Dev tools · checked 2026-10-15

Can I vibecode Bolt.new?

KINDA· weekend project

A chat-to-app loop is buildable in a weekend: a language model with file tools, a Vite project, a live preview, and a zip export. The open-source bolt.diy already does this with any model. What you give up is the browser sandbox that runs Node with no install, one-click hosting with databases, Netlify and GitHub hookups, and tuned prompts that keep large edits from breaking the app. You also pay model tokens yourself, which is the same meter Bolt charges.

$25/moprice

$300you'd save a year

weekendbuild time

—people replaced it

Before you start

What you need on hand.

DifficultyIntermediate · Some system setup or keys.

TimeA weekend for a working builder

Claude Code, Codex or CursorAny of them can run the prompt.
Node.js 22Runs the builder and each generated project.
A model API keyMetered per token, like Bolt, or use Ollama for free local runs.
A GitHub tokenOnly if you want the push button.

Before you buildCheck Bolt's Free plan first: 1M tokens a month, with a daily 300K limit and Bolt branding on published sites.

1. Install one agent: Claude Code, Codex, Cursor.
2. Make an empty folder and open it in the agent.
3. Paste the prompt below, press enter, and answer its questions as it builds.

The prompt

Build me a local prompt-to-app builder to replace Bolt.new. Requirements:

- Node.js 22 + TypeScript: a Fastify server and a React page on http://127.0.0.1:4830 with chat on the
left, a file tree and an editor (CodeMirror 6) in the middle and a live preview on the right.
- Each project is a folder in ./projects/<slug> from a Vite + React + TypeScript + Tailwind CSS
template. Preview is that folder's Vite dev server in an iframe, started with child_process.
- Model: @anthropic-ai/sdk; key and model name come from .env. The model gets four tools:
read_file, write_file, delete_file and run_command (only `npm install <pkg>` is allowed).
Reject any path outside the project folder.
- Every turn sends the file tree plus only the files the model asked for, not the whole project.
- After each turn run `tsc --noEmit` and capture preview console errors; send them back to the
model up to 3 times, then stop and show me.
- History: each turn is a git commit through simple-git; an Undo button reverts the last turn and
a list restores any earlier one.
- Show input tokens, output tokens and cost per turn, a running total, and a MONTHLY_CAP_USD from
.env that blocks new turns once reached.
- Export: a zip of the project without node_modules, and a "Push to GitHub" button using a token
in .env.
- No accounts, no telemetry, local-first; the only network calls are the model API and GitHub.
- Out of scope: hosting, databases, custom domains and collaboration.
- README: key setup, how token cost is estimated and a warning that generated code needs review.

Opens your agent with the prompt filled in, you press enter. Or copy it and paste it into an empty folder.

Share on X

Max MiskowSponsoredAI agents, automations and MVPs, built for your company.Visit site ›

Then keep going

Next prompts, same folder.

The first prompt builds the core. Run these one at a time in the same folder to grow it into your own Bolt.new.

Add a database option to the app builder in this folder. Requirements:

- A checkbox per project adds a Hono + better-sqlite3 API in server/ with a data file in the project folder.
- The model gets a describe_schema tool and a migration folder it writes SQL files to.
- Never delete data without a confirm click.
- Update the README.

Add sharing to the app builder in this folder. Requirements:

- A Share button runs `npm run build` and serves the dist/ folder on a random local port.
- Optionally expose it through a Cloudflare Tunnel if CLOUDFLARED_TOKEN is set.
- Stop sharing with one click.
- Update the README with the security warning.

Add GitHub import to the app builder in this folder. Requirements:

- Clone a repository URL into ./projects, detect the package manager and start its dev script.
- Refuse repositories larger than 200 MB.
- Keep the same git history so Undo works.
- Update the README.

Reduce token use in the app builder in this folder. Requirements:

- Build a short summary of each file (exports and props) cached in SQLite and send summaries instead of full files by default.
- The model can request a full file with read_file.
- Show tokens saved per turn.
- Update the README.

