# Coming from another builder

> Built with Bolt, Lovable, or Base44 before? The concept map, the differences that surprise switchers, and where to start.

If you have built with Bolt, Lovable, Base44, or another AI app builder, most of your instincts carry over: you describe what you want, the AI builds it, you refine in chat. This page covers what is different in Vaulter, so the first hour feels familiar instead of foreign.

## The mental model, mapped

| What you are used to | In Vaulter |
| --- | --- |
| A chat that generates code | The same, in the [build workspace](/docs/getting-started/the-build-ide). Chat on the left, live preview on the right. |
| A "remix" or "fork" | Duplicating a project, or [starting from a template](/docs/getting-started/templates). |
| Wiring up a database yourself | Every app is born with a database, [user accounts](/docs/auth/add-sign-in), and hosting. There is nothing to connect on day one. |
| Connecting Supabase for auth and data | Built in by default. If your data already lives in your own Supabase, [connect it](/docs/data/connecting-supabase) instead. |
| Message or credit limits | [Token pricing](/docs/account/tokens). Small edits cost little, big generations cost more, and the meter is always visible in the header. |
| Deploying via a third party | [Publishing](/docs/publish/publishing) is one button, on Vaulter's hosting, with a free subdomain and [custom domains](/docs/publish/connect-domain) on paid plans. |
| Exporting code to keep working elsewhere | [GitHub sync and export](/docs/your-app/github-and-export). Your code is yours either way. |

## What tends to surprise switchers

- **Auth is not a feature you add, it is a foundation that is already there.** Every app can have sign-in, roles, and [per-user data privacy](/docs/data/data-privacy) without provisioning anything. Say what should be protected and the agent wires it.
- **There are two editing modes.** Chat rebuilds and refactors; [Edit Mode](/docs/building/chat-vs-edit-mode) is for pointing at an element and nudging its text, color, or spacing directly. Switchers often over-use chat for tweaks Edit Mode does in seconds.
- **The Vault is the control panel.** Database tables, storage, connectors, auth settings, domains, deployments, and analytics all live in one place inside the build workspace, not in a separate provider dashboard.
- **Connectors are proxied, not pasted.** Third-party services like Stripe or OpenAI connect through the [connector system](/docs/integrations/connectors) with server-side credentials, so keys never end up in your app's client code.

## Bring an idea, not a codebase

Vaulter builds and runs its own apps; it does not import an existing repository from another tool. The fastest path for an app you already prototyped elsewhere is to bring the description, not the code: paste your original prompt, add screenshots of the version you liked, and list what you had working. A rebuilt app takes minutes and lands on a stack where the database, auth, and hosting are already integrated.

## A fair-warning list

- Vaulter's own sign-in is passwordless (email code or Google/GitHub). Your apps' end users also sign in without passwords.
- The [free plan](/docs/account/plans) publishes with a Vaulter badge and subdomain; custom domains and badge removal are paid.
- If a concept here does not map to what you knew, the [glossary](/docs/reference/glossary) and [core concepts](/docs/getting-started/concepts) pages translate the vocabulary.

## Where to go first

1. The [quickstart](/docs/getting-started/quickstart), even though you have done this before. It is short and shows where Vaulter puts things.
2. [Chat vs Edit Mode](/docs/building/chat-vs-edit-mode), the workflow difference that pays off soonest.
3. [Getting better results](/docs/building/better-results), Vaulter-specific prompting habits.