Bolt vs Hercules (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 12, 2026, Bolt grades higher than Hercules: 2.6 against 1.8 out of 4.0.
Checked Oct 5, 2026 and Nov 12, 2026 · graded Oct 10, 2026 and Nov 12, 2026 by ToolGPA
Bolt grades higher on value for money, features, ease of use and platforms. They get the same grade on the free plan.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Bolt
Browser-based AI builder for websites, web apps and mobile apps
Hercules
AI builder for business apps, websites and prototypes
Which one is for you
Pick Bolt if
- Fits if you want to prototype a web app from a prompt with nothing to install
- Works for people who switch between prompting and editing the code themselves
Look elsewhere if
- Tight if you're staying free, at 300K tokens a day and 1M a month, with bigger projects spending more per message
- Watch out: free sites carry a Made in Bolt badge and go offline for the month past 10 GB or 333,333 requests
- Skip it if you want a desktop or phone app to build in, as Bolt lives in the browser
- Pricey if you're a team, since Teams is $30 a member and tokens aren't shared between you
- Not for you if you need custom domains or Supabase databases for free, as both need a paid plan
Pick Hercules if
- Fits if you want a quick internal tool without setting up hosting
- Works for a solo builder testing an app idea
Look elsewhere if
- Tight if you stay free: 15 credits a month and a hercules.app address
- Pricey if you add a teammate, because Business is $199 a month
- Watch out: custom domains and removing the Hercules badge start at $25 Pro
- Watch out: a yearly option saves 15%, but its prices were not read
How we grade them
| 2.6GPABoltGood | 1.8GPAHerculesWeak | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | CPro is $25 a month, or $216 for the year, which works out at $18. That's mid-table for builders here, where the middle is $19 and the dearest quarter starts at $25. You get 10M tokens a month with no daily cap, rollover and custom domains. Teams is $30 a member, and those tokens aren't pooled. | D$25 a month for 50 AI credits is at the dear end of the category, and teammates and access controls jump to $199 on Business. |
| Free plan and trial | CFree for good: 300K tokens a day, 1M a month, private projects, databases and hosting. The caps bite. Bigger projects spend more tokens per message, your site wears a Made in Bolt badge, and it goes dark for the rest of the month past 333,333 requests. | CFree: 15 AI credits a month, unlimited apps, a hercules.app address and community support. 15 credits go fast. |
| Features | BIt covers the whole job. Chat builds a full-stack project and Plan Mode talks the approach through first; Bolt Cloud brings hosting, databases, login and domains; Code view edits files without spending tokens; and you can start from a Figma frame or ship phone apps through Expo. Replit does the same, so no A. | CHosting, database, auth, AI and email included, and credits are metered separately as Hercules Cloud usage. No integrations are listed. |
| Ease of use | BNo rating on record, but there's nothing to install and nothing to set up: open a browser tab, type a prompt and it builds. Code view is there if you want it. Supabase databases do need a paid plan. | CNo store rating on record. You describe the app in chat, but the work is building and checking it. |
| Platforms and integrations | BWeb only, with no desktop or phone app to build in. It connects to Supabase, Stripe, GitHub, Figma, Netlify and Google Stitch, and to Expo for shipping iOS and Android apps. | CWeb only, and no integrations or API are listed. |
| Best for | building in a browser tab with the code in view | chat-built business apps and sites |
The GPA is the average of the five grades: an A is 4 points, an F is none. The full reasons are on each tool's page: Bolt and Hercules. How we grade
Price against what you get
Bolt starts at $18 a month and scores 3.0 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. Hercules starts at $25 a month and scores 2.0.
Bolt scores higher and starts $7 a month lower. Of the other AI app builders on the chart, 1 scores higher than Bolt for less, and 30 score higher than Hercules for less.
Features, ease of use and platforms, averaged
What paid plans start at, a month (each step along is roughly double) →
- The best score at each price
- Has a free plan
- No free plan
Where they differ
- Bolt also covers no-code.
- Hercules also covers AI agents.
At a glance
| Bolt | Hercules | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free plan | Free plan |
| Starts at | $18 per month, billed yearly ($216); $25 billed monthly (Pro) | $25 per month, billed monthly |
| Free plan | 300K tokens a day and 1M a month, public and private projects, unlimited databases, and hosting with up to 333K web requests a month. Published sites carry Bolt branding. | 15 AI credits a month, unlimited apps, and publishing on a hercules.app subdomain with community support. |
| Free trial | None listed | None listed |
| Web | ||
| Made by | StackBlitz, Inc. | Zeus AI Labs, Inc. |
| Price read from | bolt.new | hercules.app |
| Checked | Oct 5, 2026 | Nov 12, 2026 |
Worth knowing
Bolt
- The free plan stops at 300K tokens a day and 1M a month, and larger projects use more tokens per message.
