Have you noticed the pair of Supreme Nike SB Dunk Low Stars? These kicks were released in March for $110. Now they're being resold for up to 10 times as much! Unsurprisingly, these lucrative profit margins bring plenty of new players to the sneaker resale business.
If you're one of them, you've come to the right place. In this video, we will discuss one of the most important elements of the sneaker business – bots.
What is a Sneaker Bot and Why You Need It?
A sneaker bot is automated software to auto-complete the checkout and quickly make a purchase. Well-designed bots usually do the most work for you, making the process relatively easy.
You might wonder, “why can't I just buy sneakers yourself?” Here's the thing. The biggest players in the market are using bots. The drop gets sold out within seconds – faster than you could type in your credit card details.
The Functions of Sneaker Bots
Now, let's take a look at the functions most bots offer.
Bots Run on Tasks
These are the instructions you set up for your bot. That way, it will know which store to visit, what pair and size to get, and which credit card details to use. Most bots allow you to pick a specific time to run your tasks.
However, you can set up your bot to monitor when the drop begins and start the tasks automatically. However, this process can consume a lot of traffic and get you blocked if you're not careful.
Billing Profiles
Stores usually limit how many shoes you can buy. So, you can't use the same credit card and delivery address if you're after multiple pairs. Sneaker bots allow you to create billing profiles that can be used for different tasks.
Pretty much all bots allow you to power them with proxies. Most stores are ruthless when it comes to bots. Once they detect botting activity, they quickly blocklist the associated IP. Proxies give you a different IP address and allow you to look like a regular person.
CAPTCHA Harvesters
CAPTCHA is a bot prevention method usually placed at the checkout. The worst kind of CAPTCHA consists of a 9-image grid and asks you to click on specific ones, such as road signs or fire hydrants.
The problem is that your bot can only solve one-click captchas. That's why advanced bots have CAPTCHA harvesters which allow simulating a human-like internet activity to avoid image CAPTCHA. Some bots also offer another option – setting up third-party services which can solve CAPTCHAS for you.
Types of Sneaker Bots
While bots have similar functions, not all of them are the same. As a beginner, you should be familiar with these four main types:
- AIO Bots (or all-in-one bots): They are simply bots designed to work with more than one sneaker website.
- Specific Site Bots: It's common for a bot to specialize in certain popular brands, such as Nike, Adidas, or Supreme.
- Footsite Bots: Footsites include four sneaker sites: Footlocker, EastBay, ChampsSports, and Footaction.
- Shopify Bots: Shopify hosts dozens of shoe websites, including Kith, Undefeated, JimmyJazz, Bape, and so on.
By now, you're probably convinced you need a bot, so where could you get one?
Where to Buy Sneaker Bots?
Like sneakers, bots are sold out pretty quickly, so getting your hands on one can be tricky. Most bot providers announce their sale dates on social media and discord groups, so check them regularly. If you cannot buy directly from the provider, you can rent or buy the bot from a reseller.
There are many marketplaces for bots, such as BotBroker, and BotMart. And if you're looking to rent, check out Tidal. But don't expect them to come cheap.
The providers usually sell their bots for several hundred dollars. Still, once they reach the aftermarket, the price can be 5 or even 10 times bigger. Since you're investing a lot of money into the bot, you have to ensure it's worth it.
What Are the Best Bots for Beginners?
To be fair, there is no definite answer. All of them have strengths and weaknesses when it comes to different releases. But there are several which have shown consistent performance. Here they are:
1. Nike SNKRS Bot
The first is the NikeShoeBot. It's a beginner-friendly but powerful bot that allows running up to 500 tasks. The bot features an integrated drop calendar, is easy to use, and sustains an impressive speed. However, it doesn't support macOS and runs on a pricier side. A 6-month subscription will cost you $299.
2. AIO Bot
The second bot, AIO Bot, is well known in the sneaker community. With AIO, you can cop from over 100 different sites, including Shopify, Footlocker, and Demandware. It features a CAPTCHA harvester and is capable of auto-retrying when purchases fail. In addition, the AIO bot comes with excellent customer support and a valuable knowledge base.
But there are a few drawbacks: it does not work on macOS. Also, it's a bit pricey and comes in at a solid $299, but at least it's always available to buy from the provider.
3. Cybersole
Then there's Cybersole, one of the market's most advanced and reputable bots. This bot has no limit on simultaneous tasks, which increases the chances of copping a large number of pairs. Cybersole supports 170 sites and offers an easy-to-use interface.
But even a bot like that doesn't come without a few drawbacks. Cybersole only runs on Windows, so Mac users might have to buy a virtual machine to fix this. It's hardly even possible to get this bot for a retail price of $425, and it costs thousands of dollars at the resale market.
4. Prism AIO Bot
The Prism AIO bot is one of the popular sneaker bots in the market. It's also work for all major sneaker sites such as Adidas, Yeezy Supply, Supreme, and Footsites.
The bot is intuitive and comes with site-specific settings and release calendars so that you can plan releases before they happen. The bot also has grouping support for tasks, profiles, and size making it easy to create projects.This AI has been used to check out over one million items on its website. It will cost $400 for the first 3 months, then $150 for subsequent 3 months.
5. Splashforce
If you're looking to cop Yeezy Supply, Adidas, Shopify, Supreme, Dicks Sporting Goods & Off-White, Splashforce maybe your bot. Splashforce can handle thousands of tasks and is quite fast.
It has a user-friendly interface, so it won't take long to set it up. With its auto-checkout feature, you must prepare your tasks and wait for the sneakers to be delivered to your door.
However, there are a few downsides. Customer service isn't always readily available, and the price runs high. Splashforce costs $300 and is almost always sold out, so expect to pay at least twice as much for resellers if you're lucky.
6. Project Destroyer
Last is Project Destroyer. It supports over 200 stores and prides itself on offering prompt and regular updates. In addition to that, you'll get a CAPTCHA harvester, bulk task editor, and good customer support. Beginners will benefit from its extensive knowledge base that will help them start easily.
The retail price of Project Destroyer runs only $200. However, its resale prices are pretty high, and may even be up to several thousand, so make sure you track the release date.
Conclusion
That's it about bots for now. But remember that getting a bot is only the first step, so to prepare for your next drop, read our article about the best sneaker proxies.
