Bolt

Bolt is an AI builder that makes websites and apps from a chat. Its plans are Free ($0, 1M tokens a month), Pro ($25 a month, 10M tokens with rollover), Teams ($30 per member) and Enterprise. Free sites carry Bolt branding and have no custom domain. Bolt Cloud supplies hosting, databases and sign-in. Checked 31 October 2026.

At a glance

What Bolt is

Bolt's site says you create "stunning apps & websites by chatting with AI." The help center lists marketing sites, portfolios, online stores, dashboards, internal tools and presentations (Bolt Slides) as use cases. You describe what you want, Bolt writes the code and runs it in the browser, and you keep prompting to change it.

That makes it a different tool from Claude Code or Cursor. Those assume you know software and want help. Bolt assumes you may not, and hides the project setup. It sits with Lovable and Replit Agent in the category we cover under vibe coding.

How it started

The original Bolt.new README explains the design. It ran a full development environment in the browser using StackBlitz's WebContainers, so the AI could install npm packages, run Node.js servers, call third-party APIs and deploy from chat. The README says the AI got "complete control over the entire environment including the filesystem, node server, package manager, terminal, and browser console." That repository is MIT-licensed. Its last push was in December 2024, so treat it as history, not the current product.

A community project, bolt.diy, is MIT-licensed and "works with any LLM you want." It had a push in October 2026. It is a separate project from the hosted Bolt product.

What the product offers now

From bolt.new on 31 October 2026:

• Build options: Website, Slides, App or Prototype, with starting points from Figma, GitHub or a team template.
• Model routing. Bolt says it picks the model for each task, balancing quality and cost.
• Scale. It claims it handles projects "1,000 times larger than before" with better context management. That is the vendor's claim.
• Error reduction. It claims "98% fewer errors" through automatic testing, refactoring and iteration. That is marketing language we cannot verify; treat it as a goal.
• Design systems. You can build on your own.
• Bolt Cloud. Hosting with analytics and custom domains, unlimited databases, integrations, user management and authentication, and SEO optimisation.

The pages we read do not name the frameworks Bolt generates, nor list mobile support.

Plans and prices

From bolt.new/pricing on 31 October 2026. Prices exclude tax.

The page lists no annual prices, only that yearly billing saves "up to 28%".

What each plan adds:

• Free: public and private projects, website hosting, unlimited databases. Bolt branding on sites and no custom domain.
• Pro: everything in Free, plus a custom domain without Bolt branding, expanded database capacity, a choice of database provider, the newest AI models, connectors and MCPs, SEO boosting and token rollover.
• Teams: everything in Pro, plus centralised billing, access management, admin controls, org-wide sharing, team templates, private npm registry support, design system knowledge, SSO and priority support.
• Enterprise: audit logs, SOC 2 Type II, GDPR and ISO 27001 compliance, advanced security reviews, dedicated infrastructure, data governance and retention policies, an account manager and 24/7 support.

Reading the token numbers

A token is a unit of model work. One million sounds large and is not, because every prompt carries project context. The help center has pages on token use and on "use tokens efficiently" listing common causes of waste, though we did not read specific amounts there. The tip in the original README is practical: batch simple instructions into one message, since it "saves time and reduces API credit consumption significantly."

If you iterate heavily on a large project, the Free plan's 300K daily limit can stop you within a session. The Pro plan removes the daily limit and rolls unused tokens over.

What it does well

• Fast first version. A running site from one prompt, with hosting and a database attached.
• Low setup. Nothing to install; it runs in the browser.
• Starting from design. Figma and GitHub starting points.
• A free tier that works for small experiments, with unlimited databases listed.
• Team features such as shared templates and SSO exist at $30 per member.

Limits and cautions

• Token budgets. The free allowance is small, and large projects use tokens fast.
• Branding and domains. You need Pro for a custom domain and no Bolt badge.
• Lock-in to the platform's backend. Bolt Cloud is convenient, but check how you export code and data before you build a business on it.
• Code quality is your job. Generated apps need review, tests and a security pass. See secure a vibe-coded app and Is vibe coding bad?.
• Unverified claims. The "98% fewer errors" and "1,000 times larger" figures are marketing.
• Data terms. We did not find a data-use or training statement on the pages we read.

