What Happened to PeerBoost? It Closed in May 2017
PeerBoost, an Instagram bot service, closed in May 2017 at Instagram's request. Its own notice, the bots that went with it, and what peerboost.com shows now.
PeerBoost was an Instagram bot service, and it closed in May 2017. Its own homepage didn't hide the reason. "We are sorry, but at the request of Instagram we have been forced to close our service," the notice read, in the Internet Archive's copy of May 16, 2017. It went in the same wave as Instagress, Mass Planner, InstaPlus and FanHarvest. Since at least January 2019, peerboost.com has shown only a "This domain may be for sale" page.
Quick Answer: PeerBoost shut down in May 2017, forced to close "at the request of Instagram," by its own notice. The notice also told users to contact its support for a refund. Instagram was closing bot services that spring, and it told The New York Times it considers "any service that allows people to create bots to gain inauthentic followers as spam," as Fortune reported. Today peerboost.com is a domain for sale.
"Peerboost" and "peerboost instagram" each get about 10 Google searches a month, by Google's Keyword Planner on October 24, 2026.
What did PeerBoost's notice say?
The whole notice is four sentences long, and it's quoted here in full:
Site Closed! We are sorry, but at the request of Instagram we have been forced to close our service. We will provide more information as soon as we can. For a refund, please contact support@peerboost.com
The archive's copies of June 3 and September 25, 2017 show the same text, and there's no later message in the archive. The archive has no copy of PeerBoost's site from before the notice, so we can't say what it charged or how many refunds it paid.
Which bots closed with PeerBoost?
| Date | What closed |
|---|---|
| April 20, 2017 | Instagress |
| May 13, 2017 | Mass Planner |
| Week before May 18, 2017 | PeerBoost, InstaPlus and FanHarvest |
Tech.co (June 2017) and WeRSM (updated May 18, 2017), read through our server on October 24, 2026.
Tech.co wrote in June 2017 that these companies had "started to go out of business abruptly, apparently at the request of Instagram itself," and it credited The New York Times for the list. PeerBoost, InstaPlus and FanHarvest "were all shuttered last week," WeRSM wrote in its update of May 18, 2017. Our pages on Instagress, Mass Planner, InstaPlus and FanHarvest cover the others, and our history of Instagram bots that got shut down puts them in order.
Why did Instagram go after bots like PeerBoost?
"A spokeswoman for Instagram told The New York Times that it considers "any service that allows people to create bots to gain inauthentic followers as spam,"" Fortune reported on June 12, 2017. Services like Instagress charged "$10 or more monthly to automatically like or comment" on other people's posts, by the same report. Instagram also said its "abuse-fighting team is constantly updating its enforcement tools, which include both automated and manual systems," Fortune added. Instagram's guidelines still ask users to "stay spam-free by not artificially collecting likes, followers, or shares," as Google showed them on October 24, 2026.
What does peerboost.com show now?
The registry dates the domain to November 12, 2014, and its registration runs to November 12, 2026. Since at least January 2019 it's shown a "This domain may be for sale" page, and it still did on October 24, 2026. There's nothing left of the service, and the support address in the old notice belongs to that same domain.
Where does HCLOUT fit?
We sell followers, likes and views, so read this as a seller's pitch. Nothing runs on your account, and we never ask for your password. Our free tier gives 12 free Instagram likes on a public post, with an email. Our Instagram followers cost $2.88 per 1,000 on our price list of October 24, 2026, with a 30-day refill on that service.
Frequently asked questions
What happened to PeerBoost?
It closed in May 2017. Its homepage said it had been "forced to close our service" at Instagram's request.
When did PeerBoost shut down?
In May 2017. WeRSM's update of May 18, 2017 said it had been shuttered the week before, and the archive's first copy of the closing notice is dated May 16, 2017.
Why did PeerBoost close?
"At the request of Instagram," by its own notice. That spring, Instagram treated bot services as spam, by its comments to The New York Times.
Did PeerBoost give refunds?
Its notice told users to contact its support for one. We couldn't find a record of how many it paid.
Is peerboost.com still online?
Only as a domain for sale. On October 24, 2026 it showed a "This domain may be for sale" page.
What's an alternative to PeerBoost?
Doing the engagement yourself, or a service that doesn't log in as you. Ours sells Instagram followers at $2.88 per 1,000 on October 24, 2026, with a 30-day refill.
Sources
- PeerBoost's closing notice, in the Internet Archive's captures of May 16, June 3 and September 25, 2017, read through our server on October 24, 2026
- WeRSM, "Instagram Forces Four More Bot Services To Shut Down," updated May 18, 2017
- Tech.co, "Instagram Is Cracking Down on Marketing Bots," June 2017
- Fortune, "Instagram is Cracking Down On Marketing Spam," June 12, 2017, reporting on The New York Times
- Verisign's registry record for peerboost.com and the live address, read October 24, 2026
- Hclout's service list and free tier, read October 24, 2026, and Google Ads Keyword Planner, October 24, 2026
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