UpGrow App Review: Instagram Growth or Just Another Ghost-Follower Trap?

Last Updated on May 22, 2025 by Eric Cantu

Ok, let’s talk about UpGrow. If you’ve been hunting for that magical Instagram growth tool that finally gives you real followers without 100% wrecking your engagement, then you’ve definitely stumbled across UpGrow’s ads. I did too. The promises are juicy: real followers, smart AI targeting, no bots, no BS.

But is that what you actually get?

Is UpGrow Legit or a Scam?

UpGrow promises organic Instagram growth, but real-world results point to fake followers, billing headaches, and ghost engagement, making it feel more like a slick scam than a legit tool. Unfortunately this is the truth with most all growth tools.

What Is UpGrow Supposed to Do?

---

---

Website: upgrow.com

UpGrow markets itself as an AI-powered Instagram growth service. You don’t have to buy followers, spam DMs, or join any weird engagement pods. Instead, they say their platform helps you grow naturally by targeting real people based on interests, locations, hashtags, gender, and age.

Honestly, that’s at least a new spin on growth services right?

How Much Does UpGrow Cost?

---

---

They offer three plans:

• Basic: $69/month — promises 1,000–2,000 real followers per month
• Pro: $99/month — promises 2,500–3,500+ real followers per month
• Turbo: $129/month — promises 3,500–5,000+ real followers per month

All plans are currently offered at a limited-time discount (original pricing was higher).

Core features include:

• AI-powered growth engine
• Smart auto-targeting (location, age, gender, language, interests, hashtags)
• AI profile optimization
• 24/7 real-time growth analytics
• UpGrow Boost™ feature
• Viral content library
• PDF growth reports
• Dedicated campaign manager (Turbo plan only)

It all sounds great on paper, right? Well, except for the promise of followers. This is a major red flag. Smart growth without shady tactics CANNOT guarantee specific amounts of followers. EVER..

So, unfortunately, and predictably, here’s what happened.

The First Month Looked Promising

When I signed up, I was greeted by a clean dashboard and a pretty helpful onboarding system. I liked that they asked specific questions about who I wanted to target.

They also gave me the option to speak with a campaign manager on the phone: MAJOR red flag. Speaking to any kind of “coach” or “manager” on the phone of all things is almost ALWAYS an upsell tactic.. I opted to try out the mid-tier Pro plan at $99/month.

At first, things were smooth. I saw about 30–50 new followers roll in per day. The likes ticked up. Comments too. These were mostly real accounts like other creators, small business owners, and travel fans (my niche). I thought, okay, maybe this different take on growth strategy is legit?

But Then, Of Course, the Predictable Thing Happened

By week three, my follower growth was still decent, but my engagement rate started to drop. Bad sign.

I dug a little deeper and realized a lot of my new followers had no posts, no profile pics, and were following 3,000+ accounts. Translation? Likely fake or super low-quality followers.

I ran a quick audit with a third-party tool and found that over 40% of my “growth” was either ghost followers or accounts based in totally irrelevant regions — like 500 accounts from Bangladesh when I was only targeting U.S. users.

We were so close.

But no, yet another scammy social media growth scheme filled with bots and fake followers. And more red flags were to follow.

Trying to Cancel Was a Headache

Now here’s the part that started pissing me off: canceling.

You can’t just go into your dashboard and click “cancel.” This is so, so, so annoying.

You have to contact support. There’s no cancel button either. Instead, you’re funneled into emailing or chatting with support to request cancellation, which ends up with you frustrated and in the middle of delayed responses and more upselling attempts.

After a full week and multiple emails later, my subscription was finally canceled. But by then, I’d already been charged for the next cycle. Total trash move that they ultimately refunded after I told them I couldn’t wait to trash them in a review.

That being said, I’m not going to just trash UpGrow.

UpGrow App Testimonials

It’s not all negative reviews for Upgrow app. But, as I’ve said before, with growth platforms that promise a specific amount of followers per month, how are you guaranteeing that without using bots? It’s literally impossible.

I always do my best to scour the forums like Reddit, Quora, and YouTube to get well rounded data. But take these positive reviews with a grain of salt.

✅ UpGrow App Positive Reviews

• “Got the annual plan and never looked back! 10/10”
  “Over 3 months, my account grew from 21 followers to 1,500+. They’re real people interested in my content; not bots.”— Jack S., Capterra
• “My experience using UpGrow”
  “Strong niche-based growth on all our client accounts for the past 6+ months and easy to track everything from one dashboard.”— Anton C., Capterra
• “UpGrow is by far the best”
  “They really deliver on their promise of real, organic growth, and I’ve seen a significant increase in engagement.”— UpGrow Reviews Page
• “Responsive Customer Service”
  “The most positive aspect of UpGrow is their customer service. They always reply immediately and are very helpful.”— GetApp Review
• “Effective AI-Powered Targeting”
  “UpGrow’s AI-powered targeting ensures that you’re not just gaining random followers but people who might be interested in your content.”— Skillademia
• “Safe and Compliant Growth Strategies”
  “UpGrow prioritizes safety so that you can confidently grow your account on Instagram without any concerns about jeopardizing your online presence.”— Ziddu

Be honest, do those sound like authentic testimonials to you? Now for the much more real sounding testimonials.

