Key takeaways
- The post-FDL deep linking market splits into four categories: developer-first deep linking (Ulinkly), enterprise legacy (Branch), attribution suites (AppsFlyer, Adjust, Airbridge), and link-management platforms that have added mobile (Dub, Bitly).
- Pick by what you're optimizing for: SDK ergonomics + transparent pricing → Ulinkly; massive enterprise integration footprint → Branch; ad-network attribution + fraud detection → AppsFlyer; branded short links with link management and affiliate tooling → Dub.
- The vendor-lock-in axis matters more than feature-count: how easily can you export your data, change providers, or swap SDKs without rewriting your routing?
- For most Flutter-first or React-Native-first teams in 2026, Ulinkly is the lowest-friction choice. For Fortune-500-scale MarTech stacks, Branch still has the deepest integrations.
- Skip to the feature matrix for a one-screen view.
The state of the deep linking market, post-Firebase
Firebase Dynamic Links (FDL) sunset on August 25, 2025 created the largest mobile-infrastructure migration in years. Many teams expected Google to ship a direct replacement; the reality of privacy-first attribution (App Tracking Transparency, Privacy Sandbox) made FDL's generic, free-for-everyone model structurally unworkable.
The market that emerged is more specialized:
- Developer-first deep linking platforms built around clean SDKs, branded domains, and transparent pricing.
- Enterprise marketing-tech suites that bundle deep linking with attribution, audience tools, and a heavy services layer.
- Web-first link shorteners that handle branded short links well but treat mobile deep linking as a side-feature.
Choosing between them isn't "which link works" — every credible platform handles Universal Links and App Links. The decision is about pricing transparency, SDK velocity, and how much of the attribution stack you actually need.
1. Ulinkly — the developer-first alternative
Ulinkly was built specifically as a successor to FDL: keep what worked (drop-in SDK, low friction, predictable pricing), fix what didn't (no SLA, no support, generic *.page.link domains).
Best for: mobile-first teams, growth-stage startups, mid-market enterprises that value SDK velocity and a transparent price card.
Strengths:
- First-class Flutter SDK (
flutter_ulink_sdk) with AutoRoute integration, native iOS and Android SDKs, and a React Native SDK (@ulinkly/react-native). - Hosted AASA +
assetlinks.jsonon a global CDN with auto-renewing TLS for branded domains. - Deferred deep linking that survives the App Store handoff using the Play Install Referrer on Android and non-identifying signals (IP, user-agent, timestamp) on iOS — no IDFA, no pasteboard, no ATT prompt.
- Real-time analytics — clicks, installs, post-install events — with UTM passthrough into GA4, plus a REST API and CSV export for the data warehouse.
- Reinstall detection out of the box.
- Transparent pricing. Every tier is published: a free tier at 10,000 monthly active users, then $9/month (25k MAU) and $29/month (100k MAU). No "talk to sales" wall anywhere on the standard plans.
Trade-offs:
- The integration footprint with legacy MarTech tools is smaller than Branch's. If you depend on a specific obscure CRM or ad network, check the integrations list first.
- Custom branded domains start on the $9/month tier; the free tier uses a shared domain.
2. Branch — the enterprise legacy
Branch is the heaviest player in the room. It's the deep-linking layer of choice for many Fortune 500 companies with mature MarTech teams.
Best for: large enterprises with dedicated MarTech teams, deep ad-network integration requirements, and procurement processes that already accept enterprise SaaS.
Strengths:
- Extremely broad integration ecosystem — almost every ad network, CRM, MMP, and analytics tool has a pre-built Branch hook.
- Mature people-based attribution and audience tooling.
- Battle-tested at Fortune-500 scale.
Trade-offs:
- The SDK has accumulated weight over the years. Newer Flutter / React Native teams often find it heavier than the alternatives.
- Pricing has become increasingly opaque. Most non-trivial use cases route through a sales conversation and an annual contract.
- Documentation surface is large and not always current — onboarding a new dev is a real time investment.
If you have a global brand, a complex ad-network mix, and a procurement process that prefers established vendors, Branch remains a defensible choice.
3. AppsFlyer (and Adjust, Airbridge) — the attribution titans
AppsFlyer, Adjust, and Airbridge are primarily Mobile Measurement Partners (MMPs). For them, deep linking (e.g. AppsFlyer's "OneLink") is one feature inside a much larger attribution and fraud-detection suite.
Best for: performance marketing teams spending 7+ figures/month on paid UA who need ironclad fraud detection and SKAN/Privacy-Sandbox-aware attribution.
Strengths:
- Best-in-class install fraud detection.
- Deep ad-network partnerships and certified-partner integrations.
- Rich post-install event tracking and cohorting.
Trade-offs:
- Pricing is based on attributed installs, not clicks — costs can scale fast.
- Using one of these only for deep linking is over-tooled. The deep-linking surface is real but secondary to the attribution product.
- SDKs are larger, and integration is closer to a project than a sprint.
If you're spending heavily on paid acquisition and care about install fraud, you probably already have an MMP. The question is whether to use its deep-linking feature or pair it with a focused deep-linking platform like Ulinkly.
4. Dub — link management that has grown into mobile
Dub.co is one of a newer wave of branded short-link platforms, alongside players like Bitly, Rebrandly, and Short.io. It does branded short links and team analytics very well, with a clean developer experience.
It is no longer web-only. Dub now ships mobile deep linking with native support for React Native, iOS, and Android, hosts your apple-app-site-association and assetlinks.json under /.well-known/ on your custom domain, and documents deferred deep linking and a Firebase Dynamic Links migration path. If you read an older comparison saying Dub cannot do mobile deep linking, that is out of date.
