Most "free AI app builder" lists are actually free-trial lists. You get 7 days, a thin credit pool, or a feature-gated tier that forces you to upgrade before you can ship anything real. This roundup is different — we ranked tools by what you can actually do on the free plan, indefinitely, without a credit card.
What we mean by "free"
For this list, a tool qualifies as free if all of the following are true:
- You can sign up without entering a credit card.
- The free tier doesn't expire after 7 or 14 days.
- You can build and export at least one working app per month without paying.
- Core features (not just "view-only" modes) work on the free tier.
The ranking
1. GenVibe — best free tier for mobile and full apps
GenVibe is free to start, with no feature gating. Every capability — text-to-app, Figma import, screenshot-to-code, React Native (Expo) mobile output, one-click web publish — works on the free tier. No credit card. Mobile apps scaffold with an Expo Go preview; app-store builds go through Expo/EAS off-platform. Built-in Supabase database and auth are included. Paid plans start at $3 for the first month, then $12/mo.
What you can ship for free: A few small web or mobile apps, or one substantial app with continuous iteration.
Where it's weaker: Default web component styling is less polished than Lovable. Team collaboration is still in beta.
2. Bolt.new — simplest free experience for web prototypes
Bolt.new's free tier gives you 1M tokens per month with WebContainer previews and one-click deploys. It builds web apps and can scaffold React Native/Expo mobile projects (with an Expo Go preview; store builds run off-platform). Pro is $25/mo.
What you can ship for free: A handful of small web apps per month.
Where it's weaker: The token allowance is tight for serious work, and Pro jumps to $25/mo.
3. v0.dev — best free tier for individual components
v0.dev's free tier gives $5 of credits plus 7 messages per day. Each generation is a component or screen, not a full app. Excellent if you need quick shadcn/ui pieces. Not a full-app builder, and web only.
What you can ship for free: Lots of polished individual React components, mostly for Next.js projects.
Where it's weaker: No full-project output, no built-in auth, and no mobile (web only). The old $20 Premium tier is closed to new users — new accounts now start on the $30/user/mo Team plan. Read our v0 alternatives guide for more.
4. Lovable — limited free tier, polished output
Lovable's free tier is roughly 5 builds per day. Polished output and best-in-class Supabase integration, but the daily limit makes meaningful iteration painful.
What you can ship for free: A small SaaS prototype, slowly.
Where it's weaker: Free tier feels like a trial. Web/PWA only — no native mobile output. Pro plans start at $25/mo.
5. Windsurf — most generous free IDE-style AI
Windsurf (formerly Codeium) gives the most generous free tier of any AI-augmented IDE. The Cascade agent can handle multi-file edits and codebase-wide refactors. Best for developers who write code and want an AI sidekick.
What you can ship for free: Anything you can build in a code editor — Windsurf is your AI pair, not a generator.
Where it's weaker: Assumes you can read and write code. Not a chat-to-app tool.
6. Cursor — free tier exists, mostly drives paid conversions
Cursor's free tier gives 2,000 completions and 50 slow Premium requests per month. Enough to evaluate the IDE, not enough for daily use. Most serious users upgrade to the $20/mo Pro plan.
7. Builder.io Visual Copilot — free Figma plugin tier
Builder.io's free tier supports Figma-to-code with daily limits. Best for designers who want to convert a few frames per day without paying. Output quality is solid for landing pages.
8. Replit Agent — free for small projects
Replit's AI agent works on the free Starter account (no credit card) but with capped agent usage. It builds web and mobile apps (Expo, including EAS), with a built-in database and auth. Good for learning; the paid Core plan ($25/mo, or $20 billed annually) is better for full production apps.
Free tier comparison at a glance
| Tool | Free monthly usage | Credit card needed | Full apps | Mobile | Figma free |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GenVibe | Free to start | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Bolt.new | 1M tokens/mo | No | Yes | Yes | N/A |
| v0.dev | $5 + 7 msgs/day | No | Partial | No | No |
| Lovable | ~5 builds/day | No | Yes | No | No |
| Windsurf | Generous | No | N/A (IDE) | Build it | No |
| Cursor | 50 Premium req | No | N/A (IDE) | Build it | No |
| Builder.io | Daily limit | No | Partial | Partial | Yes |
| Replit Agent | Capped | No | Yes | Yes | No |
How to actually pick
You're a student or hobbyist
GenVibe's free tier (free to start, no card) is enough to ship a real project, mobile included. Windsurf if you're already coding.
You want a quick web prototype this weekend
Bolt.new or GenVibe — both will get you from idea to deployed prototype in an evening, free.
You need a mobile app for free
GenVibe builds React Native (Expo) apps on the free tier; Bolt.new, Replit Agent, and Emergent also scaffold Expo mobile projects. Across all of them, app-store builds run through Expo/EAS off-platform. See the React Native tutorial.
You have a Figma design to convert, for free
GenVibe (free tier supports Figma) or Builder.io Visual Copilot. See the Figma to code guide.
You want polished SaaS UI for free
Lovable's free tier ships the prettiest output, but the daily message limit is tight.
FAQ
Are these tools really free, or just free trials?
Every tool on this list has a permanent free tier (no expiry, no credit card). The catch is that they differ in what kind of work they allow — v0 outputs only components, GenVibe's free tier covers full apps plus mobile and Figma, and Lovable's ~5-builds-per-day is among the most restrictive.
Will free tiers stay free?
No guarantee — companies tighten free tiers as they raise. GenVibe is committed to keeping a free tier large enough to ship real projects, because that's how most of our users start.
Can I combine multiple free tiers?
Yes. A common workflow: use v0.dev for polished individual components, paste them into a GenVibe project, ship the full app. All on free tiers.
What's the catch with the GenVibe free tier?
Three things: the free credits are metered by usage (a bigger build costs more), no team collaboration features yet, and the default component styling is less polished than Lovable's. None of those are dealbreakers for solo builders.
Start free
Try GenVibe free — no credit card, free to start, mobile + Figma included. For the deeper feature comparison, see Lovable vs Bolt.new vs GenVibe.