Bolt versus the others

Many people use an app builder for the first version and then move the code into an editor agent. That handoff is the common path described in Claude Code vibe coding and Cursor vibe coding. If something goes wrong, see vibe code rescue services.

From first prompt to a live site

A realistic path through Bolt, using only features the vendor lists:

1. Pick a starting point. A prompt for a fresh idea, Figma if a designer has a mock, GitHub if code exists, or a team template.
2. State the stack and the pages. The original README advises being specific about frameworks and libraries in the first prompt.
3. Scaffold the basics first. Get the structure working, then add features. That advice also comes from the README.
4. Add Bolt Cloud pieces as needed. A database for stored data and authentication for sign-in.
5. Publish. The help center covers publishing to a live website and connecting a domain you already own. Custom domains need Pro.
6. Review before launch. Test forms, sign-in and what happens with empty or hostile input, on a phone as well as a desktop. See deploy a vibe-coded app.

Keep a notes file of decisions and prompts that worked. When a model change or a token cap interrupts you, you can restart from the notes.

Prompting habits that save tokens

The token budget is the main constraint on the lower plans, and the habits below help on any builder.

• Write the spec once. A short paragraph naming the pages, the data and the look beats five vague follow-ups.
• Batch small changes. The original README gives the example of asking for a colour change, mobile responsiveness and a dev server restart in one message.
• Use the enhance prompt step. The README suggests having the model refine your prompt, then editing the result before sending.
• Fix one thing at a time when debugging. Pasting a whole error and asking for "everything fixed" can trigger large rewrites.
• Avoid rebuilding what exists. Tell Bolt which files to leave alone.
• Stop and review. If the project drifts, go back to a version that worked rather than prompting your way out. The help center has a page on version history for this.

Questions to answer before you build a business on it

1. Where does the code live? Connect GitHub early so there is a copy outside the tool.
2. Where does the data live? Know what database Bolt Cloud gives you and how to move it.
3. What happens if prices change? You are on a token plan; a cost shift hits your margin.
4. Who maintains it? Generated code still needs a human who reads it.
5. Is it secure? Authentication, input handling and secrets are on you to test.
6. What are the terms? Read the data and licence terms for your plan, especially if you handle customer data.

None of these is a reason to avoid Bolt, and the same list applies to every builder in this category. They are the checks that separate a quick demo from something you can run for a year.

Who should pick Bolt

Bolt suits founders, designers, marketers and product managers who need a working site or prototype quickly, and developers who want a throwaway prototype in minutes. It suits teams less when the product must live for years on your own infrastructure, unless you plan an export path from the start.

Bolt checklist for a first week

• Day one: build a throwaway site on Free and note how many tokens it used.
• Day two: connect GitHub and push the code to a repository you own.
• Day three: add a database and one sign-in flow, then test with a second account.
• Day four: publish, and look at the Bolt branding on the free site.
• Day five: decide if Pro's custom domain, no branding and rollover are worth $25 for your project.
• Days six and seven: write down what you would rebuild by hand, and what you would leave in Bolt.

One more practical point: take screenshots or notes of the first working version before you keep prompting. If a later change breaks the app, you will know exactly what good looked like, and you can ask Bolt to restore that behaviour or go back through version history.

Our take

This is an editorial reading of the Bolt site and repositories, not a hands-on test.

The useful facts are in the pricing table: $0 gets you a real trial, $25 removes the daily limit and branding, and $30 per member adds team controls. Few competitors publish plain token numbers, which makes Bolt easier to plan around than credit systems that hide the exchange rate, though a token still does not map neatly to a feature.

The sensible way to use it is as a prototyping tool with a deliberate exit. Build the first version, test it with real people, and decide early whether it stays in Bolt Cloud or moves to your own repository. If you need hosting, a database and sign-in in one place and you accept the platform, Bolt Cloud is the point. If you want control, you may be happier starting in an editor agent. Check the export options before you commit.

Checklist

• Decide if this is a prototype or a product you will maintain
• Start on Free and note when the daily limit hits
• Name your framework and pages in the first prompt
• Upgrade to Pro only for a custom domain, rollover or heavy use
• Check code and database export before storing real data
• Test sign-in, forms and edge cases before launch
• Re-check pricing on bolt.new the day you subscribe