- A link in bio is a single-page hosted button list for routing social traffic. A microsite is a small purpose-built website (1-10 pages) for a specific campaign, product launch, event or brand initiative.
- Bio link is permanent and platform-hosted. Microsite is campaign-specific, lives on its own domain, and usually has a defined start/end date.
- Use a bio link for ongoing social routing. Use a microsite for product launches, conferences, brand experiences and time-limited campaigns.
What Each One Is
Link in bio: hosted single page, button-based, mobile-first, ongoing. Lives at a platform URL (linktr.ee/yourname) or custom subdomain. Designed for social bio routing.
Microsite: small standalone website with 1-10 pages dedicated to a specific topic, campaign or event. Usually lives at its own domain (e.g. summer2026.yourbrand.com or ourevent2026.com). Designed for marketing campaigns with defined goals.
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | Link in Bio | Microsite |
|---|---|---|
| Pages | 1 | 1-10 |
| Domain | Platform's or yours | Yours (often campaign-specific) |
| Lifespan | Permanent | Campaign-specific (3-12 months typical) |
| Build time | 3-15 minutes | 10-100 hours |
| Build cost | $0-30/month | $500-50,000 (depends on complexity) |
| Design freedom | Within platform | Full custom |
| Primary use | Ongoing social routing | Marketing campaign / launch |
| SEO ranking | Limited | Full (own domain) |
| Multi-page navigation | ??” | Yes |
When to Use a Link in Bio
- Ongoing social bio routing.
- Audiences arriving from Instagram, TikTok, X.
- Multiple destinations to share permanently.
- No budget for custom site design.
When to Use a Microsite
- Product launch with a 3-12 month marketing window.
- Conference, festival or event with rich content (schedule, speakers, location, tickets).
- Brand storytelling campaign that doesn't fit the main website.
- Co-branded partnership requiring a neutral domain.
- Time-limited PR push (book launch, album drop, anniversary).
Examples
Microsite examples
- Apple's WWDC year sites (
apple.com/wwdc26) ??” multi-page event marketing. - Spotify Wrapped ??” annual campaign microsite combining personalisation and social sharing.
- Indie product launches on Product Hunt with dedicated
productname.com. - Wedding sites at
jane-and-john.com??” RSVP, hotel, schedule.
Link in bio examples
- Musician's bio link routing to Spotify, Apple Music, tour dates, merch.
- Coach's bio link routing to course, free guide, calendar booking, Instagram.
- Restaurant's bio link routing to menu, reservations, location.
Can a Bio Link Tool Build a Microsite?
Partially. Modern bio link tools have grown rich enough to host campaign content:
- Carrd ??” single-page builder usable as a microsite.
- UniLink ??” 60+ blocks let you build long-form sales-style sections.
- Bento.me ??” magazine-style layout for storytelling pages.
For simple single-page microsites (waitlist, splash, single-product launch), bio link tools handle the job. For multi-page, custom-design microsites with rich interactions, Webflow / Framer / custom dev still win.
Cost Comparison
| Use case | Bio link | Single-page microsite (Carrd) | Multi-page microsite (Webflow) | Custom microsite (designer + dev) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Time to ship | 15 min | 2-4 hours | 10-40 hours | 50-200 hours |
| Year 1 cost | $0-360 | $19 + $15 domain | $168 + $15 | $5,000-50,000 |
| Custom design | Limited | Within Carrd's templates | Yes | Fully custom |
FAQ
Is a link in bio a microsite?
Technically a single-page bio link is a microsite. But the term "microsite" usually implies a campaign-specific site on a custom domain, while bio link implies ongoing social routing.
Can I use Carrd as a microsite?
Yes ??” Carrd is one of the most popular tools for shipping cheap, fast microsites for events, launches and campaigns.
Should I build a microsite or just use my bio link?
For ongoing social routing: bio link. For specific campaigns with marketing budgets: microsite. For mid-size campaigns where you want more than a button list but less than a full custom site: a Carrd / UniLink page sits in the middle.
Do microsites need their own domain?
Usually yes. Custom domain matches the campaign branding (e.g. summer2026.yourbrand.com) and gives SEO benefit. Subdomain of your main site is also common.
How long does a microsite usually live?
Anywhere from 1 month (event splash) to 12 months (annual brand campaign). Some "permanent microsites" live indefinitely as evergreen marketing assets.
Can a bio link replace a microsite for a small launch?
Yes for simple launches: pre-launch waitlist, single-product splash, "coming soon" page. Bio link tools handle this in minutes for $0-30/month.
- Link in bio = ongoing social routing. Microsite = campaign-specific small website.
- Both can be single-page; what differs is the purpose and where the URL lives.
- Bio link tools (Carrd, UniLink) increasingly handle simple microsite jobs for casual campaigns.
- For multi-page microsites with custom design, Webflow / Framer / custom dev still win.
Microsite-grade bio link in 15 minutes
UniLink ships 60+ blocks (hero, gallery, store, course, FAQ, contact) and custom domain ??” on the free plan.
Try UniLink free ?†’