The Base44 alternative
where the plan isn’t a chat.
Plan on pages you can move, not in a thread that charges by the message. Then a team of AI employees builds exactly that.
- Every page
- On one canvas, before code
- Drag it
- Your own edits are free
- Your repo
- Two-way GitHub sync
- From $20
- Three days free
What’s the best Base44 alternative?
If you think in pages, HuntingHydra.
Base44 plans in a Discuss thread, about 0.3 credits a message, then builds. HuntingHydra lays every page and its data out on a canvas first, and planning there is yours to do for free. Then AI employees design, write and build exactly that. From $20 a month.
- You want the plan to be something you can see
- You want the edge cases drawn before the build
- You don’t want to pay to think out loud
- You want the cheapest paid plan
- You want a backend with no setup at all
- You need a free plan past three days
Build, look, prompt, repeat. Or see the whole app first.
Base44’s visual edits are free, dragging included, and fix the page in front of you. Everything else is another round: prompt, build, look again. Here every page is laid out, moved and agreed before the first build, so the rounds happen on pages, not in code.
Nadia · drawingEvery page, sketched and designed. Before any code.
See every page of your app as a sketch first, then the same pages designed. Drag the line.
WireframeDesign
Base44 pricing vs HuntingHydra.
Base44 Starter is $16 a month billed yearly, for 100 message credits, and every Discuss message spends about 0.3 of them. HuntingHydra starts at $20 a month. Planning on the canvas yourself is free; only the AI employees’ work uses tokens.
An example first week, at 0.3 credits a message
- Lay out four screens−3.6
- Fix the onboarding copy−1.8
- Move buttons, try two layouts−3.3
- Rethink the swap flow−2.4
- Lay out four screensNadia, on your plan
- Fix the onboarding copyJonah, on your plan
- Move buttons, try two layoutsfree, you drag them
- Rethink the swap flowfree, you drag them
Base44 vs HuntingHydra, side by side.
Every row, read off Base44’s own pricing and docs on 26 September 2026.
| Question | Base44 | HuntingHydra |
|---|---|---|
| Planning | ||
| What the plan is | A Discuss thread | Pages you can move |
| What planning costs | About 0.3 credits a message | Nothing, on the canvas |
| Edge cases | Found when you run it | Drawn as boards first |
| Design | ||
| Edit visually | Yes, free, dragging included | Yes, free |
| Who designs it | One AI, as it builds | Anouk, three directions first |
| Build | ||
| Backend, auth, hosting | Built in | Postgres, accounts, a live URL |
| Your code | Two-way GitHub sync | Two-way GitHub sync |
| After launch | ||
| Go to market | Not included | AI employees launch it and grow it |
| Price | ||
| Paid plan | From $16 a month, yearly | From $20 |
| Free | 25 messages a month | 3 days, every AI employee on |
Base44’s column read on 26 September 2026 off base44.com/pricing and Credits. If a row has moved, tell us and we’ll fix it.
Switching from Base44? Keep your repo.
Base44 syncs your code to GitHub both ways, so moving over starts by connecting that repo.
Connect the repo
Your code comes in with its history, and the sync runs both ways from then on.
Devi builds on it
He reads what’s there first. If it isn’t Next.js yet, he moves it across as he builds.
Plan only what’s next
Nadia lays out the pages you haven’t built, with the data behind them.
Built, then launched and grown.
The same team keeps going once it’s live: the launch posts, the search traffic and the emails that bring people back.
Base44 alternative: common questions.
How is HuntingHydra different from Base44?
Base44 plans in a Discuss thread and builds from it. HuntingHydra plans on a canvas of pages you can move, and AI employees each do one job: plan, design, write, build.
What does planning cost on Base44?
About 0.3 message credits for each Discuss message. A small build change is about 0.5 and generating app logic about 1.5. Planning on the canvas here is yours to do for free.
Is HuntingHydra cheaper than Base44?
Base44’s first paid plan is cheaper: $16 a month billed yearly, against our $20. What you get for it is different: a metered chat, against a canvas where your own edits never count.
Can I move my Base44 app here?
Yes. Base44 syncs to GitHub; connect that repo and the code comes in with its history, syncing both ways. Devi moves it to Next.js as he builds, working from your code.
Can I build a full stack app with a real database?
Yes. Next.js with Postgres, accounts with roles and a live URL. The schema is drawn on the canvas before the build.
Does Base44 have a free plan?
Yes: 25 message credits a month and up to 5 apps. HuntingHydra has a three day trial with every AI employee on.
Other Base44 alternatives, and where each keeps the plan
- LovableA chat, with the plan in a markdown file
vs Lovable → - Bolt.newA chat thread, with Plan Mode in the chat
vs Bolt.new → - ReplitAgent’s task list, plus a design canvas of mockups
vs Replit → - v0The design you bring, from Figma or a screenshot
vs v0 → - CursorA Markdown file of file paths and to-dos
vs Cursor → - WixA site in the Wix editor, from a prompt
vs Wix →
Stop typing at a chat box. See your whole app first.
Three days free with every AI employee on, then from $20 a month.