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Business Profile

Interactive Media

Bitly, Inc.

This business is NOT BBB Accredited.

Find BBB Accredited Businesses in Interactive Media.

Complaints

This profile includes complaints for Bitly, Inc.'s headquarters and its corporate-owned locations. To view all corporate locations, see

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Bitly, Inc. has 3 locations, listed below.

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    Customer Complaints Summary

    • 32 total complaints in the last 3 years.
    • 15 complaints closed in the last 12 months.

    If you've experienced an issue

    Submit a Complaint

    The complaint text that is displayed might not represent all complaints filed with BBB. Some consumers may elect to not publish the details of their complaints, some complaints may not meet BBB's standards for publication, or BBB may display a portion of complaints when a high volume is received for a particular business.

    Sort by

    Complaint status

    Complaint type

    • Initial Complaint

      Date:03/14/2025

      Type:Product Issues
      Status:
      Unanswered
      Resolved:
      The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.
      Unresolved:
      The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.
      Answered:
      The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.
      Unanswered:
      The business failed to respond to the dispute.
      Unpursuable:
      BBB is unable to locate the business.
      Today, 3/14/2025 I went on to QR Code Generator and clicked on an agreement for a QR Code for one year for $30.00. I received a receipt for $208.43. When I went on their website, they have not phone number, no email address, no way of contacting them and only a robot assistant. I can provide the receipt they sent me if necessary.

      Customer Answer

      Date: 04/08/2025

      Better Business Bureau:

      At this time, I have not been contacted by Bitly, Inc. regarding complaint ID ********.

      Sincerely,

      **** ***

    • Initial Complaint

      Date:03/10/2025

      Type:Service or Repair Issues
      Status:
      Unanswered
      Resolved:
      The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.
      Unresolved:
      The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.
      Answered:
      The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.
      Unanswered:
      The business failed to respond to the dispute.
      Unpursuable:
      BBB is unable to locate the business.
      I accidentally got a subscription from this company and immediately canceled minutes later upon realizing the mistake. I didn't use this service, but they refuse to give me my money back even though they can see I canceled minutes after paying for it.

    • Initial Complaint

      Date:02/12/2025

      Type:Product Issues
      Status:
      Unanswered
      Resolved:
      The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.
      Unresolved:
      The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.
      Answered:
      The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.
      Unanswered:
      The business failed to respond to the dispute.
      Unpursuable:
      BBB is unable to locate the business.
      I signed up for a free trial and was charged $127 immediately. I cancelled the subscription 10 minutes later and asked that they not charge my CC and they said they were Charging me anyway.

    • Initial Complaint

      Date:01/09/2025

      Type:Sales and Advertising Issues
      Status:
      Unanswered
      Resolved:
      The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.
      Unresolved:
      The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.
      Answered:
      The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.
      Unanswered:
      The business failed to respond to the dispute.
      Unpursuable:
      BBB is unable to locate the business.
      False advertising on website, selected membership on 1-6-25, was charged another price. Cancelled the same day and requested a refund. I was able to cancel the membership and am not using their service. Business refusing to refund.

    • Initial Complaint

      Date:01/02/2025

      Type:Product Issues
      Status:
      Unanswered
      Resolved:
      The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.
      Unresolved:
      The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.
      Answered:
      The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.
      Unanswered:
      The business failed to respond to the dispute.
      Unpursuable:
      BBB is unable to locate the business.
      On 12/29/24, I subscribed to the Starter Plan on the QR Code Generator website. The advertised price prominently displayed $9.99/month, with smaller text indicating it was billed annually. However, the full annual price of $119.88 was not clearly disclosed at checkout. I was unexpectedly charged the entire annual amount upfront without being made aware of this during the purchasing process.This practice is deceptive and misleading under California Business and Professions Code ***** (False Advertising), which prohibits businesses from using misleading statements in their advertisements. It also violates Californias Automatic Renewal Law ( 17600-17606), as the company failed to:1.Clearly and conspicuously disclose the full upfront annual charge.2.Obtain my affirmative consent to the total amount billed.The websites layout and pricing structure emphasized the $9.99/month figure, leading me to believe I would be charged monthly rather than annually. As a result, I feel I was misled into agreeing to terms that were not clearly presented.Desired Resolution:1.Full Refund: I request a refund of the $119.88 charged to my Apple Cash account, as I would not have agreed to an annual payment had the terms been made clear.2.Policy Changes: I also ask that QR Code Generator modify their checkout process to clearly disclose the total amount due at the time of purchase in bold or conspicuous text to avoid misleading future customers.

