I Tested 5 Vibe Coding Tools So You Don’t Have To
What Actually Works for Complete Beginners
I spent a week testing AI coding platforms with zero programming knowledge. Here’s what I discovered about the future of no-code development.
The Promise vs. The Reality
Last month, I had a simple idea: create an “art near me” app that would help people discover local galleries, street art, and creative spaces. As someone with zero coding experience, I figured this was the perfect opportunity to test the wave of AI coding tools promising to turn anyone into an app developer.
But after testing five major platforms, I learned that the gap between marketing promises and user reality is wider than most people realize.
Here’s what I discovered when I put Cursor, Lovable, Replit, Bolt, and Base 44 to the test, and what it means for the future of democratized app development.
The Testing Ground: Building an Art Discovery App
I approached each platform with the same challenge: build a location-based app that could display art venues on a map, allow users to browse by category, and provide basic venue information. Nothing groundbreaking, but complex enough to test real capabilities.
My evaluation criteria were straightforward:
- Platform usability: How intuitive was the tool itself?Output quality: Did it actually produce something functional and attractive?Real-world viability: Could a non-coder actually ship this?
The Winners and Losers
1. Cursor + Xcode: The Developer’s Dream
Cursor impressed me with its real-time visualization and intelligent code suggestions. Recent comparisons show that Cursor is adopted by 7 million developers and Fortune 1000 companies, and I could see why: when it worked.
The problem? Debugging in Xcode felt like trying to perform surgery with oven mitts. For someone lacking coding fundamentals, Cursor's power becomes a liability because I'm unsure which part it's executing correctly and how to maintain that code. It’s like being handed the keys to a Formula 1 car when you’re still learning to drive.
2. Lovable: Beauty with Broken Promises
Lovable delivered on aesthetics. The UI was gorgeous, and the development experience felt polished and beginner-friendly. Industry reports consistently rank Lovable among the most accessible options for beginners, and I can confirm the visual editor is intuitive.
But then came the map feature, the core of my app. Despite the platform’s promises of comprehensive functionality, integrating location services required connecting to external APIs that demanded payment. For a simple prototype, this felt like hitting a blocker before I could even validate my idea.
3. Replit: Function Over Form
Replit shocked testers by building functional applications with navigation, data persistence, and visualizations that felt nearly ready to ship, and my experience aligned with these findings. While the UI wasn’t winning any design awards, Replit actually delivered working functionality.
The platform felt like the pragmatic middle ground — not the prettiest, but it got the job done. For beginners focused on learning and iteration rather than pixel-perfect design, Replit proved surprisingly capable.
4.Bolt: The Phantom Platform
Less said about Bolt, the better. Despite its reputation in recent comparisons, my experience was frustrating. While some testing shows Bolt excelling at rapid prototyping with generation times of 15 seconds or less, I couldn’t get it to generate anything meaningful for my use case. Sometimes the gap between marketing and reality is a chasm.
5.Base 44: The Dark Horse
Here’s where things got interesting. Base 44 wasn’t on my radar initially, but it emerged as the most balanced solution. The platform UI was clean and clear, the output had both decent aesthetics and solid functionality, and crucially, the execution felt complete rather than half-baked.
What impressed me most was the platform’s transparency about capabilities and limitations. No overselling, no hidden paywalls for basic features. Just honest tool-building.
The Fairness Factor: A Critical Caveat
Before diving deeper, I need to acknowledge something important: judging AI coding tools based on one project isn’t entirely fair. Each platform has specific strengths — Cursor for developer workflows, Lovable for design-heavy prototypes, Replit for collaboration and learning.
My location-based app happened to hit some platforms’ limitations while playing to others’ strengths. A different project might yield completely different results. But this single-prompt approach actually mirrors how most non-technical users experience these tools — with one specific idea, not a comprehensive testing suite.
What This Means for the No-Code Revolution
My experience reveals three critical insights about where AI coding tools stand in 2025:
1. The Skills Gap Still Exists Despite projections that citizen developers will outnumber professional developers by 4 to 1, many platforms still assume foundational technical knowledge. The promise of “anyone can build apps” remains aspirational for true beginners.
2. Feature Completeness Varies Wildly The most beautiful interfaces often hide significant limitations, while less polished platforms deliver more complete functionality. In a market expected to generate $187 billion by 2030, user experience remains inconsistent.
3. The Real Winners Focus on Execution The platforms that impressed me most weren’t the most feature-rich or aesthetically pleasing; they were the ones that delivered on their core promises without surprises.
The Framework for Choosing Your AI Coding Tool
Based on my testing, here’s how non-coders should evaluate these platforms:
Start with Honesty: What’s your actual technical skill level? Platforms like Cursor reward existing knowledge, while tools like Lovable cater to complete beginners — but each has trade-offs.
Define “Good Enough”: Are you building a prototype to test an idea, or do you need something production-ready? Your goals should dictate your platform choice.
Test the Core Features First: Don’t get distracted by beautiful demos. Build the most critical part of your app first. If the platform can’t handle your core functionality, everything else is irrelevant.
Budget for Reality: Factor in potential API costs, integration fees, and the time you’ll spend learning each platform’s quirks.
Looking Forward: The Promise Remains
Despite my mixed results, I’m optimistic about the direction of AI coding tools. The convergence of AI with low-code platforms, enabling natural language app development and automated code generation, will further lower barriers to app creation.
The democratization of app development is happening, just more slowly and messily than the marketing suggests. The winners will be the platforms that prioritize honest communication about capabilities over flashy demos.
For now, the most valuable skill isn’t learning to code; it’s learning to evaluate these tools critically and choose the one that matches your actual needs, not your aspirational ones.
The future where anyone can build apps is coming. We’re just not quite there yet.
References
- An Opinionated Guide on the Best AI Coding Tools in 2025. Colin Matthews. Retrieved from creatoreconomy.soLovable vs Replit vs Cursor vs Bolt vs v0: AI Coding Tools Compared. Daily Genius. Retrieved from dailygenius.com35 Must-Know Low-Code Statistics and Facts for 2025. Kissflow. Retrieved from kissflow.com26 No-code and low-code trends for 2025. Hostinger. Retrieved from hostinger.com37 No-Code Market Growth Statistics Every App Builder Must Know in 2025. Adalo Blog. Retrieved from adalo.com
I Tested 5 AI Coding Tools So You Don’t Have To was originally published in UX Planet on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.
