The vibe coder’s tech stack

If you’ve spent any time on dev corners of YouTube or X lately, you’ve probably heard of vibe coding. This new wave of coding culture is more than just hype, it’s a genuine shift in how people are building software.

With the rise of tools like Lovable, Bolt, Cursor, and easy to use databases like Supabase, the process of creating full web apps is getting faster, easier, and cheaper. In fact, it’s now possible to ship a live product for free using nothing more than a laptop, GitHub account, and a good idea.

With so many articles about vibe coding and many tools flooding the market, the real question is: What stack should you use if you actually want to build and launch something real? In this article, I’m going to walk you through the perfect tech stack for vibe coders.

The vibe coding journey

My vibe coding journey looks like this: design, build, review, and deploy. When I want to build a project I start with mapping out the user experience visually, including what I want each screen to do, sometimes that’s a quick mind map to clarify features and flow.

But if you’re building something you plan to ship or monetize, I would recommend you move into Figma. Designing in Figma forces clarity around layout, structure, and user flow, and it saves hours later in the build stage.

Once the design feels right, I start building the frontend, by moving to my vibe coding tool of choice and then I review the code and finally, I deploy it live. Let’s take a closer look at each step.

1. Turn vibes into visuals with Figma

You can dive straight into vibe coding by prompting an AI to build the entire app from scratch. But if you're serious about building something real, you need to think about the design and user flow from the start. If you dive straight into prompting you end up building the AI’s interpretation of your idea, not your actual vision.

That’s why Figma is where vibe coding should begin. Designing in Figma gives you full control over the user experience, letting you build intentionally rather than reactively.

It’s also highly practical. Tools like Lovable, Bolt.new, and even some VS Code extensions directly support Figma imports. If you take the time to name your components, use auto layout, and organize screens clearly, you’ll save hours during the build phase. Instead of blindly prompting your way through UI, you’re translating your vision into working code.

2. Build in Lovable

Lovable.dev is arguably the most intuitive tool in the vibe coder’s toolbox. After importing your Figma design, Lovable generates clean, editable React code and gives you a visual interface to tweak layout, logic, and styling.

Lovable’s interface is simple and responsive, and you can use natural language prompts to make changes or add features without leaving the visual builder. You might find yourself needing to tweak and prompt to your taste and vision.

What makes Lovable ideal for vibe coding is how quickly you can go from visual design to working app. You don’t need to worry about folder structure or component setup, Lovable takes care of this.

Lovable also comes with native integration for Supabase, making it easy to connect your app to a real backend. You can wire up authentication, databases, and storage with just a few clicks, no custom API needed.

Or build in Bolt

Bolt is a powerful vibe coding tool designed for both frontend and full-stack development. You can import your Figma URL and instantly turn your designs into editable code, making it perfect for building fast, visual-first applications. The interface is clean and intuitive, allowing you to prompt the AI to generate layouts, add components, or modify elements in real time, all without leaving your browser.

I personally prefer Lovable, but I can’t deny that Bolt edges out Lovable with its 1-click deploy feature. Once your project is ready, you can push it live with zero configuration, no need to set up hosting or connect third-party services.  You can honestly go from prototype to production in a matter of minutes.

If you want to build fast, iterate freely, and deploy instantly, Bolt is a rock-solid choice for any vibe coding project.

Here’s a tutorial on deploying a SaaS app in minutes with Bolt:

Supabase for your backend

Whether you use Bolt or Lovable, one thing remains constant, you need a backend. Whether you want users to sign up, save data, or if you need to upload files, you need a backend. Supabase, the open-source answer to Firebase, is the easiest and most vibe-aligned option for that. It gives you a fully managed PostgreSQL database, RESTful and real-time APIs, file storage, authentication, and row-level security.

Supabase is built for fast prototyping and real scaling with minimal configuration. You don’t have to spin up a server, build your own auth logic, or manage databases manually. Everything works quickly and cleanly.

