AI App Builder Pricing in 2026: Lovable, Replit, v0, Claude Code, Codex, Gemini and fingr

Key takeaways

• Most tools start at $20–$30 a month: Replit Core $20, Lovable Pro $25, v0 Plus $30, Claude Pro $20 (official pricing pages, checked October 21, 2026, before tax).
• Keeping an app open to customers adds hosting, a database and a domain. Whether the tool bills that in credits or leaves it to you differs a lot.
• With fingr you can build one app with free credits. Upgrading costs $49 per app per month, with the server and database included.
• Credits mean different things in each tool, so "price per credit" comparisons are misleading.
• For cheap one-off experiments, other tools win. For a customer-facing app you want built and kept running for you, fingr's math is simpler.

Plans at a glance

I checked every number below on the official pricing pages on October 21, 2026. Prices exclude tax and can vary by country. Pricing changes often, so check the official page before you pay.

On this table alone, fingr can look expensive. The difference is what each price includes.

The costs beyond the tool

If you only build, the tool price is the whole bill. If customers sign up, book and order in your app every day, you also need a server, a database (where the app keeps its information), a domain, and AI usage fees if the app has AI features.

Buying the domain itself (say, mybrand.com's yearly registration) costs extra with every tool.

Since June 2026, Lovable puts building, hosting and in-app AI on one credit balance. One bill is convenient, but a busy app eats credits you'd otherwise spend on changes. v0 splits the bill: the builder on one side, Vercel hosting on the other, and a database service on top if your app stores data.

Claude Code, Codex and Gemini write code. Renting a server, creating a database and deploying are on you. Those costs depend heavily on the cloud you pick, so I haven't put a number on them.

Credits aren't the same unit anywhere

Most tools say "credits," but the size varies.

• Lovable: charged by the size of the work. Official examples: change a button color 0.5, add login 1.2, a landing page with images 2 credits. Pro includes 100 a month, and unused credits roll over.
• Replit: dollar-based credits. Core includes $20 worth, charged by the effort the AI puts in. There's no fixed price per task, so you find out what a big job costs after it runs.
• v0: also dollar-based. Plus gives $30 a month plus $2 for each day you log in.
• fingr: 1 credit = $1. Each change size has a cap: small 5, medium 10, one feature 30, a large feature 40 credits. You see the maximum before anything is built, and only the actual cost is taken afterward. Failed builds are refunded.

So "100 credits for $25" versus "100 credits for $100" tells you nothing. Price the jobs you'll actually do: adding login, adding a screen, changing a booking rule.

Running one customer-facing app: the monthly minimum

These are minimums built only from official prices. More customers or more changes cost more.

A free fingr app sleeps when nobody uses it and wakes in about 10 seconds when someone visits, with a small "Made with fingr" badge in the corner. For an app your customers rely on, the always-on upgrade is the right choice.

When fingr is cheaper, and when it isn't

fingr usually comes out ahead when

• You can't set up servers, databases and deployment yourself. Paying someone to do that for another tool quickly costs more than the monthly difference.
• You're running an app customers sign up, book or order in. $49 a month includes the server and database, so the bill doesn't jump when traffic grows.
• You want to build an app before paying anything. You can build one with free credits.
• You need an admin dashboard. fingr includes one from the first version, so you don't spend credits asking for it.

Other tools are cheaper when

• You're a developer and can run your own server. Claude Code or Codex at around $20 a month on a low-cost host beats fingr.
• You're testing lots of apps briefly. fingr charges per app, so many always-on apps add up.
• You want lots of screen mockups fast. v0 and Lovable show screens in seconds, which suits that job better.
• You change things constantly. An upgraded fingr app gets 15 credits every 30 days; beyond that you buy credits.

Bottom line

By sticker price, the $20–$30 tools look cheapest. Add the cost of keeping a customer-facing app online and the order can flip. If you can handle servers yourself, a developer tool is cheaper. If you want building and hosting handled in one place, fingr's math is simpler.

For strengths and weaknesses beyond price, read the 2026 AI app builder comparison. If you're also pricing an agency, see agency vs no-code vs AI builder. For Lovable on its own, read Lovable vs fingr.

The easiest way to see what your app would cost is to build the first one. No card needed — get the finished app, then decide whether to upgrade. Build your first app on fingr