AI for Coding

v0 by Vercel — The Complete Guide

v0 is Vercel's AI tool for generating production-ready React and Next.js applications. Describe a component or app, get clean code using shadcn/ui and Tailwind CSS, deploy to Vercel in one click. The best UI quality of any AI app builder. Free tier available. Pro is $20 per month.

AI React GeneratorFree tier availablePro: $20/monthNext.js · shadcn/ui · VercelLast reviewed: April 2026

What is v0?

v0 is Vercel's AI tool for generating React components and full-stack applications. You describe a UI, a feature or an entire application in plain English and v0 generates clean, production-ready React code with Tailwind CSS styling. The result deploys to Vercel in one click.

v0 started as a component generator — the best in the category for generating polished UI from a text description. In 2025 and 2026, it evolved into a full-stack platform. v0 can now build complete applications with backend logic, databases (Supabase, Neon, Vercel Postgres), authentication and API endpoints, not just frontend components.

v0 is made by Vercel — the company behind Next.js and one of the most widely used deployment platforms for React applications. This tight integration means that apps generated by v0 deploy to Vercel instantly, with all of Vercel's deployment features (preview URLs, analytics, edge functions) available immediately.

What makes v0 different

UI quality is v0's standout strength. Compared to Replit, Bolt.new and other full-stack builders, v0 consistently produces more polished, designer-quality interfaces. It uses shadcn/ui components and Tailwind CSS — the stack that professional React developers use — so the output looks like something a senior frontend engineer built, not a first-pass prototype.

v0 is also the most technically flexible of the browser-based builders. Unlike Replit (which locks you into its own hosting) or Lovable (which uses Supabase for the database), v0 lets you choose your own database, authentication provider and deployment target. If you want to use Neon instead of Supabase, or Clerk instead of Auth.js, v0 supports it. The Vercel ecosystem is the default but not a requirement.

One practical distinction: v0 is described by experienced developers as the best tool for people who can code. The interface is more technical than Replit's or Lovable's. If you understand React and want AI to handle the tedious parts while you maintain full control, v0 fits that workflow well.

Who v0 is for

v0 is best suited for React and Next.js developers who want to generate UI components and application scaffolds quickly. If you are building something that will eventually run on Vercel, v0 reduces the time from design to deployed application significantly. The generated code is clean enough that professional developers are comfortable shipping it after review.

It is also well-suited for designers who have learned React basics and want to turn visual ideas into working components without writing everything from scratch, and for teams already in the Vercel ecosystem who want AI-assisted development without adopting a new environment.

Why not just use ChatGPT or Claude for React code?

ChatGPT and Claude can write React components. The difference with v0 is the live preview, the component library integration (shadcn/ui), and the one-click deployment. When you generate a component in v0, you see it rendered immediately — you can click on it, resize it, and see how it responds. Iterating takes seconds rather than the copy-paste-check cycle of working from a chat window.

v0 also has design intelligence that general-purpose AI models do not — it understands which shadcn/ui components to use for different UI patterns and applies them consistently, producing interfaces that follow established design conventions rather than ad-hoc styling.

Is v0 free?

v0 has a free tier with $5 in monthly credits. Pro is $20 per user per month with higher limits. Team is $30 per user per month. Enterprise pricing is available for organisations requiring SSO, audit logs and advanced compliance features. Students get free access through Vercel's student program.

Getting started

Step 1 — Go to v0.dev

Go to v0.dev (now also accessible at v0.app). Sign in with your Vercel account or create one free. Connect to your GitHub account if you want to push generated code to a repository.

Step 2 — Describe a component or page

Type a description of what you want to build. v0 works from natural language — describe the purpose, layout and key interactions. For UI components, be specific about what the component should contain and how it should behave. For full applications, describe the main features and data model.

Step 3 — Iterate in the preview

v0 shows a live preview of the generated component or page. Continue the conversation to refine it — "make the button blue", "add a loading state", "add a mobile navigation menu". Each iteration is fast.

Step 4 — Deploy or export

Click Deploy to publish to Vercel instantly. Click Export to get the full code. You can copy individual components or export the entire project to a GitHub repository.

