
  • Private integrations
  • Branded domains
  • Modified UI

✅ Privacy

  • No analytics shared with LinkForty
  • No usage tracking
  • Complete data isolation

✅ No Vendor Lock-in

  • Own all your data
  • Export anytime
  • Switch providers easily

Requirements​

Technical Expertise Needed:

  • Docker or Node.js deployment
  • PostgreSQL database management
  • Basic Linux server administration
  • SSL certificate setup
  • Backup configuration

Time Investment:

  • Initial Setup: 30-60 minutes
  • Maintenance: 1-2 hours/month
    • Updates and patches
    • Monitoring and optimization
    • Backup verification

Infrastructure Knowledge:

  • Server provisioning
  • DNS configuration
  • Firewall rules
  • Log management

Limitations​

❌ Self-Managed

  • You handle all updates
  • You configure backups
  • You monitor uptime
  • You fix issues

❌ No SLA

  • Uptime depends on your infrastructure
  • No guaranteed support

❌ Initial Setup Time

  • Requires 30-60 minutes
  • May need troubleshooting

❌ Scalability

  • You configure load balancing
  • You manage database scaling

When to Choose Self-Hosted​

Choose Self-Hosted if you:

  • Have DevOps or infrastructure team
  • Need data stored in specific regions
  • Require white-label deployment
  • Want to modify source code
  • Need unlimited scale with infrastructure control
  • Process high volumes of clicks
  • Have strict compliance requirements (HIPAA, SOC 2, GDPR)
  • Want complete data ownership

Feature Comparison Matrix​

FeatureCloud (Free)Cloud (Pro)Self-Hosted
Links
Short linksUnlimitedUnlimitedUnlimited
Link templates✅✅✅
Bulk operations✅✅✅
Custom short codes✅✅✅
Link expiration✅✅✅
Attribution
Deferred deep linking✅✅✅
Fingerprint matching✅✅✅
Attribution windows (1-2160h)✅✅✅
Click tracking1K/moUnlimitedUnlimited
Install attribution✅✅✅
QR Codes
QR code generation✅✅✅
Custom colors✅✅✅
Multiple formats (PNG, SVG)✅✅✅
Custom sizes✅✅✅
Analytics
Click analytics✅✅✅
Install analytics✅✅✅
Geographic data✅✅✅
Device breakdown✅✅✅
Data export (JSON/CSV)BasicAdvanced✅ Full
Real-time dashboard✅✅✅
Team & Organization
Organizations1UnlimitedUnlimited
Team members3UnlimitedUnlimited
Role-based access✅✅✅
Projects5UnlimitedUnlimited
Advanced Features
Custom domains❌✅ Unlimited✅ Unlimited
Webhooks✅✅✅
API access✅✅✅
UTM parameters✅✅✅
Targeting rules✅✅✅
Social previews (OG tags)✅✅✅
Platform
Mobile SDKs✅✅✅
REST API✅✅✅
Webhook delivery✅✅✅
Customization
White labeling❌❌✅
Source code access❌❌✅ (MIT)
Custom features❌❌✅
Support
Community forums✅✅✅
Documentation✅✅✅
Email support❌✅❌
Priority support❌✅❌
Compliance
SOC 2 Type II✅✅Your setup
GDPR compliant✅✅Your setup
Data residencyUSUSAny region
Reliability
Uptime SLA-99.9%Your setup
Automatic backups✅✅Configure
DDoS protection✅✅Configure
Monitoring✅✅Configure

Migration Path​

From Cloud to Self-Hosted​

You can migrate from Cloud to Self-Hosted at any time:

Step 1: Export Your Data

# From Cloud dashboard
Settings → Data Export → Export All Data

# Downloads:
# - All links
# - All analytics
# - All configurations

Step 2: Set Up Self-Hosted Instance

Follow the Self-Hosting Guide.

Step 3: Import Data

# Run import script
docker-compose exec backend npm run import -- --file=linkforty-export.json

Step 4: Update DNS

Point your custom domains to your self-hosted server.

Downtime: ~5 minutes for DNS propagation.

From Self-Hosted to Cloud​

Step 1: Export Your Database

# Export PostgreSQL data
pg_dump -U linkforty linkforty > linkforty-backup.sql

Step 2: Sign Up for Cloud

Create account at linkforty.com.

Step 3: Contact Support

Email support@linkforty.com with:

  • Your database export
  • Number of links
  • Number of clicks
  • Custom domain requirements

We'll import your data (usually within 24 hours).

Step 4: Update DNS

Point custom domains to Cloud servers.

Hybrid Approach​

You can use both Cloud and Self-Hosted simultaneously:

Use Case: Multi-Region Deployment

  • Cloud: US customers (low latency)
  • Self-Hosted (EU): European customers (GDPR compliance)
  • Self-Hosted (Asia): Asian customers (low latency)

Use Case: Development + Production

  • Cloud: Production environment (zero maintenance)
  • Self-Hosted: Development/staging (full control)

Use Case: White-Label + SaaS

  • Cloud: Your own marketing links
  • Self-Hosted: White-label for enterprise clients

Decision Matrix​

Answer these questions to choose:

1. Do you have DevOps/infrastructure team?

  • ✅ Yes → Consider Self-Hosted
  • ❌ No → Cloud

2. How many clicks per month?

  • Under 50K → Cloud (Free)
  • 50K-1M → Cloud (Pro) or Self-Hosted
  • High volume → Self-Hosted (unlimited scale)

3. Data residency requirements?

  • ✅ Must be in specific region → Self-Hosted
  • ❌ US is fine → Cloud

4. Need white labeling?

  • ✅ Yes → Self-Hosted
  • ❌ No → Cloud

5. Want to modify source code?

  • ✅ Yes → Self-Hosted
  • ❌ No → Cloud

6. Time for initial setup?

  • ✅ Have 1 hour → Self-Hosted
  • ❌ Need immediate → Cloud

Frequently Asked Questions​

Can I try both?​

Yes! Start with Cloud (5 minutes setup), then migrate to Self-Hosted later if needed.

Is data export available?​

Yes, full data export on both Cloud and Self-Hosted (JSON & CSV).

Can I use my own domain on Cloud?​

Yes, custom domains available on Pro plan ($29/month).

What about support?​

  • Cloud Pro: Email support + community
  • Self-Hosted: Community support only
  • Enterprise: Dedicated support (custom pricing)

How do updates work?​

  • Cloud: Automatic, zero downtime
  • Self-Hosted: Manual updates (5 minutes, 1-2x/month)

Can I switch between Cloud and Self-Hosted?​

Yes, migration is supported in both directions.

Which option do most users choose?​

  • Startups/SMBs: Cloud (easier)
  • Enterprises: Self-Hosted (control + cost savings)
  • Agencies: Mix of both (white-label for clients)

Getting Started​

Ready to choose?

Try LinkForty Cloud:

Deploy Self-Hosted:

Still have questions?