Moving from Bolt.new or v0 to Lovable: Importing AI-Generated Projects

Why Founders Move from Bolt or v0 to Lovable

Bolt and v0 are excellent for one-shot generation — describe a UI, get code. They're weaker at long-running iteration on a real codebase with a real backend. Lovable's combination of AI agent + Cloud (Postgres, auth, storage, edge functions) is built for that second phase: turning a generated prototype into a shipped product.

Step 1 — Export the Project to GitHub

In Bolt.new, use the "Push to GitHub" option. In v0, copy each generated component into a fresh repo or use v0's built-in shadcn project structure and push it. Make sure the repo boots locally with npm install && npm run dev before you do anything else — debugging in Lovable's sandbox is harder than debugging on your laptop.

Step 2 — Normalize the Project Structure

v0 expects a Next.js shadcn project. To import into Lovable's TanStack Start template, you'll either port components into a fresh Lovable project, or keep them as a Vite/React project (v0 supports that too — pick "Vite" in the v0 settings before generating). Bolt projects are usually Vite-ready and need fewer changes.

Step 3 — Import into Lovable

Use "New Project" → "Import from GitHub" in Lovable. The agent installs deps and boots the preview. If you're importing a v0 Next.js project, expect failures — convert it to Vite first or scaffold a fresh Lovable project and copy components over.

Step 4 — Replace Mock Data with Lovable Cloud

Bolt and v0 typically hardcode mock data. Enable Lovable Cloud, ask the agent to "create a posts table matching the shape of this mock", and have it rewrite the components to query Cloud. This is where the prototype starts becoming an actual product.

Step 5 — Wire Up Auth

Add Lovable Cloud auth (email, Google, etc.) instead of hardcoded user objects. Wrap protected routes in the _authenticated layout pattern. The agent can do most of this in one prompt: "Add Supabase email auth with a login page and protect the /dashboard route."

Pitfalls Specific to v0

v0's shadcn paths sometimes use @/registry/new-york/* aliases that don't exist outside v0's template — search and replace these with @/components/ui/* before importing. v0 also assumes Next.js server actions for forms; convert these to TanStack Start server functions in Lovable.

Pitfalls Specific to Bolt

Bolt projects sometimes ship with a /api directory expecting Node.js APIs. In Lovable, those become server routes under src/routes/api/ with a different signature. The agent can rewrite them, but review each one — auth and webhook routes especially.