Looking for a Bolt.new alternative? While Bolt.new is known for fast AI code generation, many developers are exploring alternatives that offer more complete solutions. We've compared the top options to help you find the right tool for your project.
Bolt.new excels at quick prototypes but lacks built-in database and backend functionality that production apps require.
For apps requiring user accounts, you'll need to implement auth separately or use third-party services.
While Bolt.new generates code quickly, deploying to production often requires additional steps and services.
As projects grow beyond prototypes, developers often need tools with more robust infrastructure support.
Bolt.new made a splash by demonstrating that AI could generate functional web interfaces from text prompts in seconds. Its speed is genuinely impressive for creating frontend prototypes, and the instant preview capability provides satisfying immediate feedback. However, as users move beyond prototyping to building production applications, the limitations become apparent. Bolt.new generates frontend code that exists in isolation from backend infrastructure.
The prototyping-to-production gap is the central challenge with Bolt.new. You can generate a beautiful dashboard UI in seconds, but making it functional requires connecting it to a database, adding authentication, setting up API endpoints, and configuring deployment. These "last mile" tasks often take more time than the initial UI generation. Alternatives like Fabricate address this by generating the entire stack at once: when you describe a dashboard, you get the frontend, the database schema, the API routes, and the deployment configuration.
Code quality is another differentiator. Bolt.new optimizes for speed of generation, which sometimes means simpler code patterns and less TypeScript strictness. For prototypes that will be rewritten, this is fine. For code going to production, the lack of proper error handling, loading states, and type safety creates technical debt from day one. Fabricate generates TypeScript with stricter patterns because its target is production deployment, not just demonstration.
The ecosystem around Bolt.new has grown with community templates and shared prompts, which can accelerate common patterns. However, the tool remains focused on frontend generation. If your project needs a database, you will be connecting Supabase or Firebase. If it needs auth, you will integrate a third-party provider. If it needs payments, you will add Stripe manually. Each integration adds configuration overhead and potential failure points that full-stack alternatives handle automatically.
For teams evaluating AI builders, the right choice depends on workflow. If you have dedicated backend engineers and need AI to accelerate frontend development, Bolt.new fits well. If you need a single tool that handles the complete application lifecycle from idea to deployed product, a full-stack alternative eliminates integration overhead and gets you to production faster.
See how Fabricate compares to Bolt.new on key features.
| Feature | Fabricate | Bolt.new |
|---|---|---|
| AI Code Generation | ||
| Database Included | ||
| User Authentication | ||
| One-Click Deploy | Limited | |
| Code Export | ||
| Payment Processing | ||
| Full-Stack Apps | ||
| Production Ready | Prototypes |
A closer look at how each platform approaches key capabilities.
Fabricate
Fabricate generates complete full-stack applications including frontend, backend, database, and deployment configuration. Initial generation takes slightly longer but produces a deployable application in one step.
Bolt.new
Bolt.new generates frontend code extremely quickly, often in seconds. However, creating a complete application requires additional time connecting backend services, databases, and deployment infrastructure separately.
Verdict: Bolt.new wins on raw frontend generation speed. Fabricate wins on total time-to-production by eliminating backend integration steps.
Fabricate
Built-in D1 database with automatic schema generation, Drizzle ORM for type-safe queries, and API routes generated as part of the application. No external services needed.
Bolt.new
No built-in backend or database. Users must integrate external services like Supabase, Firebase, or custom APIs. This requires additional accounts, configuration, and ongoing management.
Verdict: Fabricate provides a significantly simpler backend story. Bolt.new requires assembling backend infrastructure from multiple services.
Fabricate
Generated code includes error boundaries, loading states, TypeScript types, and security patterns. Deployment to Cloudflare edge network with SSL, DDoS protection, and auto-scaling included.
Bolt.new
Generated code is optimized for prototyping speed. Production hardening (error handling, security, performance optimization) requires manual effort. Deployment requires separate hosting configuration.
Verdict: Fabricate is designed for production from the start. Bolt.new projects need additional work before going live.
Follow these steps to make the switch seamlessly.
Download your generated code from Bolt.new. Review the component structure, styling choices, and any hardcoded data to understand what needs to be replicated.
List all the backend functionality your application needs: database tables, API endpoints, authentication requirements, and any third-party integrations. These are likely not part of your Bolt.new code.
Write a comprehensive description for Fabricate that includes both the frontend design and backend requirements. Reference specific UI patterns from your Bolt.new code that you want to preserve.
Generate the application in Fabricate and compare it with your Bolt.new version. Iterate on any design or functionality differences through conversation.
Deploy the Fabricate version with one click. Test all functionality including database operations, authentication flows, and any payment processing. The backend that required external services in Bolt.new is now built in.
We tested these alternatives to help you find the best fit for your project.
Full-stack AI app builder with database, auth, payments, and one-click deployment. Build complete apps, not just prototypes.
Best for: Production-ready applications
AI app builder focused on frontend and UI generation. Good for design-focused projects.
Best for: Frontend-focused projects
Component-focused AI tool integrated with Vercel's ecosystem. Great for React developers.
Best for: React components
AI-enhanced IDE for professional developers. Best when you have an existing codebase.
Best for: Professional developers
Browser-based development with AI assistance. Good for learning and collaboration.
Best for: Learning and collaboration
Visual website builder with CMS. Best for marketing sites rather than applications.
Best for: Marketing websites
Design-focused website builder with animations. Great for portfolios and landing pages.
Best for: Design portfolios
Fabricate generates the complete application with authentication, database schemas for all entities, voting logic with duplicate prevention, comment threading, admin analytics, and public roadmap display. This full-stack functionality is not possible with Bolt.new alone.
Build a customer feedback platform where users can submit feature requests, vote on ideas, and leave comments. Include user authentication, an admin dashboard with analytics (total requests, trending topics, user engagement), and a public roadmap view. Store all data in a database with proper relationships between users, requests, votes, and comments.
“Bolt.new was great for showing my co-founder what the app could look like. But when we needed to actually build it with real data and user accounts, we switched to Fabricate and had a working product in a day.”
Michael Torres
Technical Co-founder
Common questions about Bolt.new alternatives.
Fabricate is the best alternative for developers who need full-stack applications with database, authentication, and deployment included - not just quick prototypes.
While Bolt.new is great for quick prototypes, it lacks built-in database, auth, and deployment features needed for production applications. Alternatives like Fabricate include these out of the box.
Bolt.new is optimized for rapid prototyping. For production apps, you'll likely need additional backend services. Fabricate provides a more complete solution with everything included.
While possible, you'll need to add your own database, authentication, and payment processing. Fabricate includes all of these, making SaaS development faster.
Both generate code quickly. Bolt.new may be faster for simple prototypes, but Fabricate saves time overall by including database, auth, and deployment that Bolt.new projects need separately.
Yes, Fabricate offers a generous free tier that includes database and authentication -- features you would need to pay for separately with Bolt.new prototypes. The free tier is sufficient for building and deploying complete applications, not just generating code that requires additional infrastructure. For developers testing ideas or building personal projects, this makes Fabricate a more cost-effective starting point than Bolt.new plus separate backend services.
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