Linktree for Free in 2026: What You Get, the Hidden 12% Fee, and 5 Free Alternatives

Search "linktree for free" (or "free linktree" — people phrase it both ways) and you will get two kinds of pages: ones telling you Linktree's free plan exists (it does), and ones trying to sell you something. This guide does neither. It shows you exactly what you get when you use Linktree for free in 2026, where the free plan quietly limits you, and the best free Linktree alternatives if your goal is to actually get paid.

If you only need a free page to hold your links, Linktree free is genuinely good. If you plan to sell anything, the word "free" stops being accurate fast.

TL;DR: Linktree for Free in 2026

A free Linktree page costs $0/month and includes unlimited links, basic themes, QR codes, social icons, and basic analytics. You can sell digital products, but the free plan takes a 12% cut of every sale on top of payment processing. There is no email collection, no custom branding, and no scheduling on free. For pure link sharing it is one of the best free options. For monetization, the seller fee makes it expensive, which is why creators who sell often start free and switch to an alternative that charges nothing monthly and a lower fee per sale.

What You Get With a Free Linktree Page

The free tier is more generous than most $0 products. Set up takes about five minutes: pick a username, drop in your links, choose a theme, share the URL. Here is what is included:

• Unlimited links with drag-and-drop ordering
• Basic themes from a small built-in library
• QR codes for printed materials, packaging, and events
• Social icons that link to your profiles
• Embedded video with autoplay
• Basic analytics — total views and total clicks
• Commerce — sell digital products, with a 12% seller fee
• A mobile-optimized page that works everywhere

For a creator who just needs a clean bio link, free Linktree does the job well. We break down every included feature in our Linktree free plan guide.

Where "Free" Linktree Stops Being Free

The free plan is built to push you toward paid tiers and to take a cut when you sell. The limits that catch people off guard:

• 12% seller fee on every digital product sale, on top of Stripe's roughly 2.9% + $0.30. On the free plan your real cost per sale is closer to 15%.
• No email collection — you cannot capture a single subscriber from your free page, so you never own your audience.
• No custom branding — Linktree's logo stays on your page and you cannot remove it.
• No link scheduling — every link is either live or not. No timed drops, no countdowns.
• Basic analytics only — total clicks, nothing about who clicked or what converted.

None of these matter if you only share links. All of them matter the moment you try to make money. For a side-by-side of what unlocks at each tier, see our Linktree free vs. Pro breakdown.

The Real Cost of Selling on "Free" Linktree

Here is the math creators miss. On the free plan, sell $500 of products in a month and Linktree's 12% fee takes $60 before payment processing. Sell $2,000 and that is $240 gone, every month, on a plan marketed as free.

Upgrading does not fix it cleanly either. The cheapest paid tier still charges a percentage on sales plus a monthly fee. You end up paying both a subscription and a per-sale cut. A free link-in-bio page is great for sending fans somewhere, but it can't take the money for a session on its own; if you plan to sell 1:1 calls or workshops, a paid video call platform runs the booking, the video, and the payment from the same single link. For the full Linktree cost breakdown across every tier, plus the November 2025 price hike, see our dedicated pricing guide.

The takeaway: free Linktree is cheap to set up and expensive to sell on. If selling is the point, the seller fee is the number to watch, not the $0 sticker price.

5 Free Linktree Alternatives Worth Considering

"Free" should mean free to run and cheap to sell on. These alternatives all start at $0/month:

1. Talkspresso — Free to set up, no monthly fee, and built for creators who sell live: paid video calls, workshops, and digital products from one link. Takes 10% per transaction (below Linktree's 12% free-plan fee) and includes email collection and scheduling that Linktree paywalls. Best if you want to get paid, not just list links.
2. Beacons — A free link-in-bio with a creator store and media kit. Solid free tier; takes a cut on sales. See our Beacons vs. Linktree comparison.
3. Stan Store — Storefront-first link-in-bio for digital products. Popular with sellers, though pricing is subscription-based. Compare in Stan Store vs. Linktree.
4. Carrd — A free single-page builder. Great for a custom landing page, but you build the monetization yourself.
5. Your own link-in-bio on Talkspresso — One link that holds your booking page, products, and live sessions, so fans book and pay in the same place they find you.

If your audience is the asset and you want to monetize it directly, see how creators do it in our guide to Linktree alternatives for paid video calls and the full Talkspresso for creators overview.

Free Linktree vs. Free Talkspresso, Side by Side

Both let you build a link-in-bio page at $0/month. The difference shows up the moment you try to earn from it.

• Monthly fee: Free on both.
• Sell digital products: Linktree free charges a 12% seller fee. Talkspresso charges 10% per transaction and only when you actually earn.
• Paid video calls and live workshops: Not offered on Linktree at any tier. Built in on Talkspresso, included free.
• Email collection: Paywalled on Linktree. Included free on Talkspresso, so you own your audience from day one.
• Scheduling and bookings: Not on Linktree. Native on Talkspresso, with calendar sync and automated reminders.
• Custom branding: Locked on free Linktree. Available on Talkspresso.

If all you do is list links, the two are close. If you sell anything live, Talkspresso replaces Linktree plus the Calendly, Zoom, and email tools you would otherwise bolt on. See the full picture for creators on Talkspresso.

How to Choose: Free Linktree vs. a Free Alternative

Ask one question: do you plan to sell?

• No, I just need a bio link. Free Linktree is a fine choice. Set it up and move on.
• Yes, I want to get paid. Free Linktree's 12% seller fee, missing email collection, and locked branding will cost you more than they save. A free alternative with a lower transaction fee and built-in monetization keeps more of every dollar and lets you own your audience.

The smart play for most creators: use a free page that does not punish you for succeeding. If today you only share links but next quarter you launch a product, a workshop, or paid calls, start on a platform that grows with you instead of taxing you when you finally sell.

The Bottom Line

A free Linktree page is real, useful, and genuinely $0/month for sharing links. The catch is what happens when you monetize: a 12% seller fee, no email capture, and no branding control. If you only need a link page, you can use Linktree for free and it works fine. If you want to turn your audience into income, a free alternative with a lower fee and native payments will keep more money in your pocket. Talkspresso is free to start, charges no monthly fee, and only takes a cut when you actually earn.