Ownercode, by Dirty Work Software
AI app builders or Claude Code: which fits your business?
AI app builders like Lovable, Bolt and Replit build an app from a chat in your browser. Claude Code and Codex build it in a folder on your computer. Both can work for someone who has never coded. They differ in where your app lives, what you pay for, and what happens when you want to leave.
This page compares them fairly, using each company's own pages. Ownercode is a free kit for the second route.
Free. Just your email. The code is public on GitHub.
Compared
The main differences
| Topic | AI app builders | Claude Code or Codex, with Ownercode |
|---|---|---|
| Where you build | AI app buildersOn their website, in your browser | Claude Code or Codex, with OwnercodeIn the Claude or Codex app, in a folder on your computer |
| Where your app runs | AI app buildersOn their hosting by default. Some connect to your own GitHub or database | Claude Code or Codex, with OwnercodeYour own Cloudflare account, from the first release |
| What you pay for | AI app buildersA monthly plan, measured in credits, tokens or similar units. Paid plans start at about $16 to $59 a month | Claude Code or Codex, with OwnercodeYour AI plan: Claude Pro from $20 a month, or a ChatGPT plan with Codex. Hosting is usually free. The kit is free |
| Getting your code | AI app buildersLovable, Bolt, Replit and v0 sync to GitHub. Bubble has no code export | Claude Code or Codex, with OwnercodeIn your folder and your GitHub from the start |
| Undo | AI app buildersVaries. Replit, for one, has checkpoints and rollback | Claude Code or Codex, with OwnercodeGit history of every saved step, and guards that block the commands that throw it away |
Prices and features checked on each company's own pages on 27 September 2026. Some entry prices are for yearly billing.
Which to pick
Straight answers
Lovable vs Claude Code: which is easier for a beginner?
An app builder is easier on day one. You type in a browser, and you see a first version fast. Claude Code asks more of you at the start: an app on your computer, a few sign-ins, and a folder. Ownercode's setup prompt does most of that for you. After day one, the questions change: who holds the app, and what each change costs.
What does each change cost?
With an app builder, each change uses credits or tokens from your plan. Run out, and you wait for the next month or pay for more. With Claude Code or Codex, each change uses your Claude or ChatGPT plan's usage limits, and those run out and reset too. Neither route makes changes free. The difference is who you pay: the builder, or the AI company directly.
Can I get my code out of an AI app builder?
Often, yes. Lovable, Bolt, Replit and v0 connect to GitHub. Bubble apps run only on Bubble, with no code export. For Base44, check its current export terms before you build. Getting the code out is one step. Running it somewhere else, with its database, is another. With Ownercode, the app already runs in your own accounts.
When is an AI app builder the better pick?
When you want to try an idea this afternoon, in a browser, with nothing to install. When you would rather click to change a design than describe it. When hosting and a database should come with the plan. Pick Ownercode when you want three things: the app in your own accounts, a plan before anything is built, and guards that stop the mistakes you cannot undo.
The free kit
What you get, free
- A setup prompt. The AI installs the tools and walks you through the sign-ins.
- A start prompt. It asks about your business, then writes a plan and a task list before it builds.
- Project memory. A file the AI reads at every start, so it keeps your rules and decisions.
- A task system. One file per job. Close the laptop for a month; the next session picks up where you left off.
- Nine safety guards, tested at every start.
- Building recipes. Step-by-step skills the AI follows to build screens and to save and load your data.
- A plain design guide. Screens come out clean and simple.
- Updates. The kit updates itself in Codex, and in Claude Code once you turn on auto-update.
No trial, no time limit, no watermark. What you build lives in your folder and your own accounts.
What it costs to run. You need a paid Claude plan (Pro or Max) for Claude Code, or a ChatGPT plan that includes Codex. Your CRM runs on Cloudflare's free tier, so the hosting bill is usually zero.
Free
Get the free kit
Type your email. The setup steps show up right here, and a copy lands in your inbox.
You are in. Four steps from here.
- Make a new, empty folder with a short path, such as C:\Projects\my-crm. Open Claude Code or Codex in it.
