Google Reverses Course: Most goo.gl Short Links to Stay Active

In a notable policy shift, Google has reversed its earlier decision to disable all goo.gl shortened URLs by August 25, 2025. The company confirmed on Friday that most of these links will continue to function as usual, a significant change from its previous course of action announced in July 2024.

Initially, Google had announced plans to phase out the goo.gl service altogether, citing dwindling usage. "More than 99 percent of the URLs had no activity in the last month," the tech giant said at the time. This announcement sparked concern among users who relied on goo.gl links embedded in countless blogs, documents, social media posts, and videos over the years.

However, following extensive feedback, Google now says it will only deactivate a limited subset of links — specifically those that had already been flagged for deactivation. “Goo.gl URLS that already show a message saying that they will be deactivated in August will still stop working,” the company clarified.

These specific links were targeted because they "showed no activity in late 2024," and users were notified about the upcoming deactivation nearly nine months ago. In contrast, any goo.gl URL not accompanied by such a deactivation notice will remain operational. “All other goo.gl links will be preserved and will continue to function as normal,” Google stated in its Friday update.

The goo.gl short link service was officially discontinued in 2019, preventing users from creating new links through the platform. But despite that, existing links remained widely in use, often as integral parts of marketing materials, online publications, academic papers, and legacy content.

Google acknowledged this in its revised announcement: “We understand these links are embedded in countless documents, videos, posts and more, and we appreciate the input received.”

Jay Peters, the news editor at The Verge covering this update, noted the importance of Google's reversal for users who continue to depend on these legacy URLs. As platforms evolve, decisions that affect older infrastructure can have far-reaching implications — especially when those tools were once foundational to how content was shared online.

This update provides a measure of relief to users and organizations that would have otherwise faced broken links and disrupted user experiences. Google’s move reflects an effort to balance modernization with the realities of long-standing digital footprints.

While the goo.gl shortener service is not being revived in full — no new links can be created — this rollback ensures that much of the content relying on the older system remains accessible, protecting years of embedded URLs from sudden obsolescence.