SIDE BY SIDE
Stay on the builder,
or own your app?
AI app builders are a fast way to get an app made. Once people rely on it, what matters changes. Here's how running your app on the builder compares with running it as your own, after an AppExit migration.
| What | Staying on the builder | After an AppExit migration |
|---|---|---|
| Your code | Lives inside the builder. Export options depend on the platform and often on your plan, and Bubble and Glide have no codebase to export at all. | In a Git repository you own, and it builds and runs without the builder. |
| Your database | Managed by the platform. You reach it through the builder's own tools and exports. | In a database you control on your chosen host, with full access to the schema and records. |
| Sign-in and users | Usually runs on the builder's own authentication. | Moved to authentication you control. We check that accounts and sign-in keep working. |
| Backend logic | Runs on the platform's functions, connectors and AI services. | Rewired to services you choose, with every function, webhook and secret accounted for. |
| Where it's hosted | On the builder's infrastructure, on its terms. | Your choice: AppExit Managed Hosting, Vercel + Supabase, Railway, your own server, or AWS, Azure or Google Cloud. |
| What you pay | A platform subscription, set by its plans and usage limits. | A flat $199 to move it, once. Then your host's own price, or AppExit Managed Hosting from $39 a month. |
| Making changes | Prompt the builder's AI editor. Quick for early versions. | Any developer or AI coding tool can work on it. Add our AI builder workspace for $149 to keep editing with AI. |
| Hiring help | Developers usually have to work inside the platform, or rebuild. | A standard codebase any developer can pick up on day one. |
| Backups | Whatever the platform provides. | You decide what's backed up, how often, and where. |
| When the platform changes | Pricing, features and export paths can change on the vendor's schedule. | Nothing changes unless you change it. |
Staying makes sense when
- It's still a prototype or an experiment.
- Few people use it, and nothing depends on it yet.
- The builder's AI editor is how you work, and you're not hitting its limits.
Moving makes sense when
- Real customers, or your revenue, depend on it.
- You need to own your data, or hand the app to a developer.
- Plan prices, usage limits or platform changes are getting in the way.
BY PLATFORM
Where each builder
starts from.
Every builder leaves your app in a different state, which decides how much a move involves. Each platform guide explains it in full, with links to the platform's own documentation.
| Platform | Your code | Your data | What else the move involves | AppExit price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Base44 | GitHub sync on Builder plans and above, or a ZIP export | Table data as CSV | Code calls Base44's SDK for sign-in, data and functions, so those are replaced | $199 flat |
| Lovable | Documented code export | Documented data and backend move, Supabase-compatible | Sign-in sessions, files, policies and functions still need moving | $199 flat |
| Bolt.new | Standard web project, downloadable or synced | From whichever database the app is connected to | The backend varies by project, so we confirm where it lives | $199 flat |
| Replit | Code-based project and tools | PostgreSQL, with conventional tooling | Runtime and deployment details depend on the project | $199 flat |
| Emergent | GitHub on Standard plans and above, or copy | MongoDB, exported separately | Secrets and database contents aren't in the code export | $199 flat |
| Bubble | No codebase to export | Your data carries across | A partial or full rebuild | Rebuild, quoted before you pay |
| Glide | No codebase to export | In Glide tables or a connected source such as a spreadsheet | A rebuild, with your data carried across | Rebuild, quoted before you pay |
Platform features, plan entitlements and export paths change, and this reflects the platform pages as of November 2026. Every app gets its own portability check before we start. AppExit is independent and not affiliated with any platform listed; brand names belong to their owners. Read the reliability report for the sources.
READY WHEN YOU ARE
Own the app
you built.
Order your migration for a flat $199 in a few minutes, or ask for a Bubble or Glide rebuild quote. Questions? Contact us.
Start my migration Nothing to pay until you've seen your price