TL;DR - Quick Answer
Bolt.new is built by StackBlitz, the team behind WebContainers. It builds full-stack web apps in JavaScript frameworks, and Bolt Cloud adds a database, sign-in, file storage, server functions and hosting. It also builds iPhone and Android apps with Expo.
Playcode builds websites and apps with AI and runs them on Playcode Cloud: backend, database, files and jobs on Pro or Max. The agent asks when a choice is yours, then builds, tests, fixes and checks again.
Bottom line: both take an idea to a hosted app. Bolt meters AI in tokens and hosting in bandwidth and requests; on Playcode, building and a running Cloud app both spend credits. Choose by stack, by what you want in one project, and by price.
What is Bolt.new?
Bolt.new is an AI app builder developed by StackBlitz. "Bolt builds full-stack web applications using a wide range of JavaScript-based web frameworks," with React, Vite, Tailwind CSS and Node.js by default.
Bolt Cloud is the backend: a Bolt Database built on PostgreSQL on every plan, email and Google sign-in, public and private file storage, and server functions that Bolt deploys for you.
Bolt also builds iPhone and Android apps with Expo. You decide at the start, because web projects do not easily switch to mobile, and you build and submit the store versions outside Bolt with your own Expo, Apple and Google accounts.
Bolt's Strengths
- Built-in backend - Bolt Database, sign-in, storage and server functions
- Hosting on every plan - Pro adds 30 GB of bandwidth and 1 million requests a month
- Many JavaScript frameworks - React, Vite and Node.js by default
- Code you can edit - Code view, ZIP download and GitHub sync
- Supabase option - Pick Supabase at setup on Pro or Teams
Bolt's Limits
- Tokens grow with the project - "the larger the project, the more tokens used per message"
- JavaScript backends only - No PHP or Python
- Store releases happen outside Bolt - Download the code and build with Expo's EAS CLI
- Code view is desktop-only - And read-only in Safari
Free includes 1 million tokens a month, up to 300,000 a day. Pro starts at 10 million tokens a month, and unused tokens roll over for one to two months (Bolt's pages differ) while you keep a paid plan.
What is Playcode?
Playcode is an AI platform for building and running websites and apps. Start with the AI website builder, describe what you want, and the agent asks a few questions when a choice is yours before it builds.
How a build goes:
- Describe your project in plain English
- The agent asks a few questions when a choice is yours
- It plans the work and builds a first version
- It builds, tests, fixes and checks again
- You review each change and publish when it is ready
On Pro and Max, a new project starts full-stack when Cloud capacity allows: an Astro and React frontend rendered on the server, a NestJS backend, and its own database (SQLite by default, Postgres when the app needs it).
Playcode's Strengths
- Questions when a choice is yours - Then the agent builds
- Checks its own work - Build, test, fix, check again; you review each change
- Hosting included - Hosting and HTTPS on every plan; a custom domain on Pro and Max
- Model choice - Claude, GPT, Gemini and Grok models on Pro and Max
- Continue on your phone - Open Playcode in your phone's browser, sign in to the same account and continue the project
- No coding required - Describe changes in your own words
Playcode's Limitations
- Questions first - The agent may ask a few questions before it builds
- Less framework choice - Playcode picks the starting stack for you
- Cloud needs a paid plan - Free publishes static sites; a backend runs on Pro or Max
- Store accounts stay yours - A phone release needs your own Expo, Apple and Google accounts
The Key Differences
Both build full-stack apps from a chat and host them. They differ in how usage is metered, what one project holds, and how phone apps reach the stores.
What You Pay For
Bolt meters AI in tokens: Pro starts at 10 million a month for $25, and "the larger the project, the more tokens used per message." Hosting is a separate meter: Pro includes 30 GB of bandwidth and 1 million requests a month, then pay as you go up to a cap you set.
Playcode meters in credits: Pro includes 76 a month. Building, changing and running use credits in different ways, and a running Cloud app spends them too. If the balance reaches zero, a Cloud app keeps running for 72 hours, then stops until the balance is above zero.
What One Project Holds
A Playcode Cloud project can hold, side by side:
- The website and the web app
- The backend, its database, files and background jobs
- An iPhone and Android app with the services behind it
In Bolt, you choose web or mobile when you start: "Projects created for web do not easily switch over to mobile."
Getting Into the App Stores
Bolt: download the code, open it in a code editor and build with Expo's EAS CLI under your own Expo account. iPhone builds go to TestFlight and App Store review; Android builds are uploaded in Google Play Console. Each update repeats the download, the build and the submission.
Playcode: the app for iPhone and Android lives in the same project as the website. Your Expo, Apple and Google accounts, the fees, the submission and the review stay yours.
The Hosting Question
Bolt hosts every plan's projects at bolt.host, and "Pro hosting is included with every Bolt paid subscription." A custom domain comes with Pro. Bolt's own advice: "If your project needs a database or a backend, stay with Bolt hosting."
