Vibe coding is building software by describing what you want to an AI in plain English and letting it write the code. You prompt, test the result and refine it with the next prompt. Andrej Karpathy coined the term on February 2, 2025, and it lets beginners build websites and small apps before they learn to program.
This guide explains how it works, which tools let you start free, what to build first and how people turn the skill into income. Prices come from each company's own pricing page, read in October 2026.
| At a glance | |
|---|---|
| In plain words | Describing an app or website to an AI and refining the result with follow-up prompts |
| Coined by | Andrej Karpathy, on February 2, 2025 |
| Skill you need | Writing clear descriptions and testing what the AI builds; no programming to start |
| Cost to start | $0 on free plans such as Lovable and Bolt |
| Good first projects | Landing pages, booking pages, calculators, simple tools and prototypes |
| Where income comes from | Selling what you build: sites for local businesses, small tools, templates or products |
Want to turn this skill into income? See five ways to start
Vibe coding is one route into two of the five paths in our free ebook, AI websites and AI digital products. The ebook compares all five on cost, time and first step, in about a 15 minute read.
Get the free ebookHow does vibe coding work?
Vibe coding replaces writing code line by line with a conversation. You describe the result you want, the AI generates a working version, you try it and you ask for changes. The cycle repeats until the page or app does what you need.
- Describe. Say who it is for and what it should do, in everyday words.
- Generate. The AI builds a first version you can open and click through.
- Test. Try every button and form the way a visitor would.
- Refine. Ask for one change at a time, such as a new section, a different color or a fix.
Here is the kind of first prompt that works well:
Notice what the prompt contains: who the site is for, the sections, the one action a visitor should take and the look. Clear descriptions are the main skill in vibe coding.
Where does the term vibe coding come from?
Andrej Karpathy, a co-founder of OpenAI and a former AI leader at Tesla, introduced the phrase in a post on X on February 2, 2025. He described fully giving in to the vibes and forgetting that the code even exists. Merriam-Webster listed it as a slang and trending term in March 2025, and Collins English Dictionary named it its 2025 Word of the Year.
Is vibe coding the same as coding with AI?
Not quite. In AI-assisted coding, a developer uses AI to speed up the work but still reads, tests and guides the code. In vibe coding, you judge the result mostly by trying it and describing what to change. Both use AI. The difference is how closely you work with the code itself.
Vibe coding is also different from prompt engineering. Prompt engineering is the craft of writing instructions that get good output from an AI for any task. Vibe coding applies prompting to one job: producing working software. Anyone who already writes good prompts has a head start.
What can you build with vibe coding?
Beginners tend to get the fastest results with small, clear projects:
- Landing pages and small business websites with a few sections and one call to action.
- Booking, quote and intake forms for a service business.
- Calculators and simple tools, such as a pricing or savings calculator.
- Internal dashboards that gather a small team's numbers in one place.
- Prototypes of an app idea, so you can test interest before you pay anyone to build it.
For ten specific app ideas, each with who pays and a test to run first, see our guide to AI app ideas you can build without code.
Which vibe coding tools should a beginner start with?
These four are the ones most beginners meet first. Three of them build from a prompt in your browser. Cursor is a code editor, and it suits you once you want to see and edit the code yourself.
| Tool | Good for | Free option | Paid plans start at |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lovable | Websites and apps from a prompt | Free plan: 5 build credits a day, up to 30 a month | See Lovable's pricing page for current plans |
| Bolt | Full-stack apps from a prompt | Free: 300,000 tokens a day and 1 million a month | Pro $25 a month |
| Replit | Building and hosting apps in the browser | See Replit's pricing page | Core $20 a month, $18 billed yearly |
| Cursor | Editing code with AI help | Hobby plan, no card required | $20 a month |
Start on a free plan, build one small project and move to a paid plan only when you hit a limit or someone has agreed to pay you. Plans and limits change, so confirm them on each company's pricing page.
Can anyone do vibe coding, and is it easy to learn?
