What is Lovable? Build web apps by prompt, 4 plans, credits

Lovable builds web apps from a plain-language description, with a built-in backend and two-click publishing. Plans, how credits work, who owns the code.

Adam Wang

31/10/2026 · 6 min read

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What is Lovable? Build web apps by prompt, 4 plans, credits

In this article (9)

What is Lovable: you describe the app, Lovable writes the code
The backend comes built in with Lovable Cloud, or you connect your own Supabase
Publishing takes two clicks, and code syncs both ways with GitHub
Lovable pricing: Free at $0, Pro at $25 and Business at $50 a month
How do Lovable credits work?
You own the code you create, but the Free plan cannot download it
When should you hire someone instead of building it yourself?
Getting started with Lovable: try the Free plan and avoid three mistakes
Sources

Lovable is an AI platform that builds web apps from a plain-language description: the interface, the database, sign-in and hosting. The Free plan costs nothing, and Pro starts at $25 a month, billed in credits.

What is Lovable: you describe the app, Lovable writes the code

As of Oct 12, 2026, the Lovable welcome page describes the product as an AI platform for building, iterating on and deploying web applications in natural language. You say what you want, and Lovable generates a working app with a frontend, backend, database and authentication, all as editable code. Plans are priced by credits, not by projects or seats.

Lovable welcome page describing an AI platform that builds web apps in natural language, with the prompt box on the start screen — The Lovable introduction and start screen. Screenshot: Lovable docs, Oct 12, 2026.

The Lovable FAQ lists common builds: SaaS products, internal tools, dashboards, CRMs, booking apps, company websites, landing pages and chatbots. One limit to know up front: Lovable does not build native iOS or Android apps. For a home screen icon, you turn the web app into a PWA (progressive web app), or wrap it yourself with a tool such as Capacitor.

The backend comes built in with Lovable Cloud, or you connect your own Supabase

The Lovable Cloud page says every app gets a built-in backend with a database, file storage, authentication and server-side functions. Cloud is on by default and runs on Supabase's open-source foundation. When you ask for a feature that needs a server, Lovable turns Cloud on or asks you first.

The Supabase integration page says most projects never need a separate Supabase account. Connect your own when you want to pay Supabase directly, use the full Supabase dashboard, or reuse a project you already have. The integration is available on all plans.

Lovable docs table comparing the built-in Cloud backend with your own Supabase project on setup, billing and management — Cloud bills in Lovable credits, your own Supabase project bills through Supabase. Screenshot: Lovable docs, Oct 12, 2026.

One catch: there is no one-click switch between Cloud and Supabase, so pick your backend when you start the project.

Publishing takes two clicks, and code syncs both ways with GitHub

The Publish guide lists two steps: click Publish in the top-right corner, then click Publish again. Lovable suggests an address ending in lovable.app and runs a quick security scan of about 10 seconds. After later edits, click Publish changes.

Lovable docs quick start showing the two Publish clicks and a suggested lovable.app address — The two publishing steps in Lovable. Screenshot: Lovable docs, Oct 12, 2026.

The GitHub sync page describes two-way sync: changes in Lovable go to your GitHub repository, and commits you push to the active branch come back into Lovable. GitHub is optional, and many people build and launch entirely inside Lovable.

Lovable pricing: Free at $0, Pro at $25 and Business at $50 a month

On Oct 12, 2026, the Lovable pricing page listed four plans:

Free: $0, no credit card, 5 lovable.app domains.
Pro: $25 a month, 100 credits, custom domains, no Lovable badge.
Business: $50 a month, 100 credits, plus SSO and internal publishing.
Enterprise: custom pricing.

Yearly billing gives you 2 months free. The pricing page also says credits are not refundable or redeemable for cash.

Lovable pricing page with four plans: Free at 0 USD, Pro at 25 USD, Business at 50 USD a month with 100 credits, and Enterprise — The four plans with monthly billing. Screenshot: Lovable pricing page, Oct 12, 2026.

The subscription plans page says Pro and Business come in tiers from 100 to 10,000 credits a month, for example Pro with 400 credits at $100. Verified students and teachers get 50% off Pro with 100 credits for up to 12 months.

How do Lovable credits work?

The credits and usage page says one credit balance pays for building, chatting with Lovable, hosting the app with its Cloud backend, and AI features inside the published app.

Plan mode costs 1 credit per message, plus the cost of any subagent research Lovable runs while planning, and never changes your code. Build mode charges by complexity: making a button gray costs 0.50 credits, adding authentication 1.20, and a landing page with images 2.00. Lovable labels these as examples, and real costs vary by project.

Lovable docs table of example Build mode prompts and the credits each one used, from 0.50 to 2.00 — Four example Build mode costs. Screenshot: Lovable docs, Oct 12, 2026.

Free, Pro and Business all include 5 free daily build credits, capped at 30 a month on Free. Each month also adds 20 Cloud credits and 4 AI credits. Monthly plan credits on monthly billing expire 2 months after they are issued. The more visitors and data your app has, the more credits its Cloud usage takes.

You own the code you create, but the Free plan cannot download it

The ownership page says the apps, code and content you create with Lovable are yours, subject to third-party rights such as open-source licenses. You can modify them, use them commercially and host them wherever you choose.

Lovable docs table splitting an app into code, frontend, and backend and data, with where each part can also run — The three parts of a Lovable app and where each can run. Screenshot: Lovable docs, Oct 12, 2026.

Ownership is not the same as plan features. The plan feature table shows Free includes Git sync, but not code editing, code download or custom domains. On Free and Pro, you opt out of AI model training per account yourself. Business excludes workspace data by default.

When should you hire someone instead of building it yourself?

Lovable gets you from idea to a working app quickly, but it does not replace knowing how software works. The support policy says the support team does not debug the code in your project. If you want someone to build your product, it points to Lovable experts, verified developers and agencies who build with Lovable.

Lovable support table pointing to Lovable experts when you want someone to build your product for you — For someone to build your product, Lovable points to Lovable experts. Screenshot: Lovable docs, Oct 12, 2026.

Building it yourself fits landing pages, small internal tools and prototypes. Hire someone, or have a technical person review the work, when:

The app holds personal or payment data. The security best practices page notes that frontend code runs in the browser where anyone can inspect it, so an API key placed there should be treated as exposed.
The business logic has many steps or must connect to older systems.
You plan to move off Lovable: then servers, backups and security are on you, per the ownership page.
You keep spending credits on one bug without understanding the cause.

Getting started with Lovable: try the Free plan and avoid three mistakes

Broad prompts in Build mode burn credits in the wrong direction. Ask in Plan mode first.
Pasting an API key into the interface code instead of storing it in Secrets.
Forgetting that monthly credits expire, two months after they are issued.

Lovable Security best practices docs, section Do not store secrets in frontend code, advising sensitive values go in Secrets — Lovable says to keep secret keys out of frontend code and store them in Secrets. Image: screenshot of the Lovable Security best practices docs, Oct 27, 2026.

Now that you know what Lovable is, pick by how you work. Choose Lovable if you want to describe an app in words and get a running web app with a backend. Choose an AI coding assistant that works inside your editor if you already write code. More explainers on coding and automation tools are in News. What will be the first app you build with Lovable?