What you lose

Running Node.js in the browser with nothing to install
Built-in hosting, databases and custom domains
One-click Netlify and GitHub connections
Mobile use and team workspaces
Prompt tuning that limits how much of a project each edit rewrites

Why people still pay

Non-developers get a working, hosted app from a single page with no setup, and the plan covers the model bill, hosting and databases in one price. Teams add shared workspaces and admin controls.

Moatexecution polish infrastructure scale integrations

Do the math

Bolt.new or your own copy?

Over

Your usage

Count my time12h ×$/h

Bolt.new, 1 yr$300

Your own copy, 1 yr$188running + build session

You keep$113pays for itself in the first month

Estimate · Model tokens are the main cost and depend on how much you build; hosting is whatever you pick. The build is token usage on your agent plan.

Leaving Bolt.new

Take your data, then cancel.

1 · Take your data out of Bolt.new

1In the project, click the project title and choose Export, then Download to get a zip of the source.
2Unzip it and run `npm install && npm run dev` (Node.js is required).
3Or connect GitHub from the project and let Bolt push the code to a repository; only the project owner can connect it.
4The delete dialog also offers 'Export project first'.

2 · Cancel Bolt.new

1Open Manage current plan, which goes to Stripe's billing portal, and cancel the subscription.
2Bolt's FAQ says you can cancel any time; the plan stays active to the end of the billing period.

Subscriptions are non-refundable according to the FAQ.
Published sites and databases lived on Bolt's hosting; copy your data before cancelling.
Export before cancelling in case a downgrade removes features such as custom domains.
The cancel path comes from the pricing page FAQ and a third-party guide; check the labels in your account.

Checked 2026-10-15 against Bolt.new's docs: 1, 2, 3

The escape hatch

Don't feel like building it? These are already free.

bolt.diyOpen sourceMIT community version of Bolt: prompt, run, edit and deploy full-stack apps with the model provider of your choice.★ 20k · active Oct 2026 · one-click install
WebVisit ↗DyadOpen sourceLocal desktop app builder that writes to a folder on your machine and uses your own API keys; its licence is custom, so read it.★ 22k · active Oct 2026 · one-click install
macOS, Windows, LinuxVisit ↗OpenHandsOpen sourceMIT coding agent that works in a sandbox and builds whole projects, aimed at developers rather than a point-and-prompt app builder.★ 91k · active Oct 2026 · docker to self-host
WebVisit ↗

The numbers

Bolt.new pricing

Plan	Monthly	Annual, per month	What you get
Free	$0	—	300K tokens a day and 1M a month, Bolt branding, 10 MB uploads, hosting and unlimited databases.
Pro	$25	—	Starts at 10M tokens a month with no daily limit, custom domains, no Bolt branding, 100 MB uploads, SEO boosting, AI image editing.
Teams	$30	—	Everything in Pro plus centralized billing, access management, admin controls, user provisioning, organization sharing and a private npm registry.
Enterprise	custom	—	Custom token volumes and flexible billing.

Free tier: 300K tokens a day, 1M a month, Bolt branding on published sites.
Billing: Pro and Teams are billed monthly. The page advertises savings of up to 28% on yearly billing but gives no yearly prices.
Hidden costs: Usage is metered in tokens, and every prompt sends the project's code, so large projects use more tokens per change; a plan with more tokens is a bigger Pro tier. Rollover of unused tokens is stated differently on the pricing page and in the FAQ.
Source: bolt.new

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Questions

Bolt.new, briefly

Not answered here? Tell us and we'll add it.

Ask a question ›

Free plan: 300K tokens a day and 1M a month, Bolt branding on sites, 10 MB uploads, public and private projects.

Kinda. The core is a weekend build with the prompt on this page, but real gaps remain: Running Node.js in the browser with nothing to install, Built-in hosting, databases and custom domains.

About $25 a month on the Pro plan, $300 a year (checked 2026-10-15).

Running Node.js in the browser with nothing to install; Built-in hosting, databases and custom domains; One-click Netlify and GitHub connections; Mobile use and team workspaces; Prompt tuning that limits how much of a project each edit rewrites. If any of those matter to you, keep paying.