16 prompts for v0

UI components

Navigation bar
Build a responsive navigation bar for a SaaS application called [name]. Include: a logo on the left, navigation links in the centre (Home, Features, Pricing, Docs), and a sign in button and a get started button on the right. On mobile, collapse navigation into a hamburger menu. Use shadcn/ui components.
Data table with sorting and filtering
Build a data table component for displaying [describe what data — users, orders, products etc.]. Columns: [list column names and types]. Include: column sorting (click header to sort), a search input that filters rows, pagination (10 rows per page), row selection with checkboxes, and a bulk action dropdown. Use shadcn/ui Table.
Form with validation
Build a [form name] form. Fields: [list fields with types — text, email, select, etc.]. Validation: [list rules — required, email format, min length]. Show validation errors below each field. On submit: show a loading state on the button, then show a success or error message. Use react-hook-form and zod for validation.
Pricing table
Build a pricing table with [number] tiers: [list tier names, prices and key features]. Include a monthly/annual toggle that updates prices (annual = 20% discount). Highlight the most popular tier. Each tier has a CTA button. Include a feature comparison grid below the cards. Make it look professional and clean.
Dashboard layout
Build a dashboard layout with: a fixed sidebar on the left with navigation icons and labels, a top header with page title, search bar and user avatar, a main content area, and a sticky footer. The sidebar should collapse to icons only on tablet. The layout should use CSS grid or flexbox — no hardcoded pixel values.
Empty state component
Build a set of empty state components for: an empty list (no items yet), search with no results, an error state, and a loading state. Each should have an illustration (use a simple SVG icon), a heading, a description, and an optional action button. They should work in both light and dark mode.

Full pages

Sign in page
Build a sign in page for a SaaS application. Include: email and password fields, a remember me checkbox, a forgot password link, a sign in button, a divider, and OAuth buttons for Google and GitHub. Below the form, a link to sign up. The page should be centred on the screen with the app logo above the form. Handle form validation.
User profile page
Build a user profile page. Sections: profile header with avatar, name and role, an about section with bio and contact details, an activity feed showing recent actions, and a settings section with tabs for account, notifications and security. Include an edit profile button that toggles the form into edit mode.
Product listing page
Build an e-commerce product listing page. Include: a filter sidebar (category, price range, rating), a product grid with card components showing image, name, price and add to cart button, sort controls above the grid, pagination, and a cart indicator in the header. Make it responsive — two columns on tablet, one column on mobile.

Full-stack app generation

Full-stack CRUD app
Build a full-stack [application type] application with Next.js. Include: a list page showing all [items] from a Supabase database, a detail page for each [item], a form to create new [items] with fields [list fields], edit and delete functionality, and basic authentication with NextAuth. Deploy-ready on Vercel.
API with TypeScript
Build a Next.js API with TypeScript for [describe purpose]. Endpoints: [list endpoints with method, path and description]. Each endpoint should: validate inputs with zod, return typed responses, handle errors with appropriate status codes, and include JSDoc comments. Include a README with curl examples for each endpoint.
Real-time feature
Add a real-time [feature — chat, notifications, live updates] to this Next.js application using Supabase Realtime. When [describe what triggers an update], all connected clients should see the update immediately without refreshing. Handle reconnection if the websocket disconnects.

Tips for getting the most from v0

Reference specific shadcn/ui components. v0 knows every shadcn/ui component. When you want a specific UI pattern, name the component: "use the shadcn Command component for the search", "use the shadcn Sheet for the mobile sidebar". This produces more consistent, better-quality output than describing the behaviour abstractly.

Describe the data model. When building a full-stack feature, describe your data model in the prompt: "users have id, email, name, created_at. posts have id, title, body, author_id (foreign key to users), published_at". v0 will generate code that matches your actual database schema rather than inventing one.

Use the fork feature for experiments. v0 lets you fork any version of your project to try a different approach without losing what you have. Use this when you want to explore two different design directions or two different implementation approaches in parallel.

Technical background

v0 is built by Vercel, the company that created and maintains Next.js — the most widely used React framework for production applications. According to Vercel's official communications, v0 uses GPT-5 (OpenAI's latest model) for generation, which Vercel describes as providing superior understanding of complex UI requirements.

v0 generates code using shadcn/ui — a component library built on Radix UI and styled with Tailwind CSS. shadcn/ui is notable because it is not a package that you install — it is a collection of components that you copy into your own project and own entirely. This means code generated by v0 has no hidden runtime dependency on a component library: it is fully your code from the moment it is generated.

Database integrations (April 2026)

v0 supports native integrations with Supabase, Neon, Vercel Postgres and other PostgreSQL providers. It also integrates with Vercel's Blob storage for file uploads and Vercel KV for key-value storage. Per the independent vibe coding comparison published December 2025, v0 allows choosing database providers in a few clicks — a level of flexibility that Replit and Lovable do not offer.

Deployment

v0 applications deploy to Vercel with one click. Vercel provides preview URLs for every deployment, detailed logs, analytics, edge functions and global CDN. Per Vercel's official documentation, the deployment creates a full Vercel project with all standard Vercel features — automatic deploys, environment management, team access controls.

Pricing (verified April 2026)

  • Free: $5 monthly credits — enough for light component generation
  • Pro: $20/user/month — higher monthly credit limit
  • Team: $30/user/month — team features and higher limits
  • Enterprise: Custom — SOC2, audit logs, SAML SSO
Primary sources cited in this guide
  • v0.dev — Official v0 platform
  • vercel.com — Vercel official site and documentation
  • ui.shadcn.com — shadcn/ui component library documentation