Artificial intelligence is revolutionizing app development by automating code generation and streamlining workflows. Modern no-code app builders enable the creation of full-stack web applications and polished user interfaces from simple prompts, accelerating the development process.

After experimenting and prototyping with various AI app builders over the past months, we've identified five standout platforms: Bolt.new by StackBlitz, Lovable, v0 by Vercel, Cursor, and Windsurf.

Here's our in-depth breakdown and comparison of these platforms, covering their features, strengths, weaknesses from our experience, and pricing to help you choose the best AI-powered app builder for your needs.

Bolt.new by StackBlitz

What It Is

Bolt.new is an AI‑powered development tool that lets you generate, edit, run, and deploy full‑stack web applications right in your browser. Built on StackBlitz’s WebContainers technology, this ai app builder supports npm packages and popular frameworks such as Astro, Vite, Next.js, Svelte, Vue, and Remix.

Key Features

• AI Code Generation: Type a prompt to create a complete application codebase instantly.
• Manual Editing: Seamlessly switch between AI‑generated code and manual modifications in a browser‑based IDE.
• Framework Support & Integration: Install packages, configure Node.js servers, Supabase, StackBlitz and Github. Seamless integration with 3d libraries like Three.js, Stripe and various APIs.
• Easy Deployment: One‑click deployment via Netlify simplifies going live.

Strengths & Weaknesses

• Strengths: Ideal for rapid prototyping and iterative testing; provides a complete full‑stack environment without local setup with good UI / UX. Agile team, frequent updates and integrations, social media activity.
• Plus: Comes with Bolt.diy, an open source version that runs locally and supports multiple LLMs.
• Weaknesses: Often faces challenges with highly complex or non‑standard projects. Heavy token consumption, despite constant token saving efforts by the team.

Pricing

Bolt.new offers a free tier (with a daily token limit) and several paid plans starting at $20/month (with options scaling up to $200/month for heavy usage).

Try Bolt.new now: https://bolt.new

Lovable

What It Is:
Lovable is an no-code app builder platform that transforms simple text descriptions into fully functional websites and web apps via a conversational interface. It empowers both technical and non‑technical users to build, customize, and deploy applications with ease.

Key Features:

• Instant App Generation: Describe your idea in plain language and watch Lovable generate a complete UI and supporting code.
• Framework Support & Integration: React, Vite, Tailwind CSS, and integrates with Supabase, Stripe, GitHub, and various AI and visualization libraries like Three.js and Highcharts. Supports Import from Figma through Builder.io partnership.
• Collaboration & Iteration: Rapid feedback and iterative editing help teams prototype and launch products quickly.

Strengths & Weaknesses:

• Strengths: Extremely user‑friendly, fastest integrations on the market. Great UI and UX results. Fastest integrations.
• Weaknesses: Faces challenges with complex projects. Does not provide an in-platform file explorer or direct access to the entire project's file structure. Occasional issues (such as GitHub API restrictions) can affect workflow.

Pricing:
Lovable features a tiered pricing structure with a Starter plan at $20/month, a Launch plan at $50/month, and higher tiers for scaling teams or enterprise use.

Try Lovable now: https://lovable.dev

v0 by Vercel

What It Is:
v0 is a generative AI tool that focuses on front‑end UI development. It converts natural language prompts or uploaded images into production‑ready code, primarily for React applications using Tailwind CSS and shadcn/ui.

Key Features:

• Text-to-UI Generation: Generate responsive UI components for React, Svelte, Vue, or HTML/CSS by describing what you need in natural language.
• Chat-Based Interface: Refine and iterate on your designs in real time through conversational AI interaction.
• Real-Time Collaboration: Facilitates simultaneous work with real-time feedback from multiple users on a single project.
• Seamless Integration: Github, Supabase. Plus, One-click deployment to Vercel alongside easy options to copy, download, or integrate code into your development environment.

Strengths & Weaknesses:

• Strengths: Rapid prototyping for front‑end designs; ideal for developers looking to speed up UI creation and iteration. Smooth transition from design to deployment within Vercel's ecosystem.
• Weaknesses: Currently limited to React components, which may not suit projects based on other frameworks; sometimes requires manual tweaking to perfect the output.

Pricing:
v0 offers a free tier with 200 credits per month, with paid plans starting at $20/month and scaling up to $50/month for premium features such as private generations and custom theming.

Try v0 now: https://v0.dev

Cursor

What It Is:
Cursor is an AI‑enhanced code editor designed to supercharge your development workflow. It leverages natural language processing and predictive coding to suggest code completions, refactor code, and even edit multiple files at once.

