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It's a split decision.
Choose Bolt.new to turn prompts into apps or prototypes with hosting, databases, authentication, and custom domains in one service. Choose Builder.io when your team already has a codebase and wants designers, marketers, and engineers to edit production UI and content through visual tools and Git review. Their usage meters differ—tokens for Bolt.new and credits for Builder.io—so the listed free and paid allowances are not directly comparable. Neither is a like-for-like replacement for the other.
01Side by side
| Bolt.new | Builder.io | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing model | Free; Pro $25/month; Teams $30/user/month | Free; Pro $24/user/month; Team $40/user/month |
| Free tier | 300K tokens daily; 1M monthly; 10MB uploads | 15 credits daily; 60 monthly; up to five users |
| Integrations | Start from Figma, GitHub, or a team template | Git workflows, commerce, search, assets, localization, MCP |
| Deployment model | Bolt Cloud includes hosting and databases | Edit production UI; preview, approve, and publish |
| Platforms | Web | Web |
| Limits and scaling | Pro starts at 10M tokens/month; 1M web requests | 500 monthly credits per user on Pro and Team |
| Git workflow | GitHub is a project starting point | Changes go through existing Git review workflows |
| Production editing and content | Build apps, websites, slides, and prototypes by chat | Visual editor, CMS, A/B tests, and personalization |
Bolt.new Choose Bolt.new if
- Choose Bolt.new if you want to build from prompts.
- Choose Bolt.new if you want hosting and databases included.
- Choose Bolt.new if you need custom domains on Pro.
Builder.io Choose Builder.io if
- Choose Builder.io if your team works in an existing codebase.
- Choose Builder.io if designers need a visual editor wired to components.
- Choose Builder.io if content needs preview, approval, and publishing workflows.
02Pricing at real usage
Bolt.new's Free plan includes 300K tokens daily, 1M tokens per month, 10MB uploads, and up to 333k web requests. Pro is $25 per month, with a 10M-token monthly starting allowance, 100MB uploads, and up to 1M web requests. Teams costs $30 per user per month. The pricing page says annual billing saves up to 28%, but does not list annual rates.
Builder.io's Free plan allows up to five users and includes 15 credits daily and 60 monthly. Pro is $24 per user per month; Team is $40 per user per month. Both paid plans include 500 monthly credits per user. On-demand credits cost $25 per 500 monthly credits on Pro and Team. Builder lists monthly prices; annual rates are not published. Tokens and credits measure different usage, so compare your expected workflow before treating either free tier as equivalent.
03API, SDKs and integration
Bolt.new is a browser-based, chat-driven builder. Its homepage says users can start projects from Figma, GitHub, or a team template, and Bolt Cloud supplies hosting, databases, integrations, authentication, and user management. The homepage describes automatic model routing, testing, and refactoring. It does not document a public API, SDK languages, or CLI workflow.
Builder.io fits around an existing application: its visual canvas connects to components and design tokens, while changes go through a team's Git review process. The vendor says it works with teams' frameworks and Git workflows, connects to commerce, search, asset management, and localization tools, and supports MCP connectors. Its CMS supports prompted content creation, preview, approval, publishing, A/B testing, and personalization. The product page does not specify API endpoints, SDK languages, or CLI commands. For both tools, check the vendor's documentation for implementation details before committing to a stack.
04Open source, self-hosting and lock-in
Neither vendor states an open-source license for these products, so do not assume you can self-host or modify the platform under an open-source license. Bolt.new emphasizes Bolt Cloud, which provides hosting and databases; its product page does not describe a self-hosted deployment option. Builder.io lists a self-hosted or custom Git provider connection as an add-on, but does not publish its price. That listing does not establish that the whole platform can run self-hosted.
Builder.io's Git review workflow gives engineering teams a path to review code changes in their existing process. Bolt.new can start projects from GitHub, but the product page does not describe data export formats for either service. Before adopting either, ask the vendor how to export project code, content, and data, and what remains usable if you leave. Builder's component- and design-system-based workflow also makes migration effort dependent on your implementation.
Questions people ask
How much does Builder.io cost?
Builder.io has a Free plan for up to five users, with 15 credits daily and 60 monthly. Pro costs $24 per user per month, and Team costs $40 per user per month; both include 500 monthly credits per user. On-demand credits cost $25 per 500 monthly credits on those paid plans.
Is Bolt.new cheaper than Builder.io?
Bolt.new Pro is $25 per month, while Builder.io Pro is $24 per user per month. Those prices use different billing units and usage meters: Bolt lists tokens and web requests; Builder.io lists credits per user. Compare your user count and expected usage rather than treating the plan prices as directly equivalent.
Can you self-host Bolt.new or Builder.io?
Bolt.new describes hosted infrastructure through Bolt Cloud, but its product page does not describe self-hosting. Builder.io lists a self-hosted or custom Git provider connection as an add-on, with pricing unpublished; that does not confirm self-hosting for the whole platform. Ask each vendor about deployment scope and data export.
Is Bolt.new a good alternative to Bubble.io?
Bolt.new is presented as a chat-based builder for apps, websites, slides, and prototypes, with hosting and databases through Bolt Cloud. That makes it a candidate for prompt-driven building, but a direct comparison with Bubble.io requires details about Bubble's workflows, pricing, and deployment that aren't covered here. Compare both against your stack requirements.