ASP.NET MVC: HTML.ACTIONLINK VS URL.ACTION

@Html.ActionLink generates anchor  <a> tag or hyperlink on a view page in MVC whereas @Url.Action returns only a qualified URL. 

HTML.Actionlink() : 

HTMLHelper (@Html) object uses ActionLink() method to render the anchor HTML element with specified link text and action /controller name.

 ASP.NET MVC: anchor tag in MVC Razor View

Here is an example of HTML.ActionLink() method to generate a hyperlink with action/controller name:

@Html.ActionLink("Home", "Home", "Person") 

It Generates <a href="/Person/Home" >Home</a>

@Html.ActionLink("Product", "Detail", "Product", new { id ="5668"}, null) 

It Generates: < a href="https://www.blogger.com/product/detail/5678" > Product </a>

URL.Action ():

URL.Action method is used to generate the qualified URL by using the action and controller name with routes value.

Here is an example of URL.Action() method:

Url.Action("detail", "product", new { id = "5678" })

It Generates:  /product/detail/5678

More information about URL.Action @  MSDN : UrlHelper.Action Method