Prototype
Visual preview first, then the repo
Last reviewed:
Get started
How to get started
Baseline
Time: A few hours from preview to a repo you deploy yourself
Accounts before step 1: A hosted builder (v0, Lovable, Bolt, or Base44), GitHub, Cursor, Vercel or Cloudflare Pages
Describe the page in a hosted builder
Open v0, Lovable, Bolt, or Base44 and iterate in the preview until the layout and copy feel right.
Sync or export to GitHub
Move the project to a GitHub repository — sync or export varies by product and plan. Check current docs for your chosen tool before you commit.
Continue in Cursor
Clone the repo locally and keep editing files in Cursor. The preview was rented; the repo is what you keep.
Deploy from GitHub
Connect the repo to Vercel or Cloudflare Pages. Future deploys come from your branch, not the builder's tenant.
Ownership
What you keep
You keep: Git repository after you move off the hosted builder
Cost shape: Free tiers on hosted builders; agent and host tiers apply once you own the repo.
Named tools
Tools this path uses
- v0
- Lovable
- Bolt
- Base44
- GitHub
- Cursor
- Vercel
- Cloudflare Pages
Not this one?
When to switch
Brochure
Brochure site you own
For landing pages and marketing sites — often just a Next.js app in v0 or Cursor, deployed from GitHub, with no CMS until the client must edit copy themselves.
Dynamic
Site with login, forms, or a CMS
For auth, member areas, forms, or editorial workflows that need a real database or CMS — not a plain brochure site.
WordPress
Stay on WordPress with EtchWP
For lifetime deal holders who still need WordPress — or teams not ready to leave PHP entirely. EtchWP on your host, Cursor via the Connector, data in core WordPress.
Quick answers
Frequently asked questions
- What am I renting until I export?
- The hosted preview and builder tenant. You can iterate visually there, but you do not own the project until the files live in a GitHub repo you control.
- Which hosted builder should I pick?
- Any that currently sync or export to GitHub on your plan — v0, Lovable, Bolt, and Base44 all target this workflow. Policies change; verify export before you invest in a design.
- Is this what Etch Studio sells?
- Studio also combines prompting with a visual layer, but it ships compiled output — not a repo. This path gives you the visual start plus an exit ramp to files you own.