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A Short URL field mints a short branded link for every record, such as https://go.acme.example/aB3xK9q2. When someone opens the link, they are redirected to a destination URL held by another field, and the click is recorded. See those clicks under Analytics.The link reads like bit.ly, but the slug policy is declared on the field and the destination comes from your own data, so the short link is stable while the destination can still change up to approval.

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When to use it

  • You want a short, shareable link for every record: marketing campaigns, print collateral, social posts.
  • The destination is already a field on the taxonomy, usually a Tagged URL carrying your UTM parameters, and you want a short link in front of it.
  • You want click tracking. Every visit to the short link is recorded and shows up in Analytics.
  • You want one place to retarget without reprinting: the short link’s slug and domain are fixed once approved, but you can still edit the destination afterward.
Don’t use this when a plain URL field is enough. If you don’t need a branded short link or click tracking, you don’t need a Short URL field.

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How it works

A short link is a domain plus a slug (the part after the slash) that redirects to a destination URL. You choose the destination by pointing the field at another field with destination_url_field, and you choose how the slug is filled with slug_mode. The link is provisioned as a draft while a submission is being built, so you can preview and edit it. It goes live only when the submission is approved. From that moment on, the link’s domain, slug, and live state are frozen and can no longer change. You can still update the destination URL on a live link, so changing the destination field retargets the same short link without reprinting anything. For how each slug mode behaves in the builder and on approval, see Short URL slug modes.

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Settings reference

The top-level required flag lives on the field itself, not inside settings. On top of any field-level uniqueness, Terminus Hub always enforces that each domain plus slug pair is unique, so two records can never hold the same short link.

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Slug modes at a glance

derived slug mode (taking the slug from another field) is not available. Use one of the three modes above.

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Example

In the Campaign URL Builder, a Short URL field sits in front of the UTM-tagged destination:
destination_url_field points at the upstream Tagged URL field, so the short link redirects to the already-tagged campaign URL. With slug_mode: auto_editable, the builder drafts a random eight-character slug when you create the submission, and you can overwrite it before approval. For a submission with campaign_name = "Black Friday 2026", you might draft:
If you replace the slug with blkfri26 before approving, the approved record’s short link becomes https://go.acme.example/blkfri26. After approval that slug is frozen. Opening either link redirects to the full Tagged URL and records the click for analytics.

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Gotchas

  • auto_editable lets people edit the slug, auto_only does not. That difference drives the builder: an auto_only field is read-only and shows “(will be generated on save)”, while auto_editable shows an editable input pre-filled with a generated slug. If you want “auto” to also mean “users can’t touch it,” choose auto_only.
  • Auto-generated slugs can change until you edit them. As long as you have not edited the slug yourself, the builder may generate a fresh random slug each time it saves, retrying if the random slug collides with an existing link on the same domain. The slug you see in the draft is not final until you type your own or approve. Once you edit it, your value sticks.
  • A short link is frozen after approval. After the submission is approved, the link’s domain, slug, and live state cannot change. To retarget an approved link, change the destination URL field, not the slug. Fixing a typo in a slug means a new link.
  • At most one Short URL field per taxonomy. A taxonomy that references two Short URL fields is rejected. If you need multiple short links per record (for example on different domains), use separate taxonomies.
  • slug_size only applies to the auto modes. It controls the length of an auto-generated slug. In manual_only the slug length is bounded only by the character rule, so leave slug_size out.
  • Slugs are URL-safe only. A slug must be present and use letters, numbers, hyphens, and underscores. Spaces, slashes, emoji, and other punctuation are rejected.
  • The destination must be an http or https URL. The redirect target comes from the linked URL or Tagged URL field and must use a supported web protocol.
  • A custom domain must be one you have added and verified. Leave domain unset to use your account’s default shortener domain. To serve links from a branded domain, add and verify it first, then set the field’s domain to it.
  • For QR codes, point the QR field at the Short URL field, not a raw URL. A QR Code field can target any field, but scans are only tracked separately from clicks when its source is a Short URL field.