Lovable or Base44: which should a UK business choose to build an app with AI?
Choose Lovable if you have a design or a developer who will carry the code on: it imports Figma and screenshots, builds on a Supabase database and includes your own domain on every paid plan. Choose Base44 if the app has to work inside Gmail, Slack, HubSpot or Stripe and your operations team will look after it; it also includes your own domain on every paid plan.
Both build an application rather than a brochure site, both price as a base plan plus metered AI credits, and both bill UK customers in US dollars. The difference is the workflow around the AI: designer-and-developer on one side, business tools on the other. For a marketing site rather than an app, see Framer vs Webflow.
Plans and pricing checked October 2026, and every figure below is read live from our pricing database and checked against each vendor's own pricing page. The table and calculator rank on published prices only, and we may earn a commission if you buy through our links, which never changes that order.
Lovable vs Base44 pricing: the plan is a floor, not a total
Lovable's entry paid plan is £19/mo (Pro) and Base44's is £15/mo (Starter). Neither ties you in: the billing basis row reads True monthly for Lovable and True monthly for Base44, and the contract row reads None and None.
The meter is the difference. Lovable's AI usage row reads 100/mo on Pro and on Business. Base44's reads 25 message credits/mo (Free) to 1,200 (Elite), and on Base44 the monthly message allowance is the real constraint. The Custom domain row no longer divides them: Base44's reads Starter plan and above and Lovable's reads Paid plans only, so an app on your own .co.uk sits on a paid plan with either, from the first one. What Base44 does reserve for its Builder plan and above is the model selector and the GitHub sync.
The calculator takes Websites (set it to the number of apps you plan to run), Users, Own domain and Sell online?. Leave Own domain on Yes and each estimate sets the free plan aside and selects the first paid plan that covers your other inputs; the Custom domain rows carry each vendor's wording. Treat both estimates as a floor: the AI is metered on top, building is iterative, and the plan you need depends on how often you rebuild.
What each one builds
Both belong to the application half of this category. In the vendors' own words the AI does Builds custom websites and web apps by chat (Lovable) and Builds full-stack apps and websites by chat (Base44). Backend and database: Full-stack: Supabase (Postgres) + auth for Lovable, Yes, full-stack (database + auth + payments) for Base44.
They part at the first prompt. Lovable offers no templates (None, output is generated) but accepts a design (design import: Figma + image import). Base44 starts you from Community app templates gallery, and its design import row reads No. A firm with brand guidelines and a designer notices that on the first morning; one that needs a stock tracker by Friday may be glad of the template.
- Online store: Lovable Buildable, including payments, Base44 Buildable, payments included
- Team members: Lovable Unlimited on every plan, Base44 Multi-user editing on every plan
- Storage: Lovable Included in the credit grant, Base44 Cloud storage included
Buildable is the right word: neither hands you a finished checkout, and a checkout means order state, refunds and failed payments.
Who is each one built for
Lovable's integrations (Stripe, Supabase, GitHub, custom APIs) are a developer's list: a payment processor, a database, a code host and any API you point it at. That suits a founder with a technical co-founder, or a contractor lined up to take over.
Base44's integrations (Gmail, Slack, Notion, Google Drive, HubSpot, Salesforce, Stripe) are an operations list: inbox, chat, notes, file store, CRMs and a payment processor. That suits an internal tool, a client portal or a booking flow that writes a record into HubSpot or posts to a Slack channel.
Support splits the same way: Community and email for Lovable, Premium support on Elite for Base44. Community and email suits a founder who can read a stack trace. A firm whose client portal is how customers pay wants to know which plan carries a quicker answer.
The AI model, and whether you can change it
Lovable runs on Anthropic Claude and lets you move between tiers (Choose your AI: Yes, Claude tiers (Sonnet/Opus)), but not to another vendor's model. Base44 treats the model as a plan feature (AI model: Selectable (model select on Builder+); Choose your AI: Yes, model selector (Builder+)).
The row earns its place when the generator sticks on the one feature you needed. A different model is a lever where your plan offers one; check what it does to your credit use before you rely on it.
Custom domain, export and what you keep
Neither free plan reaches your own domain: Lovable's free plan row reads Yes, 5 lovable.app domains, no custom domain and Base44's reads Yes, up to 5 apps, no custom domain. An app on a vendor subdomain does not belong on a quotation or a VAT invoice, so treat both as a test. Every paid plan on either carries your own domain, so the row that tells them apart is Export rather than Custom domain.
- Sites per plan: Lovable Unlimited on paid plans, Base44 Unlimited apps on paid plans (5 on Free)
- Export: Lovable Yes, GitHub sync, Base44 Yes, two-way GitHub sync (Builder+)
- Hosting: Lovable Yes, covered by the credit grant, Base44 Yes, production infrastructure
Both export to GitHub, with Base44's two-way sync beginning on its Builder plan, so neither holds the code hostage; what differs is what the code needs to run. Lovable's database is Supabase (Postgres), and its hosting row says running the app draws on the same credit grant as building it. Base44's backend is integrated into its platform, so an exported app takes more work to re-home. If the app is the business, Export and Backend matter more than the price.
Paying in dollars, VAT and UK GDPR for an app that holds customer data
Neither bills in sterling (local pricing: No, US dollars only for Lovable, No, US dollars only for Base44). The table converts to pounds at a recorded rate; your card is charged at the rate on the day. Many UK business cards add a non-sterling transaction fee that never shows on the vendor's invoice. If you are VAT registered, software bought from a vendor outside the UK is normally accounted for under the reverse charge, so compare the ex-VAT figure; below the threshold the amount charged is what you pay. Ask your accountant.
The weightier question is the data. An app holds customer records, logins and perhaps payments, which makes you the controller under UK GDPR and the builder a processor acting for you. That means a written processing agreement, a privacy notice that says where the data goes, a lawful basis for each use and a retention period you can defend. Records held outside the UK are an international transfer that needs a lawful route, so ask both vendors where the database is hosted: Lovable's sits in Supabase (Postgres), so ask which region; Base44's is integrated, so ask Base44. If the app sends marketing email or sets analytics cookies, PECR applies too: consent first, an unsubscribe in every send, and a Reject button as easy to find as Accept. This is not legal advice; the ICO's small-organisation guidance is worth an hour.
The verdict
Settle it with one question: once the app is live, who looks after it? If a developer, take Lovable. The code sits in GitHub, the database is Postgres on Supabase, and your own domain comes with the first paid plan. If your operations team, take Base44. Its integrations are the tools they already open, a community template shortens the first week, your own domain comes with every paid plan here too, and the model selector and GitHub sync begin on its Builder plan. Set Websites to the number of apps you plan to run, leave Own domain on Yes, and compare the plans the calculator selects. Neither figure is a total: the AI meter sits on top, the exchange rate moves the sterling amount, and you become a data controller the day a customer logs in.