v0 by Vercel

Overview

v0 is Vercel's AI-powered development platform that generates production-ready React and Next.js code from natural language prompts. Unlike Cursor, which is an AI-enhanced code editor, or Bolt.new, which targets full-stack browser coding, v0 specializes in frontend UI generation using shadcn/ui, Tailwind CSS, and modern React patterns. The February 2026 rebuild added a sandbox runtime with GitHub import, a VS Code-style editor, database connectivity, and agentic multi-step workflows. v0 is tightly integrated with the Vercel deployment ecosystem and produces cleaner, more idiomatic React code than any competing AI builder.

Pricing breakdown

v0 uses token-based pricing across subscription plans. Each plan includes a monthly credit pool. Additional credits can be purchased. Model selection (Mini, Pro, Max, Max Fast) affects how quickly credits are consumed.

Premium includes $20 in monthly credits, Figma import, API access, and the v0 Pro model. Credit consumption varies by model tier: Mini ($1/$5 per MTok), Pro ($3/$15), Max ($5/$25), and Max Fast ($10/$50).

Free includes $5 in credits but is capped at 7 messages per day. Team ($30/user/mo) adds $30 credits plus $2 daily per user, centralized billing, and shared chats. Business ($100/user/mo) adds training opt-out. Enterprise adds SAML SSO and SLAs.

Check official site for latest pricing, as the system changed significantly in 2025-2026.

Best for

v0 Premium is best for frontend developers and designers who build with React, Next.js, and Tailwind CSS. It is ideal for rapidly prototyping UI components, generating page layouts, and translating Figma designs into production-ready code.

Team is best for frontend teams already using Vercel who want shared credits, centralized billing, and collaborative AI-assisted development.

Enterprise is for organizations that need training data opt-out, SAML SSO, and guaranteed SLAs.

v0 is not well suited for full-stack development, backend logic, or non-React frameworks. It is a frontend UI tool first.

Key features

• AI UI generation: describe components or pages in natural language and get production-ready React code with shadcn/ui and Tailwind CSS.
• Design Mode: visually edit generated UI directly in the browser without writing code.
• Figma import: convert Figma designs into React components. Available on Premium and above.
• Sandbox runtime: import GitHub repos, preview full applications, and work with server-side features like API routes and database connections.
• VS Code-style editor: file-by-file code view, diff view, and manual editing. Added February 2026.
• Agentic workflows: v0 plans, searches the web for references, and executes multi-step tasks autonomously.
• Direct Vercel deployment: one-click deploy from v0 to Vercel with custom domain support.
• Multiple model tiers: choose v0 Mini (fast), v0 Pro (balanced), v0 Max (maximum intelligence), or v0 Max Fast (2.5x speed) depending on task complexity.
• Git sync: two-way synchronization with GitHub repositories.
• API access: programmatic access to v0 generation. Available on Premium and above.

Pros and cons

Pros

• Best-in-class React and Next.js code generation with shadcn/ui and Tailwind
• Clean, idiomatic output that follows modern best practices
• Tight Vercel integration for one-click deployment
• Figma-to-code pipeline saves significant design-to-development time
• Design Mode enables visual editing without touching code
• Sandbox runtime supports full application preview, not just isolated components

Cons

• Locked to React, Next.js, and the Vercel ecosystem. No support for Vue, Svelte, or other frameworks
• Token-based pricing makes costs unpredictable, especially on Max model tiers
• Free plan is too restrictive for real work (7 messages/day, $5 credits)
• No backend or database built in. Requires separate services for full-stack applications
• Not suitable for non-developers. Requires React and JavaScript knowledge to use effectively
• Credit consumption can be high with iterative prompting and complex generations

How it compares to alternatives

v0 competes with Cursor and Bolt.new, but each targets a different stage of development.

v0 Premium vs Cursor Pro: Cursor is a general-purpose AI code editor across any language. It excels at multi-file editing, autocomplete (72% acceptance), and IDE-based agentic coding. v0 is a browser-based UI generator focused on React and Next.js frontends. Cursor offers more flexibility. v0 generates polished UI components faster for React projects. For Vercel ecosystem prototyping, v0 is faster. For full-stack and cross-language work, Cursor wins.

v0 Premium vs Bolt.new: Bolt.new runs in the browser with StackBlitz's WebContainer and supports multiple frameworks with limited backend. It is better for full-stack prototyping without local setup. v0 produces higher-quality React code with shadcn/ui and deploys directly to Vercel. For React and Vercel teams, v0 is better. For framework diversity or browser-based full-stack, Bolt.new wins.

FAQ

Is v0 Premium worth $20/month in 2026? Yes for frontend developers who build with React and Next.js daily. The $20 monthly credits cover meaningful usage with the v0 Pro model, and Figma import alone can save hours per week on design-to-development handoff. For developers using other frameworks, v0's value is limited.

How do v0 credits work? Each plan includes a monthly credit pool. Every generation consumes tokens at rates determined by the selected model tier (Mini, Pro, Max, Max Fast). More complex tasks and higher-quality models use more tokens. Auto mode uses a default model. You can purchase additional credits or wait for the monthly reset.

Does v0 support backend development? Partially. The sandbox runtime supports API routes and database connections for preview purposes, but v0 is primarily a frontend UI generator. For production backend logic, databases, and authentication, you need separate services. v0 generates the frontend code that connects to them.

Can non-developers use v0? Not effectively. v0 generates React code that requires knowledge of React, Next.js, Tailwind CSS, and modern JavaScript to deploy and customize. While Design Mode helps with visual editing, the core workflow assumes developer skills. For non-technical users, tools like Bolt.new or Replit Agent are more accessible.

How does v0 compare to Cursor for UI development? v0 generates complete, polished UI components from a single prompt with built-in shadcn/ui and Tailwind. Cursor provides AI-assisted editing within an IDE but requires you to scaffold the project yourself. For quickly generating production-ready React components, v0 is faster. For iterating on and integrating those components into a larger codebase, Cursor is better.