Key Features:

• AI-Driven Code Completion & Editing: Predictive code suggestions and natural language editing capabilities, powered by advanced AI models like Claude 3.5 Sonnet, enhance coding efficiency and allow for quick codebase modifications via plain language commands.
• Integrated Composer with Sonnet 3.5 Agent: Manages complex, multi-file editing tasks, plans and executes code changes, and supports real-time collaboration, all through an intelligent assistant interface.
• Extensive Integrations: Leverages the VS Code ecosystem for extensions, supports custom AI model integration, and provides codebase indexing for context-aware suggestions, making it adaptable to various development needs.
• Collaboration and Refactoring: Offers real-time team coding sessions with inline AI assistance for code reviews and refactoring, ensuring code quality and team productivity.

Strengths & Weaknesses:

• Strengths: Excellent for boosting developer productivity; intuitive and fast, especially on complex projects. Slow depletion of fast requests. Plus, unlimited slow requests with their best model.
• Weaknesses: The initial one-shot prototype results are not as strong as those of the competitor. Often forgets to follow best approaches and rules, requires constant reminders. Requires starting new composer often for most effective problem solving and coding. No native project run capabilities.

Pricing:
Cursor offers a free version with basic functionalities and premium plans typically around $20/month, making it competitive for professional developers.

Try Cursor now: https://cursor.com

Windsurf

What It Is:
Windsurf is an emerging AI code editor that positions itself as an “agentic IDE.” Developed by Codeium, it focuses on providing a collaborative coding environment with advanced multi‑file editing and unique features like Cascade, a workflow for handling code changes across multiple files.

Key Features:

• Cascade Workflow: AI-driven for deep codebase understanding, efficient multi-file editing, terminal command execution, and consistent AI performance even during long sessions.
• Real-Time Collaboration: Built for teams with real-time code changes, reviews, and version control, all within a user-friendly, VS Code-based interface.
• AI Consistency: Maintains high-quality AI assistance over extended periods, perfect for managing large, evolving codebases without AI fatigue.
• Integrated Development: Combines code editing, shell commands, and project management into a seamless workflow, enhancing productivity in complex projects.

Strengths & Weaknesses:

• Strengths: Ideal for large codebases with real-time collaboration and terminal integration.
• Weaknesses: Often requires extended periods for problem solving. Ignores dependency versions and implements deprecated code. Less mature ecosystem. Steeper learning curve. No native project run.

Pricing:
Windsurf offers a free trial of 50 User Prompt and 200 Flow Action credits, then 5 monthly credits each. Paid plans start from $15/month and reach up to $90/month for teams.

Try Windsurf now: https://codeium.com/windsurf

Comparative Analysis

Feature Set

• Bolt.new stands out for its all‑in‑one browser‑based full‑stack environment, making it excellent for rapid prototyping and MVPs.
• Lovable excels at transforming plain language into complete applications, democratizing app development for non‑technical users.
• v0 shines in front‑end UI generation with real‑time iterative refinement, especially for React‑based projects.
• Cursor offers a traditional code editor experience, augmented by AI capabilities and autonomous agent, making it well-suited for handling complex projects.
• Windsurf emphasizes collaborative development with its innovative Cascade workflow, optimizing it for teams working on extensive, multi-file codebases.

Strengths & Weaknesses

• Ease of Use: Lovable and v0 are designed with simplicity in mind—perfect for founders and designers, while Bolt.new provides a comprehensive development environment.
• Advanced Editing: Cursor and Windsurf target experienced developers with features that accelerate complex coding tasks.
• Integration: All tools offer some form of integration (e.g., Supabase, GitHub) but differ in scope, Bolt.new and Lovable lean toward full‑stack integration, whereas v0 focuses on UI and Cursor/Windsurf emphasize seamless coding experiences.

Pricing

• Bolt.new, Lovable and v0's paid subscriptions start at $20/month for hobbyists and scale up for teams and enterprise needs.
• Cursor’s premium subscription starts at $20/month, while Windsurf knocks down the price to $15/month.

Conclusion

No-code and AI app builders are revolutionizing product development. Tools like Bolt.new and Lovable offer instant full-stack prototyping, while v0 accelerates front-end creation. Platforms such as Cursor and Windsurf enhance coding environments.

Choosing the right tool can be crucial and it depends on your project's needs, technical skills, and workflow preferences. Whether you're validating an idea or streamlining code management, these platforms enable faster and more innovative development.

Development now is faster, easier and more accessible than ever before; and the advancement rate is only going to increase. Stay up to date with everything on Hiraku.