One year ago Facebook made the [surprising announcement that it was shuttering Parse](https://techcrunch.com/2016/01/28/facebook-shutters-its-parse-developer-platform/), the development platform that it purchased in 2013. While the company said they would keep the service online for a year so developers could migrate their apps to a new backend, that time has finally come. In what is probably the [last ever post on the Parse blog](http://blog.parse.com/announcements/a-parse-shutdown-reminder/), the service reminded users that today (January 30th, 2017) they would be disabling the Parse API on an app-by-app basis. Parse was best known for its “backend as a service” product, and provided SDKs and APIs to let developers quickly get apps up and running without the effort of building a backend from scratch. At one point there were [600,000 apps](https://techcrunch.com/2016/01/28/facebook-shutters-its-parse-developer-platform/) that relied on the platform. While Parse wasn’t the most popular tool amongst experienced developers (who had the resources to build their own custom backends), it was an invaluable tool for smaller developers. I first came across the service in high school when I was just dipping my toes into iOS development. The low cost (free for most small users) combined with relative ease of use and detailed documentation made it an invaluable tool for me and many other young developers. That’s why the community was so shocked when Facebook decided to shut it down — supporting Parse seemed like a small price to pay to appease an entire developer community, many of whom Facebook relies on to build apps for Facebook. Techcrunch event ### Save up to $300 or 30% to TechCrunch Founder Summit #### 1,000+ **founders** and investors come together at **TechCrunch Founder Summit 2026** for a full day focused on growth, execution, and real-world scaling. Learn from founders and investors who have shaped the industry. Connect with peers navigating similar growth stages. Walk away with tactics you can apply immediately. Offer ends March 13. ### Save up to $300 or 30% to TechCrunch Founder Summit #### 1,000+ **founders** and investors come together at **TechCrunch Founder Summit 2026** for a full day focused on growth, execution, and real-world scaling. Learn from founders and investors who have shaped the industry. Connect with peers navigating similar growth stages. Walk away with tactics you can apply immediately Offer ends March 13. Boston, MA | June 9, 2026 [REGISTER NOW](https://techcrunch.com/events/techcrunch-founder-summit-2026/?utm_source=tc&utm_medium=ad&utm_campaign=tcfoundersummit2026&utm_content=seb&promo=tc_inline_seb&display=) Parse did publish a [big migration guide](https://parse.com/migration#database), as well as [open source their server backend](https://github.com/ParsePlatform/parse-server), both of which are legitimate alternatives for developers needing a Parse replacement. Bye Parse, we hardly knew ya. Topics [backend](https://techcrunch.com/tag/backend/), [developer](https://techcrunch.com/tag/developer-2/), [developers](https://techcrunch.com/tag/developers/), [Facebook](https://techcrunch.com/tag/facebook/), [parse](https://techcrunch.com/tag/parse/), [TC](https://techcrunch.com/category/tc/) Fitz Tepper Fitz Tepper is a junior in the Marshall School of Business at The University of Southern California. He’s been a passionate Apple fan and developer for over 10 years, and loves covering the business-side of startups. [View Bio](https://techcrunch.com/author/fitz-tepper/) October 13-15 San Francisco, CA **Save up to $680 on your pass before February 27.** Meet investors. Discover your next portfolio company. Hear from **250+ tech leaders**, dive into **200+ sessions**, and explore **300+ startups** building what’s next. Don’t miss these one-time savings. 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