- Custom domains and Supabase databases need a paid plan, and free sites show a Made in Bolt badge.
- Free sites go offline for the rest of the month once they pass 10 GB of bandwidth or 333,333 requests.
- On Teams, tokens are allotted to each paid member and are not shared across the team.
Hercules
- The Free plan has 15 AI credits a month and a hercules.app address.
- Custom domains and removing the Hercules badge start on Pro at $25 a month.
- Teammates, role-based access control and daily backups need Business at $199 a month.
- A yearly option saves 15%, but its prices could not be read, so the prices above are monthly-billed ones.
Key features
Bolt
- Prompt-to-app building
- Describe an idea in chat and Bolt generates a full-stack project using JavaScript-based web frameworks. Plan Mode lets you discuss an approach before any code is written.
- Bolt Cloud
- Hosting, databases, user authentication and domains are built into each project. Paid plans raise the hosting allowance to 30 GB of bandwidth and 1 million requests a month.
- Code view and GitHub
- Project files can be read and edited directly in Code view, which uses no tokens, and a project can be connected to GitHub or started from an existing repository.
- Design imports
- Start a project from a Figma frame or a Google Stitch design, or add a design system so that generated screens follow existing components.
- Mobile apps through Expo
- Web apps are built natively in Bolt, while mobile apps for iOS and Android are built and shipped through its Expo integration.
- Teams workspace
- A shared workspace with centralized billing, member and integration controls, team prompts and private NPM registry support, priced per member.
Hercules
- Build by chatting
- Describe the app, such as a CRM for a sales team, and Hercules builds it while you watch.
- Hosting and backend included
- Apps get hosting, a database, backend, authentication, AI and email; usage is metered as Hercules Cloud credits.
- Apps, sites and mobile
- The homepage lists internal software, customer software, marketing and SEO sites, and mobile apps as use cases.
- Team controls
- The Business plan adds teammates, role-based access control, custom login rules and daily data backups.
Plans
Bolt
Free$0
300K tokens a day and 1M a month, public and private projects, hosting with up to 333K web requests, a 10MB upload limit and Bolt branding on sites.
ProFrom $25
per month, billed monthly; $216 a year billed yearly
Starts at 10M tokens a month with no daily limit. Adds token rollover, custom domains, no Bolt branding, 100MB uploads and up to 1M web requests.
Teams$30
per member / month, billed monthly
Everything in Pro, plus centralized billing, team-level access management, admin controls and private NPM registries. Tokens are per member, not pooled.
EnterpriseCustom
SSO, audit logs and compliance support, a dedicated account manager, 24/7 priority support, custom SLAs and data retention policies.
Hercules
Free$0
15 AI credits a month, unlimited apps, hercules.app subdomain and community support.
Pro$25
per month, billed monthly
50 AI credits a month, custom domains, no Hercules badge, credit top-ups, 20x Hercules Cloud usage and email support.
Business$199
per month, billed monthly
Shown with 50 AI credits a month. Adds teammates, custom login rules, role-based access control, daily data backups and advanced privacy controls.
EnterpriseCustom
Adds SSO and SAML, SCIM, audit logs, a volume-based credit discount, dedicated support, onboarding and a data processing agreement.
Ways to pay less
Bolt
- Annual discount
Save up to 28% with yearly billing
The pricing page advertises up to 28% off with yearly billing. The help center gives $216 a year for the entry Pro tier against $25 a month, and says other annual plans save 10%.
Hercules
- Annual discount
15% off with yearly billing
The pricing page offers a Yearly option labelled Save 15% against monthly billing.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, Bolt or Hercules?
As of Nov 12, 2026, Bolt is cheaper to start with: $18 a month, against $25 a month for Hercules. Bolt starts at $18 per month, billed yearly ($216); $25 billed monthly (Pro), and Hercules starts at $25 per month, billed monthly.
Which has a free plan, Bolt or Hercules?
As of Nov 12, 2026, both Bolt and Hercules have a free plan.
More comparisons
How this page was made
- The verdict at the top follows a fixed rule. When both tools are in the same category and either is in our top three for it, the verdict follows that ranking: the higher-placed tool is our pick. The top three weigh who each tool suits as well as its grades, so a pick can go against the GPA. Otherwise the page does not pick one and says which grades higher: the higher GPA first; on a tie, the one with a free plan, then the one that starts cheaper in dollars a month, counted the same way for both; if they are still level, what the choice depends on.
- The grades are our own, from each tool’s review or report card. The GPA is their average.
- Prices, plans and platforms come from each tool’s listing. The table above says where each price was read and when.
- The differences and the answers to the questions are worked out from those listings.