Detour Alternative: Deep Linking With Install Attribution and Analytics

TL;DR: Detour, from Software Mansion, is a developer-oriented deferred deep linking service with a small free tier. WarpLink is the Detour alternative for teams that also need install attribution and real-time analytics on the same link. We ship deep linking, install attribution, and real-time analytics in one SDK, with a free tier of 10,000 clicks a month, paid plans from $19, and native iOS, Android, and React Native SDKs. Detour is the better fit if you build in Flutter or only need deferred links. Create a free account and compare the two on a real link.

Detour and WarpLink at a Glance

Both services route a tapped link to the right place on iOS, Android, and the web, and both carry the destination through an app install. The difference is what sits on top of the link. The table below compares published plans as of October 2026. Every Detour cell traces to a source in the Sources section.

	WarpLink	Detour
Free tier	$0, 10,000 clicks a month, no card	$0, 1,500 clicks a month, one app, 50 short links, no card
Entry paid price	$19 a month, 100,000 clicks	$19 a month, 70,000 clicks
Next tier	$49 a month, 500,000 clicks	$79 a month, 350,000 clicks, custom domain
Deep linking	Universal links and app links, hosted AASA and assetlinks	Deep links, deferred links
Deferred deep links	Yes	Yes
Install attribution	Yes, matched to the link that drove the install	Listed on their roadmap as planned marketing attribution
Analytics	Real-time analytics, with clicks, installs, and sources	Basic overview analytics on free, expanded on paid
SDKs	iOS, Android, React Native (all 1.1.0)	iOS, Android, React Native, Flutter
Pricing model	Flat monthly tiers by click volume	Monthly tiers by click volume, with pay-as-you-go overage

Two notes on reading the table. Detour's billing docs and its landing page list different overage rates per 1,000 clicks, so we do not quote one here. Check both pages before you plan around overage. And Detour lists annual billing as discounted without publishing the amounts we could confirm, so we compare monthly prices only.

What Detour Does Well

Detour is a focused service, and that is a strength. Its free plan gives one app, 50 short links, and basic analytics with no card, and its billing documentation is plain about what each plan includes. Starter adds unlimited apps and short links and three webhooks. Scale adds a custom domain and ten webhooks.

It also keeps working after you pass the free click limit in one important way. Per its billing docs, standard redirects continue past the limit, but deep-link matching stops. That is a clear, honest rule, and it tells you where the free plan ends.

The Detour site lists SDKs for iOS, Android, React Native, and Flutter, and it is built by Software Mansion, a well-known name in the React Native community. For a team that wants deferred links in a small app and nothing else, that is a reasonable and low-friction choice.

Where WarpLink Goes Further

We build link infrastructure around three pillars: deep linking, install attribution, and real-time analytics. Detour covers the first. Here is how the other two differ.

Install attribution on the same link

An install is only useful to your growth numbers if you know where it came from. WarpLink matches each install to the link that produced it, using a cascade from most accurate to least: referrer, device ID (IDFV on iOS), fingerprint, and raw device signals. The result tells you which link, campaign, or creator drove the install, and it reports which strategy matched, so you can judge confidence.

On Android, the Play Install Referrer gives a deterministic match. On iOS, the device ID and fingerprint paths carry the match. For the background on how this works without an advertising ID, read Install Attribution Without IDFA.

As of October 2026, Detour's own site lists full marketing attribution as planned on its roadmap. If your question is "which of my links drove installs," that is the gap this post is about. It may close, and when it does, the comparison above will change.

Real-time analytics

Every click, install, and match lands in the dashboard as it happens. You can break clicks down by link, app, source, platform, and hour, and you can pull the same data through the REST API or the MCP server. Detour has analytics too, basic on its free plan and expanded on paid plans, so the question is depth and how much of your question the analytics can answer. If you need installs next to clicks on one screen, that is what we built.

Redirects that keep working

Redirects resolve at the edge with sub-10ms redirects, and links never stop redirecting. When a free account passes its click limit, redirects always keep working and deep links keep resolving. Only the analytics view is gated behind an upgrade prompt.

More clicks at the same price

At the $19 entry price, WarpLink includes 100,000 clicks a month against Detour Starter's 70,000. The free tier is 10,000 clicks against 1,500. If your volume is closer to 350,000 clicks, Detour's Scale plan is $79 and our Growth plan is $49 for 500,000. Our full ladder runs from $0 to $149 a month with an Unlimited plan that has no click ceiling. Every tier is on the pricing page.

React Native and Expo

React Native is where many Detour evaluations begin, so the facts matter.

The WarpLink React Native SDK (@warplink/react-native) is at version 1.1.0. It bridges to the native iOS and Android SDKs, which means it includes native modules. That has one consequence for Expo: it does not run in Expo Go. Expo Go is a prebuilt app with a fixed set of native modules, and the SDK is not one of them. Use a development build instead, either with npx expo prebuild followed by npx expo run:ios or npx expo run:android, or with an EAS development build.

Two details save time:

• No config plugin is needed for the deferred check. First-launch matching runs from configure() in JavaScript and touches no native file. You need a plugin, or a committed ios/ directory, only for tapped Universal Links on iOS, where the AppDelegate forwards the incoming URL to the SDK.
• A deferred match is not a URL. expo-router and expo-linking report URLs the operating system handed your app, and a fresh install was handed none. The match arrives in the onLink callback as an object with isDeferred set to true, and you route it yourself.

The full walkthrough, including testing a real install, is in Deferred Deep Linking in Expo. For plain React Native, see Deferred Deep Linking in React Native and the React Native SDK docs.