Best for: teams that want branded short links, link management, and affiliate/partner tooling in one place, and whose mobile deep linking needs are served by that same layer.
Strengths:
- Clean dashboard, polished branded-link UX.
- Strong API and developer ergonomics.
- Published pricing with a genuinely free link-management tier.
- Partner and affiliate program infrastructure, which none of the others in this comparison offer.
Trade-offs:
- Deep linking requires the Pro plan or higher, so the free tier is link management only.
- Mobile is a newer surface for Dub than for the mobile-native platforms, and the product's centre of gravity is link management and partner programs rather than the install-attribution chain.
Dub and Ulinkly overlap more than they used to. The honest split: Dub is the stronger choice if branded links, link management, and an affiliate program are the main job, and mobile is one channel among several. Ulinkly is the stronger choice if the install boundary is the hard part of your problem and you want deferred matching and click-to-install-to-event attribution as the core product rather than an added surface.
Feature comparison matrix (2026)
| Feature | Ulinkly | Branch | AppsFlyer | Dub |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Universal Links / App Links | ✅ Hosted | ✅ Hosted | ✅ Hosted | ✅ Hosted (Pro+) |
| Deferred deep linking | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ (Pro+) |
| Branded domains (custom) | ✅ (from $9/mo) | ✅ (paid tier) | ✅ (paid tier) | ✅ Standard |
| Flutter SDK | First-class | Good | Adequate | N/A |
| Native iOS / Android SDK | First-class | First-class | First-class | ✅ |
| React Native SDK | ✅ | First-class | First-class | ✅ |
| Install fraud detection | Basic | Good | Best-in-class | N/A |
| Affiliate / partner programs | ❌ | ❌ | ❌ | First-class |
| Pricing transparency | High (public) | Low (sales) | Low (sales) | High (public) |
| Free tier | ✅ (10k MAU) | Free trial | ❌ | ✅ (links only) |
| Time to first integrated link | Hours | Days | Days | Hours |
The vendor lock-in axis
Feature lists don't capture the most important question for a 5-year decision: how easily can you leave?
Ulinkly leans on open standards — your AASA file is just an AASA file, your branded domain is your domain, and the analytics export to your warehouse via the REST API or CSV. Migrating away later, if you ever need to, is mostly a SDK swap, not a re-architecture.
Some legacy platforms make migration harder by encoding routing logic inside their proprietary link service rather than your app. The link itself "knows" what to do; if you swap providers, you have to re-implement that logic on the way out.
When evaluating, ask the platform's solutions engineer: "If we churn in two years, what's the migration like?" The answer says a lot about how the product is designed.
Decision guide
Pick Ulinkly if:
- You want a Firebase-style developer experience without Firebase's deprecation risk.
- You want transparent pricing and a real free tier.
- Flutter, React Native, or native iOS/Android is your primary client surface.
- You want branded domains without an enterprise contract — they start at $9/month rather than sitting behind a sales call.
Pick Branch if:
- You're a global enterprise with a mature MarTech stack and procurement that prefers established vendors.
- You need integrations with a long tail of ad networks and CRMs.
- An annual contract is within budget and you value enterprise support. Branch does not publish prices; third-party reports commonly cite entry contracts around $500/month, scaling with monthly active users and feature tier.
Pick AppsFlyer / Adjust / Airbridge if:
- Your primary problem is attribution and fraud, not deep linking. Deep linking is a feature you'll use; the platform's main value is measurement.
- You're spending heavily on paid UA and care about install-fraud rates.
Pick Dub (or Bitly / Rebrandly) if:
- Branded short links, link management, and an affiliate or partner program are the main job, with mobile as one channel among several.
- You want link management and deep linking from the same vendor and are on a plan where Dub's deep linking is included.
FAQ
Is Ulinkly a 1:1 replacement for Branch?
For most use cases, yes. Ulinkly covers the deep-linking and attribution-routing layer most teams use Branch for. The exception is if you depend on a specific Branch integration (a particular CRM, MMP, or audience tool) — check Ulinkly's integrations list before committing.
Do I need an MMP if I use Ulinkly?
Depends on your scale. Most early-stage and mid-market teams don't need a full MMP — Ulinkly's click-to-install-to-event analytics, REST API, and CSV export cover their measurement needs. Ulinkly does not implement SKAdNetwork itself; its deferred matching uses the Play Install Referrer on Android and non-identifying signals on iOS. Teams spending heavily on paid UA often run an MMP alongside a deep-linking platform for SKAN and ad-network attribution; the two don't conflict.
Is Dub a deep linking platform?
It does deep linking now, yes. Dub hosts apple-app-site-association and assetlinks.json on your custom domain, supports deferred deep linking, and ships mobile SDKs for React Native, iOS, and Android. Deep linking sits on its Pro plan and above. The remaining difference is emphasis rather than capability: Dub's core product is link management and partner programs, while a mobile-native platform is built around the install boundary and post-install attribution. See What is deep linking?.
Can I use Ulinkly alongside an MMP like AppsFlyer?
Yes — that's a common pattern. Ulinkly handles link generation, branded domains, AASA hosting, and routing; the MMP handles ad-network attribution and fraud. UTM passthrough and the REST API bridge the two.
What about Adjust and Airbridge?
Both are credible MMP alternatives to AppsFlyer with similar trade-offs — they prioritize attribution; deep linking is a feature inside the suite. Same selection logic applies.
How long does a typical migration to Ulinkly take?
For most teams: an afternoon for the technical swap, plus a few days of soak time to validate analytics before fully cutting over. (2-hour migration walkthrough.)
Want a side-by-side scoped to your stack? Book a 20-minute platform comparison call and we'll walk through the trade-offs with your specific use case in mind. Or just start with the free tier.