My favorite feature is Supabase’s AI assistant. It’s perfect if you don’t have much experience with databases and managing backends. You can describe what you want in plain English, like “create a table for blog posts with title, content, and published status” and the AI will generate the SQL or perform the action for you.

Whether you're writing queries, updating schema, or debugging API issues, the assistant helps you move fast without getting stuck. For vibe coders, it's like having a backend co-pilot that speaks your language and keeps you building.

Sync Supabase with Airtable using Whalesync

Supabase is powerful, but I’ll be honest, editing data directly through SQL can get tedious fast. If you’re constantly adding, updating, or managing structured data, using Airtable as your admin panel for your database will save you serious time.

With Whalesync, you can sync your data between Supabase and Airtable in real time. Instead of writing SQL queries to constantly update your database, you can use Airtable’s clean spreadsheet interface to add or update data, and Whalesync will automatically push those changes into your Supabase tables.

Whalesync makes it easy for you to manage dynamic app content without ever touching a query. 

3. Code review with AI

Traditionally, another developer would review your code by combing through your code to catch bugs, suggest improvements before merging. This is called code review. But if you’re vibe coding, chances are you don’t have another developer at hand to review the AI generated code.

You can review your own code instantly using AI code review tools. When it comes to reviewing your code with AI, you have two options, use an LLM or an AI code review tool. If you’re going to use an LLM, my personal recommendation is Grok or Claude Sonnet 3.7.

Regarding AI code review tools, there are two standout options. CodeRabbit and Greptile. 

They connect to your GitHub repository, scan your codebase, and leave comments directly on pull requests, just like a fellow developer would. You can even ask follow-up questions or request refactors using natural language.

Vibe coding tools are fast, but they’re not perfect. Sometimes the code might be wrong, other times it might be buggy. Reviewing your code ensures your app works as it's supposed to.

4. Deploy your app

When it comes to deploying your app, you have a few options, you can use  platforms like Vercel, Netlify, and Cloudflare Pages, all of which offer free hosting with smooth GitHub integration. Once your code is pushed to GitHub, setting up automated deployment is quite simple. These platforms detect your framework, run your build script, and generate a live URL within minutes.

Personally, I’ve used Vercel the most.  It’s fast, beginner-friendly, and works especially well for frontend frameworks like Next.js or React. You simply connect your GitHub account, select the repo you want to deploy, and Vercel handles the rest. No complicated environment setup, no custom scripts,  just click “Deploy” and you’re live. You can also go ahead and add your domain to your app.

Bonus: Version control with GitHub

As soon as your app grows beyond a few screens, you’ll need version control, and GitHub remains the gold standard. It’s not just for collaboration; it’s your source of truth. You’ll push code, track changes, manage updates, and unlock the ability to auto-deploy.

With every push, you can monitor what’s been added or changed, collaborate more easily if you bring others in, and most importantly use features like automatic deployment with platforms like Vercel or Netlify. It keeps your workflow clean and your project future-proof.

Every change you make is saved as a commit, with a short message explaining what was done. Commits are what make version control possible. They let you see exactly how your project has evolved, undo errors, and collaborate with others without stepping on each other’s work.

Here’s a quick snapshot of my own commit history for an app I’m vibe coding, each line represents a saved step in the development of my app.

What’s next: Building it all together

We’ve walked through the tech stack, from designing in Figma, to building with like Lovable and , reviewing code with AI, syncing data with Whalesync, and deploying live with GitHub and Vercel. You now have everything you need to start building confidently.

In the next article, I’m going to put it all together and walk you through a real vibe-coded app using the exact tools we covered here. I’ll show you how I’m building an educational directory, step-by-step, from designing the layout to wiring up the backend, syncing data, and going live. It’ll be a full-stack walkthrough designed to help you see how this stack works in practice.

Stay tuned, we’re about to ship something real. In the meantime, sign up for Whalesync to start syncing your data for your vibe coding app.