If you are looking for ways to increase the follower count on Instagram, buying them is an easy option. You can find online services selling followers for as cheap as $10-$15 per 1000 followers. I am not saying these services don’t fulfill their commitment, they do. But the risk of buying Instagram followers can’t be overlooked, given what’s at stake!
You spent years building a solid Instagram profile, one that has a decent following. Now, in order to land more lucrative promotions and collaborations, you start to lean towards the idea of purchasing Instagram followers. Is it a good idea? No!
In the following sections, I will tell you how buying Instagram followers puts your account at risk and that it doesn’t help you in any way. On the contrary, it deters real, organic engagement and collaborations with brands. But if you are still adamant, I have listed out the best way to buy Instagram followers as well as some interesting insights about the pricing.
Table of Contents
What are the risks of buying Instagram followers?
1. Sudden increase in follower count can trigger a shadow ban
The biggest risk of buying Instagram followers is that a sudden increase in follower count can trigger Instagram’s algorithm to apply a shadow ban on your account. This shadow ban can last for months, and during this period, you won’t be able to post anything on Instagram. Remember, no posts, no returns! And it happens far more than you would expect.
In a bid to bypass this risk, services resort to gradually delivering followers in small amounts, but this, too, can be detected. So, no matter what such services claim, buying Instagram followers is a clear risk!
2. Your Instagram account risks getting suspended
Shadow ban is considered a relatively moderate penalty. You also risk getting suspended from Instagram forever for buying followers. In 2025, the cases of account suspension are rising for breach of Instagram policy. Every day, I come across several such reports where users are getting suspended for the most trivial reasons.
When your Instagram account is suspended, you usually have 180 days to appeal against it, but in most cases, the appeal is turned down, citing a breach of policy.
If you believe that Instagram won’t notice, you have got it wrong. With AI integration, Instagram’s algorithm has evolved to minutely monitor such instances and take stringent measures to curb the possible misuse of the platform.
3. Diminishes credibility
While a higher follower count on the profile does look appealing, the moment someone looks through your follower list, the entire facade can collapse within seconds.
The reason, it’s easy to spot fake followers. These are generally bot accounts with no display picture, and even if one has that, the follower-to-following ratio is highly unbalanced, say 10 followers and 5000 following. This makes it apparent that the account in question is a bot account purchased through one of the fishy services!
Besides, any agency that deals with collaborations employs tools like Modash to detect the percentage of fake followers on an Instagram profile. So, buying followers isn’t as viable as it used to be a few years ago when such checks were not in place, and a higher follower count signaled better authority and reach.
Remember, once word gets out that your profile has a high percentage of fake or purchased followers, the chances of you landing collaborations and promotions are bleak.
4. Reduces account privacy
One of the biggest risks of buying Instagram followers is that your data is compromised. When you purchase followers through an app, it usually requires you to link your account, giving the third-party app access to vital data. If it doesn’t sound like that big a problem, remember that linking third-party apps can lead to Instagram placing restrictions on your account.
Additionally, that data can be used for targeted advertising or sold to third parties. Do you really want to risk all that for a few thousand followers who won’t even engage with your posts? Do you believe it’s all worth the risk? If you ask me, the answer is “No.”
In 2025, when concerns about data privacy and virtual security are at an all-time high, such shady methods to gain Instagram followers put you at risk!
5. Purchased followers may post inappropriate comments
If all that doesn’t scare you, consider this: followers bought through online services may post inappropriate comments that will deter engagement from your real, organic audience. This, in my opinion, is the most overlooked aspect of buying fake Instagram followers.
Creepy comments on posts are a common occurrence. Ask anyone who has previously purchased followers and you will get the real picture!
Pros and cons of buying Instagram followers
| Pros | Cons | What to do instead |
|---|---|---|
| Quick follower boost can make your profile look established | Most of the followers are bots or inactive accounts—they won’t like, comment, or share your posts | Focus on creating high-quality, consistent content that speaks to your target audience |
| May create the illusion of credibility or popularity, especially to first-time visitors | Savvy users and brands can spot fake followers, which hurts your credibility and trustworthiness | Use Reels, Stories, and Instagram Lives to engage and connect with real people |
| Can help with social proof in competitive niches (short-term) | Doesn’t translate to real influence, reach, or brand opportunities | Collaborate with niche influencers or micro-creators for authentic growth |
| Feels like a fast start if you’re just launching your account | Instagram’s algorithm may detect fake engagement and reduce your content’s reach | Use trending audio, hashtags, and engage with similar accounts to grow organically |
| Cheap way to inflate numbers compared to paid ads | If Instagram deletes fake accounts (which they often do), you could lose followers overnight | Consider small-budget, highly targeted Instagram ads to reach real users |
How can I buy Instagram followers?
