If you’ve ever spent much time following content creators (especially on social media), you may have stumbled upon a Linktree link.
These are links that are most commonly found in people’s Instagram, Twitter or TikTok bios, and creators encourage people to click on them. They are usually abbreviated to linktr.ee followed by the creator’s link.
But actually are linktrees, and are they safe to click on?
Let’s find out!
What Is Linktree, And Is Linktree Safe?
Fortunately, Linktrees are always safe to click on. However, any extra links on the page that opens up may or may not be safe.
In these instances, it comes down to your trust in the person sharing the linktree link.
This is because linktrees are essentially pages that do nothing but link out to other pages on the web.
Because content creators and influencers are often only able to put one link in their social media bios, they opt to use a Linktree instead.
After clicking on it, it will open up a new page that contains links to other websites. You can see an example of this below.
In this example, you can see links to my website, along with links to my podcast, YouTube channel, and other social networks.
In terms of safety, the important thing to know is this – while all linktrees are hosted on the same, safe website (linktr.ee), the pages these linktrees link out to may or may not be dangerous.
This is because content creators can put links to anything inside of their linktree, including links to malicious websites.
While using Linktree maliciously is against their terms of service, there may be people that use it for some period of time before getting caught.
Typically however, you won’t have anything to worry about.
How To Preview Linktree Links
Unfortunately, there doesn’t seem to be any way to preview links before clicking on the buttons, at least if you’re on mobile.
However, if you visit the Linktree link on your desktop, you can hover your mouse over the button to see a preview of where the link leads.
If you are unsure of whether or not a link is safe, or you believe the Linktree owner may be trying to deceive you, it is worth taking the extra few seconds to open it up on your desktop to check.
How To Stay Safe When Clicking Linktree Links
Fortunately, most devices are more secure than ever, and you don’t have to be as cautious as you used to be.
Unless you are explicitly engaging in shady actions (like pirating software), getting a virus on your computer or mobile phone is quite rare these days, and almost impossible to occur just from clicking on a link.
Therefore, the main thing that you’ll likely need to worry about is phishing – or people setting up fake websites to try and steal your personal information.
The easiest way to avoid this? Don’t trust any login forms that appear after clicking on a Linktree link, unless you can verify the website’s authenticity.
Instead, manually open the website’s official app, or manually type in the website’s address in your internet browser before signing in.
Is Linktree Safe For Content Creators?
As of the time of writing, Linktree is completely safe for content creators to use.
You will not get in trouble or banned from Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, Twitter, or any other mainstream social networks for using Linktree as the link in your bio.
Personally, I have been using it for years, and it’s been a great way not only to direct followers to other social networks, but also to my paid products.
Conclusion
Is Linktree safe? Absolutely! You can comfortably click on any linktr.ee links without having to worry.
However, from these pages, it’s important to keep in mind that Linktree users can link out to any pages that they want – including some that may be malicious. While I’m sure this is extremely rare, it is still something to keep in mind.
Personally, I love Linktree, both as a user of it and as someone that ends up clicking these links frequently.
Have any questions about Linktree? Feel free to ask them using the comment form below!
– James McAllister