❌ UpGrow App Complaints

The forums were filled with UpGrow complaints. Reddit, Quora, you name it. And they all mirror my predictable experience with online social media growth tools.

• “It’s a scam!”
  “Used for three months. The service promises 1,500 to 3,000 followers per month but I only got 350 on average, and it’s all fake followers!”— Reddit User
• “All fake followers”
  “They say they’ll get you real followers but all they will send you is fake followers.”— Reddit User
• “Cancellation Difficulties”
  “There is no way to cancel the subscription on their website. You can only contact customer service, which is unresponsive.”— Reddit User
• “Unauthorized Charges”
  “I signed up for one month at $65. The next month I got charged $199. Total fraud.”— Reddit User
• “Misrepresentation Issues”
  “UpGrow.com used our names and photos without permission. We’ve received messages from people thinking we are them, which we are not.”— Danny Ng, Co-founder of UpGrow.io
• “Followers from Unwanted Regions”
  “We wanted to expand our follower base in the United States, but we’ve experienced a significant increase in followers from Bangladesh.”— Reddit User
• “Fake Followers Hurting Engagement”
  “All my new followers were private accounts created last month. Total garbage. Now I’m wasting time removing these accounts.”— Reddit User
• “Unresponsive Support”
  “They do not answer calls or emails to their site and have debited almost $400 without permission.”— Reddit User
• “Overpromised and Underdelivered”
  “We only received 1,027 followers of the ‘3,500 – 5,000+ Real Followers /mo’ in their Turbo Plan.”— Eric V., Capterra
• “AI Not Effective”
  “The result was just not there; support to get to the objective was not in place.”— Capterra Review

What’s worse is that there were creators saying UpGrow used their name or face in marketing without permission. Not cool.

So, Is It a Scam?

We have to look at this from a TECHNICAL standpoint. You’re paying for followers, and yes, you’re getting followers. But the quality of followers nosedives fast, and the way they handle billing is shady as hell.

If you’re serious about growing your Instagram organically, you’re better off learning how to build real engagement through content, hashtags, and collaborations.

UpGrow might work short-term, but it can wreck your engagement metrics long-term, which makes it MUCH harder for your content to show up on the explore page or even in your own followers’ feeds.

Don’t just take my word for it: Fake followers are really bad for your engagement.

Better Alternatives?

If you’re going to spend $99/month, you’re better off putting that into promoted posts with strong targeting or working with a coach who can help you with a long-term strategy.

Tools like Later, Flick, and Metricool give you analytics and scheduler tools without pretending to magically grow your following overnight.

Always stay away from social media growth tools that promise any kind of range of followers per month!

There are legitimate ways to grow on social media. Check out my guide on affiliate marketing strategies to grow your social media and build your social media platforms the right way!

📌 TL;DR Why You Should Stay Away From UpGrow App

• Good Start, Bad Finish: Early growth seemed promising, but follower quality dropped fast.
• Fake Followers Galore: Over 40% of new followers were ghost accounts or from untargeted countries.
• Engagement Rates Tanked: More followers didn’t mean more real interaction, It was quite the opposite.
• Cancellation is a Hassle: No easy opt-out; you’re forced to book a call and deal with upselling.
• Pricing Discrepancies: Users report surprise charges and billing issues.
• Better Tools Exist: Platforms like Flick and Later are more transparent and effective long-term.

Want training that delivers? Check out my detailed review and full walkthrough of the affiliate marketing training platform I owe all my success to! The training is straightforward, affordable, and you can test drive it first to see if it’s a good fit. Click here to check out my full review!

Final Thoughts

UpGrow talks a big game with AI and organic growth, but in reality, it delivers inflated numbers, ghost engagement, and shady billing practices. It’s not a platform I can stand behind.

What do you think? Have you ever tried an Instagram growth service like this? Was it legit or just another overpriced ghost follower machine? Drop your experience in the comments! I’d love to hear how it went for you and I always respond!

Frequently Asked Questions

Is UpGrow safe to use for Instagram growth?
UpGrow doesn’t violate Instagram’s terms outright, but the low-quality followers and engagement it generates can damage your account’s reach over time.

How much does UpGrow cost per month?
UpGrow offers three pricing tiers: Basic ($65/month), Pro ($99/month), and Turbo ($199/month). Most complaints stem from surprise billing and automatic renewals.

Can UpGrow actually deliver real followers?
Some initial followers may seem legit, but many users report ghost followers, fake accounts, or irrelevant demographics — especially after the first few weeks.

Want More Honest Reviews?

---

• 
  UpGrow App Review: Instagram Growth or Just Another Ghost-Follower Trap?
• 
  Attraction Marketing Formula Review (2025): Legit or Just Another MLM Trap?
• 
  Top 10 AI Content Creation Tools in 2025: Honest Reviews from Real Users
• 
  Descript Review (2025): Genius Tool or Overhyped Frustration?
• 
  Is YouBoost Worth It? Why You Can’t Buy YouTube Views and Subscribers
• 
  Social Growth Engine Review (2025): Why This “Growth Service” Isn’t Worth the Risk