Smart deep linking
Open short links to YouTube, Instagram, TikTok and other apps directly in the app on phones.
On this page6
When someone taps a link to a YouTube video or an Instagram profile on their phone, it often opens in a browser where they are not logged in. With Open in app, useClick recognizes links to popular apps and opens them in the installed app instead. If the app is not installed, the visitor gets the normal web page.
Before you start
- Open in app needs the Starter plan or higher. On Free, the option shows a Starter badge and links always open in the browser.
- It works for links to the apps listed below. Links to any other site redirect as usual.
Supported apps
| App | Destination URLs that are recognized |
|---|---|
| YouTube | youtube.com, youtu.be |
instagram.com | |
| TikTok | tiktok.com |
| X (Twitter) | x.com, twitter.com |
| Spotify | spotify.com |
| Amazon | amazon.com, amzn.to |
pinterest.com | |
linkedin.com | |
| Snapchat | snapchat.com |
facebook.com, fb.com | |
| Messenger | m.me |
whatsapp.com, wa.me |
Turn it on or off for a link
On paid plans Open in app is on by default, so there is nothing to do for most links.
- In the create-link dialog, paste a destination from one of the apps above.
- Under Options, click Open in app. A panel shows which app was detected, for example YouTube link detected, and what will happen: On: mobile visitors land straight in the YouTube app.
- Use the switch to turn it off if you want this link to open in the browser. The panel then reads Off: mobile visitors are opened in their browser instead.
- Click Create link.
The link's analytics page shows the detected app as Deep link in the settings grid.
What visitors see
- On iPhone, iPad and Android: a short page reads Opening YouTube... while the app is launched. If the app has not opened after about one and a half seconds, for example because it is not installed, the visitor is sent to the web page. A Continue to website button is there as a fallback.
- On desktop computers: nothing changes; the link redirects to the web page as usual.
The click is recorded before the app opens, so deep-linked visits appear in link analytics like any other click.
Good to know
- The app is detected from the destination's domain when you create the link, and again when you change the destination with Edit link. If the new destination is not a supported app, mobile visitors are redirected to the web page.
- On geo-targeted links, the country's destination is the one opened in the app.
- Links with a password, a content warning or email capture open the destination in the browser after those steps.
- Some phones ask the visitor to confirm before an app opens. That prompt comes from the phone and cannot be turned off.
Related guides
- Create your first short link
- Link in bio: a page for all your social links
- Geo-targeted links
- Plans and limits