> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://vlyai-1c28d863.mintlify.site/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.
# How vly compares
> An honest, side-by-side look at vly vs Lovable, v0, Bolt, and Replit Agent. Where vly wins, where it doesn't, and how to pick the right tool for the job.
export const CompareTable = ({rows, competitors = ["Lovable", "v0", "Bolt", "Replit"]}) =>
| Capability |
vly.ai |
{competitors.map(c => {c} | )}
{rows.map((row, i) =>
| {row.label} |
{[row.vly, ...competitors.map(c => row[c.toLowerCase()] || "—")].map((cell, j) => {
const cls = cell === true || cell === "yes" ? "yes" : cell === false || cell === "no" || cell === "—" ? "no" : "warn";
const text = cell === true ? "✓" : cell === false ? "—" : cell;
return
{text}
| ;
})}
)}
;
The AI app builder space is crowded. We're not going to pretend vly is the right pick for every job — it isn't. This page lays out the real tradeoffs.
## At a glance
## vly's strengths
vly ships with [Convex](/convex/overview) — a real-time database with queries, mutations, actions, scheduled functions, file storage, and vector search. No "now wire up Supabase" step.
Every Convex query auto-updates on the client when underlying data changes. Building a chat, dashboard, or multiplayer app? You'd write polling logic with the others; with vly it just works.
Pick Claude Code for big refactors, OpenAI Codex for tight fixes, Gemini CLI for design work. Switch per prompt. Most competitors lock you into one.
Paid plans start at \*\*$3/month** — roughly 7× cheaper than Bolt's $25 baseline. Free tier is generous enough to ship real prototypes.
Before any code is written, vly produces a concrete plan — schema, pages, components — that you can edit. Catches misunderstandings cheaply.
The `Project` type Convex returns is the type your component consumes. No DTO mapping, no codegen step, no client/server drift.
## vly's weaknesses
We'd rather you know upfront:
Today, your app runs on vly's managed infrastructure. Code export to a self-hosted Git repo is a top community ask and is on the [roadmap](/resources/roadmap), but not yet shipped.
vly's output is a responsive web app. Native iOS/Android via React Native is in early planning, not shipped.
If your team has deep Postgres expertise, schema patterns, or existing Postgres data, vly's Convex-first approach is a learning curve. (You can still use Postgres as an integration; it's just not the primary store.)
No Electron / Tauri output. Web only.
## When to pick vly
You want to ship a working multi-tenant app with auth, billing, and real-time data — fast.
The CRM, dashboard, or admin panel your team needs but can't justify hiring a contractor for.
Chat, multiplayer, dashboards, anything that benefits from automatic data sync.
Type safety, accessibility, and security defaults that don't make a senior engineer wince.
## When to pick something else
Pick **v0**. Beautiful UI generation, no backend complexity.
vly is for net-new apps. Use **Cursor** or **Windsurf** to AI-assist your existing codebase.
Pick **Lovable** or **v0**. Both export to Git. Code export is on the vly roadmap but not shipped.
Pick a tool with native mobile support, or build a separate React Native client against a vly-built API.
## Migrating in
If you're moving an existing project from another tool:
Schema porting from Supabase to Convex, prompt-style differences, deployment migration.
Bringing v0-generated frontend code into a vly project as a starting design system.
Re-prompting strategies and component reuse.
What translates, what doesn't, and how to bring your existing data.
## What people say
> "vly built our internal admin panel in an afternoon. Two engineers, one prompt session. We've used it for the next three internal tools too." — *Engineering lead, Series-B SaaS*
> "I was a Bolt user for three months. The reactive Convex backend is the unlock — I stopped writing polling logic and my apps got faster."
> "The Plan mode is the difference. Catching the schema misunderstanding *before* code is generated saves me an hour every project."
vly currently averages **4.8 / 5 on Trustpilot** across customer reviews — the highest in our peer group.
## Try it
The fastest way to compare is to build the same prompt in two tools and see what falls out.
Five minutes. Same prompt you'd give Lovable / v0 / Bolt — see the difference yourself.
See concrete builds — multi-tenant SaaS, marketplaces, chatbots — and their full output.
The prompts that work in vly are slightly different from those that work in Lovable. Worth 20 minutes.
This documentation is built and hosted on [Mintlify](https://mintlify.com), a developer documentation platform.