For your business8 min read·Updated July 2026

Linktree vs a website: which does your business actually need?

Linktree is fine. A website is better. Here's an honest breakdown of when each one is the right call — and why most service businesses outgrow a link-in-bio page faster than they expect.

Quick answer

Use Linktree if you have nothing else and need somewhere to point your Instagram bio in the next ten minutes. Use a real website if you want to be found in Google search, convert more visitors into customers, or look like a serious business. For most service businesses — cleaners, coaches, tradespeople, salons — a website pays for itself within weeks because it shows up in Google when Linktree pages don't.

Linktree vs a real website at a glance

	Linktree	Real website
Shows up in Google search	Almost never — one templated page on a shared domain	Yes — pages, local keywords, and a domain that builds authority
Cost	Free; paid $5–24/mo	Free (AI builders); ~$18/mo with custom domain
Setup time	~2 minutes	Under 15 minutes with an AI builder like Adviita
Converts cold visitors	Poorly — a list of buttons, no story or proof	Yes — services, prices, reviews, gallery, contact form
Ownership	Rented — Linktree's URL, branding, and rules	Owned — your domain, your content, your data
Best for	Creators routing an Instagram bio; quick tests	Any business customers google before booking

Step-by-step

What Linktree actually is

Linktree is a single page hosted on linktr.ee/yourname that holds a list of links — your Instagram, your TikTok, your booking page, your WhatsApp, whatever you want to point people at. It exists because Instagram only allows one clickable link in your bio, so creators and businesses use Linktree as a 'menu' for everything else. It takes two minutes to set up, the free plan is genuinely usable, and it solves exactly one problem: where to point a social media bio link. It is not designed to rank in Google, convert cold visitors into customers, or represent your business to someone who hasn't already heard of you.

What a website does that Linktree can't

Three things. First: a website is indexed by Google, so when someone searches 'mobile dog groomer Bristol' your site can appear in results — a Linktree page almost never will. Second: a website lets you tell a real story (your services, prices, gallery, testimonials, areas covered, FAQ), all of which dramatically increase the chance that a visitor books rather than bouncing. Third: a website looks like a real business. Anyone shopping around between three providers and seeing two with websites and one with a Linktree will quietly drop the Linktree one. None of this is opinion — it's the consistent experience of every service business that switches.

Cost: what each actually costs in 2026

Linktree's free plan is genuinely usable, and its paid plans run roughly $5–$24/month for analytics, custom branding, and extras. A real website is no longer the expensive option people assume it is: a free AI builder like Adviita publishes a complete site at no cost, and a custom domain with full features is around $18/month — similar to Linktree's middle tier, for something that actually ranks in Google and converts visitors. The old trade-off — 'Linktree is free, websites cost money and time' — barely exists anymore. You can have a real site live in the time it takes to arrange a handful of Linktree buttons.

SEO: why Linktree pages don't show up in Google

This is the difference that costs service businesses the most. A Linktree page is a single, near-identical template on a shared subdomain (linktr.ee/yourname) with almost no unique text for Google to index — so it essentially never appears when someone searches 'electrician near me' or 'dog groomer in Leeds'. A website is different on purpose: it has pages, headings, service descriptions, and local keywords Google can read and rank, plus a custom domain that builds its own authority over time. If being found by people who don't already follow you matters at all, a link-in-bio page simply can't do that job — by design.

Ownership: renting your presence vs owning it

A Linktree page lives on Linktree's platform, under Linktree's branding and rules. You don't own the URL, you can't fully control how it looks, and if your account is ever suspended or the free tier changes, your only web presence goes with it. A website on your own domain is property you own: the address is yours, the content is yours, the data is yours, and no platform decision can switch it off. For a business you're building for the long term, renting your entire online presence from a link-in-bio tool is a fragile foundation.

When Linktree is genuinely fine

You're a creator, influencer, or musician whose audience finds you through Instagram or TikTok and just needs a way to click through to your latest project, your merch, or your tour dates. You're testing whether a side hustle has any traction before investing in a real site. You're an event one-off and just need a holding page. In all of these cases, Linktree does the job and there's no need to overengineer it.

