Honest costs

App builder pricing in 2026: what $20–40 a month actually buys

Entry prices look alike. The unit you pay in doesn't: credits per change, users per month, or apps per plan.

Leanfinit · 7 min read27 Oct 2026

Updated 27 Oct 2026

$20–40where most entry plans sit

4meters: credits, workload, users, plans

$0Leanfinit during the beta

The short answer

Most app builders start at $20–40 a month. The price is similar, but the meter isn't, and the meter decides your real bill:

AI builders (Lovable, Replit, Base44, Bolt, v0, Emergent, Rork) charge per change, in credits or tokens. A quiet month is cheap; a month of fixes isn't.
No-code builders (Bubble, Glide, Adalo, FlutterFlow, Thunkable) charge per plan, and the plan decides whether you can publish, use a custom domain or remove their branding.
Business app tools (AppSheet, Softr) charge per user. Cheap for one person, expensive for a team.

Prices side by side

In USD, monthly billing unless stated. Sorted by the size of the company, largest first.

15 app buildersPrices checked 27 October 2026

Tool	Type	Free plan: the limit that matters	Cheapest paid plan (USD per month)	You pay per	Store publishing
Lovable	AI builder	5 credits a day, 30 a month; no code download, badge stays	Pro $25 (100 credits); $21 billed yearly	Credit per change	No (web apps)
Replit	AI builder	1 published app, taken down after 30 days	Core $20; $18 billed yearly	Effort per checkpoint	No (web apps)
Base44	AI builder	25 message credits a month, max 5 a day	Starter $16 billed yearly (100 credits)	Message credit	Not stated
Emergent	AI builder	10 credits a month	Standard $20 (100 credits)	Credit	Not stated
Bolt	AI builder	1M tokens a month, Bolt branding, no custom domain	Pro from $25 (10M tokens)	Token	No (web apps)
v0	AI builder	7 messages a day	Plus $30 per user	Token	No (web apps)
Rork	AI builder, mobile	Design only, can’t build or publish	Pro $20 (100 credits)	Credit	Pro and above
Bubble	No-code	Can’t go live	Starter web $39; $32 billed yearly	Workload units	Mobile plans from $49
Glide	No-code	0 published apps	Basic $25 (100 credits)	Credit	No (web apps)
FlutterFlow	No-code	2 projects, watermark, no code download	Basic $39	Plan	Basic and above
Adalo	No-code	500 records, web subdomain only	Builder $65; $52 billed yearly	Plan	Builder and above
Thunkable	No-code	3 public projects, 5 screens each	Accelerator $19	Plan + AI tokens	Not stated on page
Softr	Business apps	5 app users in total, no custom domain	Basic $25; $19 billed yearly	Users	No (web apps)
AppSheet	Business apps	10 test users	Starter $5 per user	Users	No
Leanfinit	Describe-and-use	Free during the beta, including web publishing	—	—	No (during the beta)

Where the free plan really ends

Three walls

Going live: Bubble, Glide and Replit stop here

Your name on it: custom domain and no badge are paid

The store: native publishing is paid, plus Apple’s $99

Three walls repeat across the table:

Going live. Bubble's free plan can't publish at all; Glide's free plan has 0 published apps; Replit keeps your one free app online for 30 days.
Your name on it. A custom domain and removing “Made with …” branding start on the first paid plan for Lovable, Bolt, FlutterFlow and Softr.
The store. Native iOS and Android publishing is a paid feature wherever it exists: FlutterFlow Basic, Adalo Builder, Bubble's mobile plans, Rork Pro. Apple's $99-a-year developer account comes on top.

For a one-person tool, the third wall often doesn't matter; here's why. And here is how to read a free plan for watermarks and caps.

What one small app costs in year one

Year one, one small web app (USD)

AppSheet Starter, one user

Lovable Pro, yearly

250

Bolt Pro, monthly

300

Bubble Starter web, yearly

384

Adalo Builder, yearly

624

Leanfinit

Take one simple app for your own use, published on the web, changed a few times a month:

AI builder, light use: one entry plan, $216–300 a year (Lovable Pro or Bolt Pro, yearly or monthly billing), plus top-ups in a busy month. Lovable top-ups are $15 per 50 credits.
No-code builder: $384 a year for Bubble Starter web (billed yearly) to $624 for Adalo Builder (billed yearly), more for mobile.
Per-user tools: $60 a year on AppSheet Starter for one person.
Leanfinit: free during the beta.

Why credit-based plans vary so much month to month: the five pricing models explains the meters, and Lovable vs Bolt pricing works through the two in detail. For the full bill of an app you use yourself, see what it costs to have an app for your own use and the Lovable alternatives.

How to choose by meter, not by price

Changing the app often → avoid per-change pricing, or budget for top-ups.
Many people using it → avoid per-user pricing.
Need it in the App Store → only plans with store publishing, plus Apple's fee.
Only you will use it → look for a tool where using the app costs nothing, whatever the plan.

FAQ

How much does an app builder cost per month?

Entry plans are $16–65 a month in October 2026; most AI builders start at $20–25.

Which app builder is cheapest?

For one user, AppSheet Starter at $5 per user. For changing an AI-built app often, the real cost depends on credits used, not the plan price.

Do free app builders let you publish?

Rarely without limits: Bubble can't go live on free, Glide's free plan publishes no apps, Replit keeps a free app online for 30 days.

Is there a free app builder with no monthly fee?

Leanfinit is free during the beta, including publishing to the web.

Describe your own app →

Takes a few sentences. Private, yours.

leanfinit.com

Example description

“A simple order list for my shop: customer, item, pickup date, paid yes/no. Works offline. Today's pickups first.”

Or see finished apps you can try free.

Sources

Prices and facts checked 27 October 2026