Bolt (Bolt.new)

Bolt (formerly Bolt.new) is an AI app builder from StackBlitz that runs in your browser. You describe the app you want in plain language, and it writes the code, runs it in an in-browser environment, lets you edit it by chat and publishes it with hosting and a database. It is token-metered, with a free tier and monthly token allowances on paid plans.

Quick facts

• Made by: StackBlitz
• Free plan: Yes, with 1 million tokens a month and a 300,000-token daily cap
• Paid plans: Pro and Teams, plus Enterprise, with higher token tiers available
• Works on: Web
• Pricing last checked: October 2026, using several recent published sources. Bolt adjusted its pricing more than once in 2026, so figures vary slightly between sources. Confirm on Bolt’s official pricing page.

What Bolt is best at

• Fast prototypes: turn an idea into a running app in minutes without installing anything.
• Everything in the browser: editor, preview, hosting and databases in one place.
• Chat-based iteration: ask for changes in plain English and watch the app update.
• Token rollover on Pro: unused Pro tokens roll over, which suits uneven usage.
• Team features: shared workspaces, access controls and design-system prompts on Teams.

Plans and pricing

Tokens are used each time the AI reads or writes code, so bigger projects use more tokens per change as the codebase grows. The free allowance can run out in days on a serious build. A few sources list a lower Pro price of around $20, so check the current figure. Confirm all details on Bolt’s official page.

Best for

• Indie developers and makers who want to prototype quickly.
• Non-developers building simple web apps.
• Small teams that want shared token pools and admin controls.

Less suited to

• People who need predictable costs, since token use grows with project size.
• Complex production systems that need custom infrastructure and strict engineering review.
• Anyone who wants a full back end with logins and a managed database set up from a single prompt, where Lovable or Replit may fit better.

How to get started

1. Create a free account and describe a small app, including who uses it and what they do.
2. Test the result as a user would, then ask for one change at a time.
3. Watch your token use as the project grows.
4. Before sharing the app, test logins, forms and any private data.
5. Move to Pro when you need more tokens, a custom domain or no Bolt branding.

Prompt ideas to copy

Build a simple expense tracker where users add expenses with a category and date, see a monthly total and filter by category. Keep the design clean and mobile-friendly.

Create a landing page for [product] with a hero section, three feature blocks, a pricing table and an email signup form that saves to a database.

Add user accounts so each person only sees their own data. Explain what you changed so I can check it.

Review this app for security and usability problems, list them by importance and fix the top three.

Limitations and things to watch

• Token consumption is hard to forecast and rises as the app grows.
• Generated apps still need testing and a security review before real users rely on them.
• The product name and plans have changed, and sources disagree on small details.
• Check how you can export your code before you build something important.

Alternatives

Compare Lovable and Replit for building and hosting apps, v0 for React interfaces, and Cursor for AI in your editor.