- Pick Opus 5.5 or a newer Opus at High effort in Claude Code, or GPT-6 Astra at High in Codex.
- Paste the setup prompt below. The AI explains the guide, installs missing tools, and walks you through approvals and a restart.
- Reopen the same folder. Paste the start prompt and answer its questions. You make the business decisions.
Set up the free Ownercode kit in this tool. Do the technical work; stop before the business interview.
1. Read https://github.com/Dirty-Work-Software/ownercode/blob/main/GUIDE.md. Give me five short bullets from sections 1, 3, 3b and 4; skim 2 and 3a. Complete section 5 with me. Confirm a new, empty project folder with a short path; create one if needed without overwriting work. Show its full path.
2. Check Git first; install it if missing. Check and install missing Node.js LTS (at least 22.12), pnpm and GitHub CLI from official sources or a trusted package manager. Verify versions. Install Node before the plugin. Request administrator approval if needed.
3. Confirm Opus 5.5 or a newer Opus at High effort in Claude Code, or GPT-6 Astra at High in Codex. If you cannot set or verify this, guide me through the controls and wait for confirmation. Keep this model for planning and building.
4. Install only for this tool. Claude Code: run claude plugin marketplace add Dirty-Work-Software/ownercode, then claude plugin install ownercode@ownercode. Codex: run codex plugin marketplace add Dirty-Work-Software/ownercode, then codex plugin add ownercode@ownercode. Verify the install. Save the repository's START-HERE-PROMPT.md in my project; do not run it.
5. Check GitHub and Cloudflare sign-in; help me complete missing account and browser steps. I handle passwords, payment and consent. Public plugin installation needs no GitHub login. Defer an Anthropic API key until my app needs AI; never ask for secrets in chat.
6. If a sandbox, permission or approval check blocks you, show the command and error. Request the specific approval through the normal tool flow. Do not disable safeguards or treat approval as overriding a policy refusal. If still blocked, give exact commands for my operating system, starting in the full project path, and wait for results. Say "sandbox-only" only when verified.
7. Show command output and a done/waiting checklist. Guide my final controls: Claude Code: /plugin > Marketplaces > ownercode > Enable auto-update. Codex: /hooks > review and trust Ownercode hooks. Tell me to restart, reopen the same folder, and check for "Ownercode safety guards: on." in a fresh Codex session. Then tell me to paste the saved start prompt and answer its questions myself. Do not start the interview or build the app. Or type the lines yourself.
Claude Code. Type these two lines in Claude Code, one at a time:
/plugin marketplace add Dirty-Work-Software/ownercode
/plugin install ownercode@ownercode Then turn on updates, once: type /plugin, open Marketplaces, pick ownercode, choose Enable auto-update.
Codex. Run these two lines in a terminal:
codex plugin marketplace add Dirty-Work-Software/ownercode
codex plugin add ownercode@ownercode Then open Codex, type /hooks, and trust the Ownercode hooks. Codex runs no safety guard until you do this once. Codex updates the plugin by itself.
Check it: in a new Codex session, the first message must be Ownercode safety guards: on. If it is not, the guards are off. Type /hooks, trust the Ownercode hooks, and restart Codex.
A window asks you to sign in to Git or GitHub? Close it. Ownercode needs no account and no sign-in. Check the address and connection before you try again. Check the spelling: Dirty-Work-Software/ownercode.
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Questions
Questions
What does it cost?
The kit is free. Pro is $299, one time, plus VAT where it applies. You also need a paid Claude plan (Pro or Max) for Claude Code, or a ChatGPT plan that includes Codex. Hosting on Cloudflare's free tier is usually zero.
Do I own what it builds?
Yes. Your app sits in your folder, your GitHub account and your Cloudflare account. It is your code, under your name, from the first save.
What if Dirty Work Software stops?
Your app keeps working. It runs in your accounts, not ours. The kit you have keeps working too.
Claude Code or Codex?
Both work. On Windows, start with Claude Code: Codex on Windows needs full access to build this kind of app. In Codex, the guards start after you trust them once in /hooks.
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