When you need a website instead

You run a service business where customers Google you before booking — every cleaner, electrician, dentist, tutor, salon, therapist, coach, photographer, and tradesperson falls into this bucket. You want to show up in local search. You want to look credible to a customer who has never heard of you. You want a contact form, a real booking flow, or to collect reviews on your own page. You want a custom domain (yourname.com) instead of linktr.ee/yourname. In all of these cases, a Linktree page is actively losing you customers.

The middle ground: both, working together

The right setup for most service businesses is a real website at yourname.com, plus a Linktree (or similar) ONLY for your Instagram bio, where the very first link points to your website. Linktree becomes a router into your real site — not a substitute for it. With Adviita you can build the website in under a minute from a one-sentence description of your business; the Linktree then takes thirty seconds to update. Total time investment: under five minutes. Total benefit: showing up on Google, looking credible, converting more visitors.

Tips & best practices

▸If you already have a Linktree, leave it — just add your real website as the top link, and update your Instagram bio to point to your website directly where possible (some businesses can swap entirely after a few weeks).
▸Don't use a Linktree alternative (Beacons, Bio.fm, etc.) as your only web presence either — same problem, different brand. The category itself isn't designed to rank in search.
▸A website doesn't have to be expensive or take long. Adviita generates a full professional site from a plain-English business description in under sixty seconds, free to publish.
▸If you sell or take bookings, send people from your bio straight to the page that converts — your services or booking page on your website — not to a list of links they have to choose from. Every extra click between interest and action costs you customers.

Common questions

Can I use Linktree as my main website?

Technically yes, practically no. Linktree pages don't rank in Google search, they don't let you tell a full story about your business, and they signal 'I haven't bothered with a real site'. For a service business that depends on local search, this is a real cost in lost enquiries — usually a much bigger cost than the few pounds a month a real website costs.

Does a Linktree page hurt my SEO?

It doesn't hurt your SEO directly, but it doesn't help it either. Google indexes your website, not your Linktree. If your website is your Linktree, you have nothing for Google to rank. Anyone competing for the same local searches with a real website will outrank you by default.

Is Linktree better than no website at all?

Yes — having somewhere to point people is better than nothing. But the gap between 'Linktree' and 'real website' is far smaller than it used to be. A free Adviita site takes about the same time to set up as a Linktree page and gives you SEO, a real contact form, a custom URL, and a credible business presence.

Can I migrate my Linktree links into a website?

Yes — and you should. Most Linktree pages have 3–6 links, all of which fit comfortably as buttons or a navigation menu on a real homepage. When you build with Adviita, just mention the links you want included in your business description and they'll be wired into the generated site.

Is Linktree free?

Linktree has a free plan that's genuinely usable for a basic list of links. Paid plans run roughly $5–$24/month for analytics, custom branding, and extra features. For comparison, a free AI website builder like Adviita gives you a full, Google-indexable site at no cost — so 'free' no longer means you have to settle for a link-in-bio page.

Why doesn't my Linktree show up on Google?

Because there's almost nothing for Google to rank. Every Linktree page uses the same template on a shared subdomain with very little unique text, so it rarely appears in search results — especially for local searches like 'plumber near me'. A website with real pages, service descriptions, and a custom domain is built to be found; a link-in-bio page isn't.

What's a good alternative to Linktree for a business?

For a business, the best 'alternative' isn't another link-in-bio tool (Beacons, Bio.link, etc.) — it's a real website, because that's what ranks in Google and converts strangers into customers. Keep a link-in-bio page only as a router for your Instagram bio, with your website as the first link. An AI builder like Adviita makes the website itself fast and free to create.

Do I need a website if I already have Instagram and Linktree?

If you want customers who don't already follow you, yes. Instagram and Linktree only reach people who find you on social — they don't show up when someone Googles your service. A website captures that search demand, looks credible to first-time visitors, and gives you a contact or booking flow on a page you own. For most service businesses, it's the missing piece, not a duplicate.