    • Initial Complaint

      Date:10/25/2024

      Type:Service or Repair Issues
      Status:
      Unanswered
      Resolved:
      The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.
      Unresolved:
      The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.
      Answered:
      The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.
      Unanswered:
      The business failed to respond to the dispute.
      Unpursuable:
      BBB is unable to locate the business.
      Deceitful free-trial practices on the * R Code Generator website owned by Bitly: ******************************************* It is not made clear, when you elect to do their free two week trial, that any codes you generate during the trial will BECOME INACTIVE at the end of the trial. I had generated a code to use for a nonprofit health center community survey, and it has already been published in several places. In order to keep it active, my only option is to pay $120 for a yearly upgrade. There are no monthly upgrade options.This practice feels predatory and misleading and differs from other similar web services. It should be made evidently clear up front, and at the very least there should be a one month upgrade option if anyone missed the fine ******** resolution, I want to be able to keep my code active for one month by paying for a $10 upgrade, NOT the yearly upgrade option.

      Customer Answer

      Date: 11/18/2024

      Better Business Bureau:

      At this time, I have not been contacted by Bitly, Inc. regarding complaint ID ********.

      Sincerely,

      ******** ********

    • Initial Complaint

      Date:09/04/2024

      Type:Service or Repair Issues
      Status:
      Unanswered
      Resolved:
      The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.
      Unresolved:
      The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.
      Answered:
      The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.
      Unanswered:
      The business failed to respond to the dispute.
      Unpursuable:
      BBB is unable to locate the business.
      On August 29th, I was creating QR codes for my wedding and tried to select the $9.99 a month subscription after the 14 day trial. The website did not clearly state that I was about to pay $119 for an entire year subscription. This has happened to several other people obviously in regard to the company Bitly. I have reached out several times to the company and they are not refunding. This is false advertising and robbery.

    • Initial Complaint

      Date:08/01/2024

      Type:Product Issues
      Status:
      Unanswered
      Resolved:
      The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.
      Unresolved:
      The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.
      Answered:
      The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.
      Unanswered:
      The business failed to respond to the dispute.
      Unpursuable:
      BBB is unable to locate the business.
      Subscribed with QR-code-generator.com to get QR codes printed on my business cards. Now this company continually charges me annual fees although I have tried to cancel my account and get a refund FOR 2 YEARS IN A ROW now. According to their "help" support, you go to "Account" then "Billing" but the links do not exist. I can't find an email address to send my request to. THIS COMPANY IS A SCAM. I might have to cancel my debit card and get a new one just to get rid of these fraudulent charges.

    • Initial Complaint

      Date:06/28/2024

      Type:Service or Repair Issues
      Status:
      Unanswered
      Resolved:
      The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.
      Unresolved:
      The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.
      Answered:
      The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.
      Unanswered:
      The business failed to respond to the dispute.
      Unpursuable:
      BBB is unable to locate the business.
      Hello, I made a ** Code to connect to wifi for an event using Bitly's - free ** Code generator. When i got to the event with the signage, none of the ** codes worked. In a panic (which seems by design), I noticed a warning that the code no longer worked because i wasnt on the paid plan ($10/month). I immediately upgraded, and was charged for the year ($120). Upon payment, the code still didnt work and I was not able to generate a working code despite multiple tries. The password section would not accept the full password, and kept being made incorrectly. Turns out the static code I generated never even needed to be on a paid plan so it was a bait and switch to tell me my free trial affected the code i made. I reached out immediately to request a refund because the service did not work as advertised, and I was scammed into purchasing a yearly plan for this "free" qr code to work, but ultimately didnt. Once i was on the plan, i tried to make 4 other ** codes that ALL didnt work. The service doesnt work as advertised. I explained this all and their customer service was unwilling to help resolve this in a professional manner.

      Customer Answer

      Date: 07/23/2024

      Better Business Bureau:

      At this time, I have not been contacted by Bitly, Inc. regarding complaint ID ********.

      Sincerely,

      ***********************

    • Initial Complaint

      Date:06/10/2024

      Type:Service or Repair Issues
      Status:
      Unanswered
      Resolved:
      The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.
      Unresolved:
      The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.
      Answered:
      The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.
      Unanswered:
      The business failed to respond to the dispute.
      Unpursuable:
      BBB is unable to locate the business.
      Scammy paid service that will dupe you into creating QR codes that they will then shut off if you don't pay. You'll have invested time and energy into your project, only to have been misled by this company (a Bitly entity). They repeatedly claim "free" QR codes, but quietly mislead you into creating a code that is PAID only (unbeknowst to you when you make it and then publish it), and which will automatically deactivate after 14 days, leaving your now-deployed codes entirely useless and you looking foolish for having a "broken" code that's in truth being held hostage by this company. And, go figure, there's absolutely NO way to speak to someone at this "company"--all you get is an inane bot/AI chat box. No wonder they don't even bother to have a BBB accreditation--they don't care!

      Customer Answer

      Date: 07/08/2024

      Better Business Bureau:

      At this time, I have not been contacted by Bitly, Inc. regarding complaint ID ********. I attempted to contact a human being by their chatbot, but they have absolutely no way to reach a real person. 

      Sincerely,

      *************************

    Bitly, Inc. is NOT a BBB Accredited Business.

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