Playcode hosts static sites on every plan and Cloud apps on Pro and Max, with HTTPS, and a custom domain on Pro and Max. When nobody visits, a Cloud app's production server rests and costs only its disk.
Side-by-Side Comparison
Prices in US dollars, read October 2026 on each company's pricing page.
When Bolt Makes Sense
Bolt can be the better fit when:
You Want a JavaScript Framework of Your Choice
Bolt builds in "a wide range of JavaScript-based web frameworks," with React, Vite, Tailwind CSS and Node.js by default.
You Like Working in the Code
Code view lets you edit the project directly, and you can keep editing there for free when your tokens run out. You can download a ZIP or sync to GitHub.
You Want Supabase
On Pro or Teams you can choose Supabase as the database when you start a project, or claim a Bolt Database into your own Supabase organization.
You Want a Free Plan With a Database
Bolt's Free plan publishes to bolt.host, includes 1 million tokens a month, and has no limit on how many databases you create.
When Playcode Makes Sense
Playcode can be the better fit when:
The Website and the Phone App Belong in One Project
A Playcode Cloud project can hold the website, the backend and an iPhone and Android app, with the services behind them. Your Expo, Apple and Google accounts, the fees, the submission and the review stay yours.
You Want to Pick the Model
On Pro and Max you choose from Claude, GPT, Gemini and Grok models.
You Want One Balance
Building, a running Cloud app, its AI requests and its email draw on one workspace balance of credits. A domain bought in Playcode goes to your saved card separately.
You Want Your Code to Run Anywhere
You own your code. Export the whole project, tests included, and run it on any VPS. The app's database, files, secrets and connected services move separately.
You Work From Your Phone Too
Open Playcode in your phone's browser, sign in to the same account and continue the project. Bolt's Code view is desktop-only.
Pricing Breakdown
Similar prices, in US dollars, read October 2026:
Bolt.new
$25/month or $18/month billed yearly ($216/year)
- 10 million tokens a month, with rollover
- Bolt Cloud: database, sign-in, storage, functions
- 30 GB bandwidth and 1 million requests a month
- Custom domain, no Bolt branding
- ZIP download and GitHub sync
- Store builds run outside Bolt
Playcode
$17/month billed $199/year, or $19 monthly
- 76 AI credits a month
- Hosting and HTTPS, with a custom domain
- Backend, database, files and jobs for 3 Cloud apps
- Claude, GPT, Gemini and Grok models
- iPhone and Android app in the same project
- Export the whole project, tests included
The prices are close: Playcode Pro is $17 a month billed $199 a year, or $19 a month; Bolt Pro is $25 a month, or $18 a month billed yearly. Bolt's plan meters AI in tokens and hosting in bandwidth and requests; Playcode's credits cover building and a running Cloud app. Compare what one build of your own uses in each.
The Verdict
Both build full-stack apps with AI. Pick by what you need around the app:
Choose Bolt if you want a JavaScript framework of your choice, a Free plan with databases, Supabase as an option, and Code view for direct edits.
Choose Playcode if you want the website, the backend and the phone app in one project, a choice of AI models, a project you can export and run on any VPS, and a lower monthly price.
The fair test is the same small app in both, with the same prompt: compare the result, what it used, and what moving it later would take.
Describe your app and review the first version Playcode builds.
Try Playcode FreeFrequently Asked Questions
Is Bolt faster than Playcode?
Playcode has not recorded a measured comparison. Speed depends on the app, the model and the prompt, so time the same small build in both.
Can non-developers use Bolt?
Bolt builds from a chat, and when your tokens run out you can still edit the code in Code view. Some steps assume you work with code: a store release of a mobile app runs outside Bolt, with Expo's EAS CLI.
Does Playcode use WebContainers?
No. Bolt is built by StackBlitz, the team behind WebContainers. A Playcode Cloud project runs in its own isolated environment on Playcode Cloud: a development computer for the preview and the agent's work, and a production computer for the published app.
Can I export code from both?
Yes. Bolt offers a ZIP download and GitHub sync. Playcode exports the whole project, tests included, on a paid plan, and it runs on any VPS. In both, live data and connected services move separately: Bolt exports table rows as CSV or JSON, or lets you claim the database into your own Supabase account on Pro or Teams.
Which has better hosting?
It depends on the app. Both host on every plan. Bolt hosts on bolt.host, includes Pro hosting with every paid plan (30 GB and 1 million requests a month, then pay as you go up to a cap) and puts a custom domain on Pro. Playcode hosts with HTTPS on every plan, runs Cloud apps on Pro and Max, and puts a custom domain on Pro and Max.
Can I use both?
Yes. Bolt's code comes into Playcode as a ZIP you attach in the chat, and the agent puts its files into your project. Code goes into Bolt from a GitHub repository.