Yes. You do not need to know how to program to start. What improves quickly with practice is how clearly you describe what you want and how carefully you test. Five habits give better results from the first project:
- Start small. Build one page or one tool, not a whole platform.
- Ask for one change at a time. Short follow-ups are easier to check than big rewrites.
- Describe the visitor, not only the screen. Say who uses it and what they should be able to do.
- Test like a visitor. Click every button, fill every form and check it on a phone.
- Review before you publish. Keep passwords and API keys out of your prompts and pages, and have someone check anything that handles payments or personal data.
How much do vibe coders make, and how do people earn with it?
No reliable public source reports what vibe coders earn, so we do not quote a figure, and nothing here is a promise of income. What we can say is where the money comes from: someone pays for what you build. For context, Bankrate's 2025 survey found that US side hustlers earn $885 a month on average and $200 at the median, across all kinds of side hustles.
These are the routes beginners use, each with a guide on this site:
- Websites for local businesses. Build a finished site for a business that has none and show it before you ask for anything. The steps are in the AI websites section of our main guide.
- Digital products and small tools. Build something once and sell it repeatedly. Compare platforms in our Payhip guide.
- Booking pages, forms and follow-up for clients. Pair the site with automation. See our HighLevel guide.
- A paid community or course. Teach what you learned to others with Skool.
- Freelance services. Offer speed: a working first version in days. Our guide to AI freelancing includes a short test to pick your first service.
If you are not sure which route fits you, the free ebook compares five of them side by side.
Vibe coding gives you something to sell. Choose what to sell
The free ebook compares five ways to start a side hustle with AI, including websites and digital products: the criteria to choose between them, how much time each takes, what it costs to start and the first action to take.
Get the free ebookHow do you start vibe coding this week?
- Pick one small project. A one-page site for a business you know, or a tool that solves one problem for one kind of person.
- Choose one free tool. Open a free plan on Lovable or Bolt.
- Write your first prompt. Include who it is for, the sections, the main action and the look.
- Test and refine for an hour. One change at a time, on your phone as well as your computer.
- Show it to three people. Ask what confused them, then improve it.
- Decide what to do with it. Keep it as a portfolio piece, offer it to a business or turn it into a product.
Which of those routes pays best depends on you, and the ebook walks through how to choose.
Frequently asked questions
What is vibe coding in simple words?
Building a website or app by telling an AI what you want in everyday language, then trying the result and asking for changes. You steer with descriptions instead of writing code line by line.
Who invented the term vibe coding?
Andrej Karpathy, a co-founder of OpenAI, introduced it in a post on X on February 2, 2025. Collins English Dictionary named it its 2025 Word of the Year.
Do you need to know how to code to vibe code?
No. You can start with tools that build from a prompt in your browser. Learning basic coding ideas later helps you review results and fix problems faster, but it is not required to begin.
Which vibe coding tool is best for beginners?
Lovable and Bolt are easy first choices because both have free plans and build from a prompt. Replit builds and hosts apps in the browser, and Cursor suits people who want to see and edit the code. Start free and choose by the project you want to build.
Can you make money with vibe coding?
Yes, by selling what you build: websites for local businesses, small tools, templates or digital products. No reliable source reports typical earnings, so treat any promise of income with caution and track your own results.
Is vibe coding the same as prompt engineering?
No. Prompt engineering is writing instructions that get good output from an AI for any task. Vibe coding uses prompting for one purpose, building working software.
Is vibe coding good for beginners?
Yes, because you see a working result quickly and learn by changing it. Start with small projects, test each change and have someone review anything that handles payments or personal data before you publish it.
Take the next step: the free 5 Side Hustles With AI ebook
You now know what vibe coding is and how to start. The ebook helps you decide what to do with it: a short list of paths you can start from, each with a first step. It is free.
Get the free ebookSources
Prices and terms were read on each company's own page in October 2026, and they can change, so confirm them before you buy. The history of the term comes from Wikipedia's article on vibe coding, and the side hustle figures from Bankrate's 2025 survey, fielded by YouGov.