Three kinds of hour booster
- Hosted services run the Steam session on their own servers. Nothing stays on at home, but the service holds access to your Steam session.
- Self-hosted programs run on a computer or server you control. They are usually free, and your login stays with you, but that machine has to stay on and up to date.
- Desktop apps run on the PC you use every day. They are the easiest to try and stop counting hours as soon as that PC sleeps or shuts down.
The tools at a glance
| Tool | Type | Cost | Card Farming | Status in October 2026 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| HourIdler | Gehostet | Free for 2 accounts, unlimited hours; paid plans for more | Paid plans | Active |
| FreeHourBoost | Gehostet | Free 100 hours per game on 1 game, renewable; paid hour packages | Listed on its plans | Active |
| ArchiSteamFarm | Self-hosted | Free, open source | Yes, its main purpose | Active, regular releases |
| steam-hour-farmer | Self-hosted | Free, open source | No | Last release May 2024 |
| Steam Game Idler | Desktop app | Free; its README mentions a Pro tier for some extras | Yes | Active, regular releases |
| HourBoostr | Self-hosted / desktop | Free, open source | Only in its single-account SingleBoostr app | Last release January 2018 |
| Leerlaufmeister | Desktop app | Free, open source | Yes | Archived; last release January 2017 |
Hosted services
HourIdler
HourIdler runs Steam sessions on its servers and is managed from a browser. Free covers 2 Steam accounts with up to 32 selected games each and unlimited hours. Starter, Pro and Lifetime add more accounts, automatic Card Farmer, custom in-game titles and other tools; see pricing. Accounts connect by QR approval in the Steam Mobile app, which shares a session token instead of your password, or by password with Steam Guard. Auto-Restart resumes idling after you play a game yourself.
FreeHourBoost
FreeHourBoost's pricing page lists a free plan of 100 hours per game on 1 game that can be renewed, and fixed-hour packages from $0.99 for 600 hours on 6 games up to $9.99 for 6,000 hours on 32 games, plus a $29.99 lifetime plan with unlimited hours on 32 games. The difference from HourIdler's model is that most of its plans are measured in hours, while HourIdler's plans are measured in accounts with unlimited hours on every plan.
Self-hosted programs
ArchiSteamFarm
ArchiSteamFarm is the most capable free option: open source under Apache 2.0, built on .NET, running on Windows, Linux, macOS, servers and containers, and released regularly. It is built first for card farming across many accounts; it idles a list of up to 32 games for hours when nothing is left to farm or the bot is paused. You configure it with files or its web interface and keep the machine it runs on online. Our ASF comparison goes into detail.
steam-hour-farmer
steam-hour-farmer is a small MIT-licensed Node.js package that farms hours headlessly without installing games, and pauses while you play on your own PC. You configure one account and its games in a settings file, so it suits people comfortable running a Node.js process on a server. It focuses on hours only, and its latest release on npm dates from May 2024.
HourBoostr
HourBoostr is a GPL-3.0 C# project with two apps: HourBoostr idles games on several accounts without a Steam client installed, and SingleBoostr works with one account through an installed Steam client and can also farm cards. Its README notes that you cannot be signed in to the same account in two places at once. The latest release, 3.2.1, is from January 2018, so expect no fixes if Steam changes how sign-in works.
Desktop apps
Steam Game Idler
Steam Game Idler is a desktop app for Windows and Linux that farms trading cards, unlocks achievements and boosts playtime, and its README says it does not need a local Steam client. Its source is published under the Elastic License 2.0, which is source-available rather than an OSI open-source license. It is updated often. As a desktop app, it counts hours while the computer it runs on stays on.
Leerlaufmeister
Leerlaufmeister was the classic Windows card idler. Its repository is archived and its last release dates from January 2017. It still shows up in older guides, but an unmaintained tool that handles your Steam session is hard to recommend.
How to choose
| If you want… | Look at |
|---|---|
| Hours with your PC off and no server to run | A hosted service such as HourIdler |
| Free card farming with full control | ArchiSteamFarm |
| A desktop app with cards, achievements and hours in one place | Steam Game Idler |
| Hour idling only, on your own server | ArchiSteamFarm or steam-hour-farmer |
Before you trust any booster with your account
- Prefer QR approval or local login. A website that only accepts your Steam password and Steam Guard code has everything it needs to take the account.
- Check where the tool comes from. Download open-source tools from their official repository, and check a hosted service's domain before approving anything.
- Never confirm a trade for a booster. Idling never needs trade confirmations, recovery codes or your email password.
- Watch maintenance. Tools that have not been updated in years may stop working when Steam changes its sign-in.
None of these tools launch a game, so none of them is a VAC question; see why idling is not a VAC risk. Game-specific guides cover CS2 und Rust hours.