If you still lean toward the idea after reading about the risks of buying Instagram followers, I won’t stop you. Try it out and you will realize that it’s a shortsighted move that will do more harm than good.
Here’s a step-by-step guide to buying Instagram followers:
- Find the right service that has good reviews for delivering Instagram followers. Famoid and StormLikes are popular choices.
- Select the desired package. You will usually find packages for 100-10,000 Instagram followers. If you ask me, start small and then move to bigger packages after you build a decent follower count. This way, you can hopefully bypass detection by Instagram’s algorithm.
- Enter your Instagram username and complete the payment.
- Once done, wait for your Instagram follower count to grow. Some services deliver followers instantly, while others take 2-7 days.
What happens if Instagram catches you buying followers?
Instagram may restrict your account, impose a shadow ban, or even suspend your account if it catches you buying followers or trying to manipulate the algorithm in any way. This has been shared by affected users on forums, and recovering the account from these situations proved to be a real challenge, often taking months.
In addition to that, the followers you purchase will ultimately be deleted from the platform, bringing your follower count to the initial level. It may happen within a month or take a year. But this is the final result!
Why does my follower count immediately drop after buying Instagram followers?
This is a common scenario where Instagram detects a sudden increase in follower count and immediately removes accounts it believes are bots. To counter this, online services offer a scheme, commonly referred to as drop protection or refill guarantee, where they deliver the precise amount of followers purged by Instagram. This ideally goes on until the count stabilizes around the number of promised followers.
Now, while this scheme may be enticing, there’s a significant drawback to it. Every time there’s a major influx of followers, it signals to Instagram that there’s something shady going on. The higher the number of such signals, the more likely it is that Instagram will impose a penalty!
How do online services provide Instagram followers?
While most online services claim to advertise your Instagram profile on different platforms to deliver followers that resonate with your content, it’s all a hoax aimed at deceiving unsuspecting users. Having worked in the industry, I know that there are online panels where you enter the buyer’s Instagram username and it instantly delivers the followers.
No ads are run ever. If you don’t believe me, ask yourself: would you follow random Instagram accounts that somehow pop up on your feed on various social media platforms or other digital channels. No, right! Similarly, no one is going to follow your profile this way either.
Secondly, to promote a profile or boost a post on Instagram, you need account-level access. Since the popular platforms never ask for it, how are they going to run targeted ads to deliver organic followers. It’s simply not possible!
Lastly, running ads requires a lot of funds and it doesn’t always deliver results. For instance, I boosted a post from AIRespondsBlog’s official Instagram handle, and even after 614 views, all I got was 4 profile visits and 0 new followers.
So, how exactly are you going to receive 1000 new followers for $12-15? Ask yourself this question and you will see right through the lies!
How much does it cost online services to deliver fake Instagram followers?
This is the really surprising, rather shocking part. While you are charged around $12-15 per 1000 followers, it costs companies only a fraction. The Social Media Marketing (SMM) Panels that these services rely on charge as low as $1-2 per 1000 followers, which can go up to $5, depending on the quality of followers. So, you are being significantly overcharged here.
I signed up on one of these panels, and there are a ton of packages available. The costliest 1000-follower package was priced at $6.25 and offered a 30-day refill guarantee while the cheaper ones were in the range of $1.25-2. The package offering a 365-day refill guarantee costs $1.5625. This is just one SMM Panel that I am talking about. There are countless others offering services for a cheaper rate.
Besides Instagram followers, these panels offer you Instagram likes and comments. There are also packages for Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, Spotify, TikTok, LinkedIn, and much more!
Is buying Instagram followers illegal?
Buying followers is a clear violation of Instagram’s policies. You may come across people claiming that it’s only a violation of policies and not illegal. That’s only partially true!
As Instagram’s algorithm started acting against bot accounts, online services switched to delivering profiles that had a display picture and multiple posts, in a bid to boost legitimacy. But these pictures were often stolen from other real users, including minors, which is illegal.
Devumi LLC was charged for this in the USA and had to ultimately settle for $2.5 million. Just perform a quick search and you will find all about the malpractices and the legal consequences.
So, while buying Instagram followers is not illegal, it falls in the grey area. Although, the service that you are relying upon may be involved in something illegal!
That’s all about the risks of buying Instagram followers along with the steps to proceed with the purchase. Again, I would recommend against the move since it will affect your Instagram account in the long run and hamper organic engagement. While those inflated numbers seem impressive upfront, the illusion won’t last. It’s bound to pop!
Before you leave, discover expert tips to stop losing Instagram followers and witness unprecedented growth.
For any queries or to share more insights with our readers, drop a comment below.