When Detour Is the Better Choice

We would rather you pick the right service than the wrong one. Choose Detour instead of WarpLink in these cases:

• Your app is built in Flutter. Detour lists a Flutter SDK. WarpLink does not have one. We ship iOS, Android, and React Native, so a Flutter app would use only the REST API with us.
• You need deferred links and nothing else. If you will never ask which link drove an install, Detour's focused scope is simpler, and you do not pay for attribution you will not read.
• You want a vendor tied to the React Native community. Software Mansion is a respected name in that ecosystem, and some teams value that relationship.
• You want a bespoke self-hosted deployment. Detour's Enterprise plan includes bespoke self-hosting on request. We do not offer self-hosting.
• You are under 1,500 clicks a month and want the smallest footprint. The free plan is enough, and our larger free allowance does not matter to you.

Choose WarpLink if you need install attribution, real-time analytics, or more included clicks at the same price, or if you want one SDK to cover linking, attribution, and analytics.

What WarpLink Does Not Do

To keep this comparison fair, here are the limits on our side. WarpLink attributes installs that came from links you control. It does not send postbacks to ad networks, it does not support SKAdNetwork, and it has no fraud suite beyond bot filtering on the redirect path. If paid ad networks need install data returned to them, you want a mobile measurement partner. For the trade-offs, read Install Attribution Without an MMP.

How to Switch From Detour to WarpLink

Most apps move in an afternoon. The steps below match the migration summary at the top of this page.

1. Create an account and register your app. Sign up, create an organization, and register your app with its iOS bundle ID, Android package name, or both. We generate and host the AASA and assetlinks.json files.
2. Install the WarpLink SDK. Remove the Detour SDK and add WarpLink for iOS, Android, or React Native. In Expo, use a development build, not Expo Go.
3. Route incoming and deferred links. Call configure() on launch and handle onLink. It delivers links that opened an installed app and deferred links after a first install, with an isDeferred flag on each.
4. Recreate your links. Use the dashboard, the REST API, or the MCP server to create links that match your Detour links, with the destination, platform targets, and fallback URLs.
5. Move your domain and verify. If you used a custom domain, point it at WarpLink and add it in the dashboard. We handle SSL and the well-known files. Then test a tap and a fresh install on a real device.

Create the replacement links before you ship the new SDK build, and update every place the old links appear.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the best Detour alternative?

WarpLink is the best Detour alternative when you need install attribution and real-time analytics on the same link as your deep linking. It covers universal links, app links, deferred deep links, attribution, and analytics from a $0 free tier with 10,000 clicks a month. Native iOS, Android, and React Native SDKs are all at version 1.1.0.

Does Detour have install attribution?

As of October 2026, Detour's own site lists full marketing attribution, the kind a mobile measurement partner provides, as planned on its roadmap, so it is not a current feature. Detour does offer deferred deep links and analytics. WarpLink ships install attribution today, matching installs to the link that drove them through a referrer, device ID, and fingerprint cascade.

How do Detour and WarpLink free tiers compare?

As of October 2026, Detour's free plan includes 1,500 clicks a month, one app, and 50 short links, and its deep-link matching stops after the click limit. WarpLink's free plan includes 10,000 clicks a month with deep linking, attribution, and analytics, and redirects always keep working, even past the limit. Neither free plan asks for a card.

Can I use WarpLink in an Expo or React Native app?

Yes, in a development build. The WarpLink React Native SDK includes native modules for iOS and Android, so it does not run in Expo Go. Use npx expo prebuild with run:ios or run:android, or an EAS development build. Deferred link matching runs from configure() in JavaScript, so it needs no config plugin.

Is WarpLink cheaper than Detour?

It depends on volume. As of October 2026, Detour's Starter plan is $19 a month for 70,000 clicks and Scale is $79 for 350,000. WarpLink's Starter is $19 for 100,000 clicks, Growth is $49 for 500,000, and Scale is $99 for 2 million. At the same $19 entry price you get more clicks, plus attribution.

Does WarpLink support Flutter like Detour does?

No. WarpLink ships SDKs for iOS, Android, and React Native, all at version 1.1.0. Detour's own site lists Flutter alongside its native and React Native SDKs. If your app is built in Flutter, that is a real reason to choose Detour, because WarpLink would reach it only through the REST API and not an SDK.

Sources

Detour facts were checked in October 2026. Prices are published list prices as of October 2026 and change without notice, so confirm them on the linked pages before you decide.

• Detour billing documentation: the free plan (1,500 clicks, one app, 50 short links, basic analytics), the Starter ($19, 70,000 clicks) and Scale ($79, 350,000 clicks, custom domain) plans, the 30-day trial, redirect behavior past the free limit, and the overage rate in the docs.
• Detour home page: the list of SDKs (iOS, Android, React Native, Flutter), the Enterprise and self-hosting option, the roadmap statement that marketing attribution is planned, and the different overage rate shown on the landing page.

WarpLink figures come from our pricing page and documentation.

Related Guides

• Best Deep Linking Alternatives for Small Teams in 2026: the whole category side by side, including the newer entrants.
• Deferred Deep Linking in Expo: the development build setup, the prebuild gap, and how to test a real install.
• Deferred Deep Linking in React Native: how a link survives an install in a React Native app.
• Install Attribution Without an MMP: what install attribution answers and how to do it without an MMP.
• Branch.io Alternative for Indie Developers in 2026: the same three-pillar breakdown against Branch.
• AppsFlyer Alternative for Small Teams: the per-conversion cost math for the largest MMP.
• Adjust Alternative for Small Teams: the same three-pillar breakdown against Adjust, with 2026 pricing.

Create your free account and have your first deep link working before lunch.