Emergent vs Hercules (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 12, 2026, Emergent grades higher than Hercules: 2.4 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
Emergent grades higher on value for money, ease of use and platforms. They get the same grade on the free plan and features.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Emergent
AI agents that build and deploy full-stack web and mobile apps
Hercules
AI builder for business apps, websites and prototypes
Which one is for you
Pick Emergent if
- Fits if you're a solo founder who wants a web app and a matching phone app from one project
- Works for people who want the generated code in their own GitHub repository
Look elsewhere if
- Tight if you keep apps live, as each deployed one takes 50 of Standard's 100 monthly credits
- Not for you if you're staying free, since the free plan can't deploy, connect GitHub, use a custom domain or buy top-ups
- Skip it if you want Flutter or native Swift or Kotlin, because mobile apps use a fixed Expo, FastAPI and MongoDB stack
- Watch out: monthly credits don't roll over, top-ups are $10 for 50, and previews stop after 30 minutes
- Pricey if you need the 1M context window or custom agents, since Pro is $167 a month billed annually, $200 monthly
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
| 2.4GPAEmergentFair | 1.8GPAHerculesWeak | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | CStandard is $17 a month billed annually, $20 monthly, a touch above the $16 that marks the cheapest quarter of builders here. The arithmetic is what hurts: 100 credits a month, and every deployed app takes 50 of them, every month. Credits don't roll over, top-ups are $10 for 50, and Pro is $167. | 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 | CThere's a free plan at 10 credits a month with the core building features. But you can't deploy an app, connect GitHub, use your own domain or build for mobile, and you can't buy more credits either. A look round, not a plan to work on. | CFree: 15 AI credits a month, unlimited apps, a hercules.app address and community support. 15 credits go fast. |
| Features | CAgents write the front end and back end, set up login, then test and debug their own work, and a deployed web app can be rebuilt as a phone app on the same backend. You own the code. But the listing names the limit: mobile uses a fixed Expo, FastAPI and MongoDB stack, with no Flutter and no native Swift or Kotlin. | 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 or configure: describe the app in chat and the agents design, code, test and deploy it. Two things to know going in — previews die after 30 minutes, and the credit maths wants attention before you deploy anything. | CNo store rating on record. You describe the app in chat, but the work is building and checking it. |
| Platforms and integrations | BA web app for building, with nothing on desktop or phone. What it makes runs on the web and as iPhone and Android apps through Expo. It connects to GitHub, Stripe, Supabase, Airtable, Slack, Twilio, Figma and Notion. | CWeb only, and no integrations or API are listed. |
| Best for | a web app and a phone app from one project | 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: Emergent and Hercules. How we grade
Price against what you get
Emergent starts at $17 a month and scores 2.7 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. Hercules starts at $25 a month and scores 2.0.
Emergent scores higher and starts $8 a month lower. Of the other AI app builders on the chart, 3 score higher than Emergent 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
- Emergent also covers no-code.
At a glance
| Emergent | Hercules | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free plan | Free plan |
| Starts at | $17 per month, billed annually; $20 billed monthly (Standard) | $25 per month, billed monthly |
| Free plan | 10 credits a month with the core building features. No deployments, GitHub integration, custom domains, mobile agent or credit top-ups. | 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 | Emergent Labs | Zeus AI Labs, Inc. |
| Price read from | emergent.sh | hercules.app |
| Checked | Oct 5, 2026 | Nov 12, 2026 |
Worth knowing
Emergent
- The Free plan has 10 credits a month and cannot deploy apps, connect GitHub or use custom domains.
- Each deployed app uses 50 credits a month, half of the Standard plan's 100-credit allowance.
- Monthly subscription credits do not roll over; top-up credits, at $10 for 50, never expire.
- Mobile apps use a fixed Expo, FastAPI and MongoDB stack; Flutter and native Swift or Kotlin are not supported.
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
Emergent
- Agent-built full-stack apps
- Describe an app in chat and Emergent's agents write the frontend and backend, set up authentication, then test and debug the result.
- Mobile apps with Expo
- A Mobile agent builds iOS and Android apps from one Expo (React Native) codebase with a FastAPI backend and MongoDB. It is available on paid plans only.
- Web and mobile conversion
- A deployed web app can be rebuilt as a mobile app, or the reverse, with both versions sharing the same backend, database and login.
- Deployment and custom domains
- Previews expire after 30 minutes; deploying keeps an app online and costs 50 credits a month per app. Custom domains are available on paid plans.
- GitHub integration
- Paid plans can connect GitHub for version control. Emergent states that you own the generated code and can download, modify or host it elsewhere.
- Custom agents and Pro modes
- Pro adds custom AI agent creation, system prompt editing, a 1M context window and an Ultra thinking mode for complex builds.
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
Emergent
Free$0
10 free monthly credits with core platform features. Deployments, GitHub integration, custom domains and top-ups are not included.
Standard$17
per month, billed annually; $20 billed monthly
100 credits a month, web and mobile app building, private project hosting, GitHub integration, forking and the option to buy extra credits.
Pro$167
per month, billed annually; $200 billed monthly
750 credits a month, a 1M context window, Ultra thinking, system prompt editing, custom AI agents, larger machines and priority support.
BusinessCustom
Everything in Pro, plus role-based access control, single sign-on, shared team workspaces and real-time co-editing.
EnterpriseCustom
Everything in Business, plus user-level credit limits, audit logs, self-hosted database support and deployment in your own cloud.
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
Emergent
- Annual discount
Lower monthly rate with annual billing
On the pricing page, annual billing brings Standard from $20 to $17 a month (a $36 saving a year) and Pro from $200 to $167 a month (a $396 saving a year).
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, Emergent or Hercules?
As of Nov 12, 2026, Emergent is cheaper to start with: $17 a month, against $25 a month for Hercules. Emergent starts at $17 per month, billed annually; $20 billed monthly (Standard), and Hercules starts at $25 per month, billed monthly.
Which has a free plan, Emergent or Hercules?
As of Nov 12, 2026, both Emergent 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.