Lovable Boilerplate

Reverse-engineered Lovable AI app builder turned into a developer-friendly React boilerplate with comprehensive AI coding assistant instructions.

One-Click Setup

What is this?

This boilerplate reverse-engineers the magic behind Lovable's no-code AI app builder into a traditional React codebase that developers can understand, modify, and extend. It bridges the gap between no-code AI generation and developer control.

💡 Built something with Lovable or using this boilerplate?
Upgrade to a fullstack Next.js app in minutes with NextLovable.com
Get production-ready performance, better SEO, and full control.

Tech Stack

Technology	Purpose	Version
React	UI Library	18.3.1
TypeScript	Type Safety	5.5.3
Vite	Build Tool	5.4.1
shadcn/ui	Component Library	Latest
Tailwind CSS	Styling	3.4.11
React Router	Navigation	6.26.2
TanStack Query	Data Fetching	5.56.2
React Hook Form	Form Handling	7.53.0
Zod	Schema Validation	3.23.8

Prerequisites

• Node.js 18+ or Bun
• Git

Installation

# Clone the repository
git clone https://github.com/chihebnabil/lovable-boilerplate.git
cd lovable-boilerplate

# Install dependencies (npm, yarn, or bun)
npm install
# or
bun install

# Start development server
npm run dev
# or
bun dev

Your app will be running at http://localhost:8080

AI Coding Assistant Instructions

This boilerplate is optimized for AI coding assistants like GitHub Copilot and Cursor. All comprehensive instructions are located in:

.github/instructions/global.instructions.md

These instructions include:

• Modern Design Guidelines - Create premium, contemporary interfaces
• Architecture Patterns - Project structure and best practices
• Component Usage - How to use shadcn/ui components effectively
• Development Workflow - Adding features, pages, and functionality
• Styling System - Color palettes, spacing, typography, and animations
• Responsive Design - Mobile-first development principles

For AI Assistants (Copilot/Cursor users):

Simply reference the instructions file when working on this project. The AI will understand the project structure, styling guidelines, and development patterns automatically.

Project Structure

lovable-boilerplate/
├── .github/
│   └── instructions/           # AI coding assistant instructions
│       └── global.instructions.md
├── src/
│   ├── components/ui/          # shadcn/ui components (40+ pre-built)
│   ├── hooks/                  # Custom React hooks
│   ├── lib/                    # Utility functions
│   ├── pages/                  # Route components
│   │   ├── Index.tsx           # Home page (/)
│   │   └── NotFound.tsx        # 404 page
│   ├── App.tsx                 # Main app with routing
│   ├── main.tsx                # Entry point
│   └── index.css               # Global styles
├── public/                     # Static assets
├── package.json                # Dependencies
├── vite.config.ts              # Vite configuration  
├── tailwind.config.ts          # Tailwind configuration
├── components.json             # shadcn/ui configuration
└── tsconfig.json               # TypeScript configuration

Available Components

UI Components (40+ ready-to-use)

All components are pre-configured with shadcn/ui and located in src/components/ui/:

Layout & Navigation

• accordion, card, separator, sheet, sidebar, tabs
• breadcrumb, command, dropdown-menu, menubar, navigation-menu, pagination

Forms & Inputs

• button, input, textarea, select, checkbox, radio-group, switch, form
• calendar, input-otp, slider, toggle

Feedback & Overlays

• alert, alert-dialog, toast, sonner, progress, skeleton
• dialog, drawer, hover-card, popover, tooltip

Data Display

• avatar, badge, table, chart, carousel
• aspect-ratio, collapsible, resizable, scroll-area

Layout Principles

• Generous Spacing: py-16 lg:py-24 for sections
• Consistent Rhythm: space-y-4 lg:space-y-6 for content
• Responsive First: Mobile-first responsive design
• Typography Scale: Hierarchical text sizing

Development Commands

# Development
npm run dev          # Start dev server (port 8080)
npm run build        # Production build  
npm run build:dev    # Development build
npm run preview      # Preview production build
npm run lint         # Run ESLint

# Using Bun (faster alternative)
bun dev             # Start dev server
bun run build       # Production build

What Makes This Special?

1. Reverse-Engineered: Based on patterns from Lovable's AI app builder
2. AI-Optimized: Designed specifically for AI coding assistants
3. Design-First: Premium visual design out of the box
4. Performance: Lightning-fast development and build times
5. Flexible: Easy to customize and extend
6. Modern: Latest React patterns and best practices

Contributing

We welcome contributions! This project aims to provide the best possible starting point for AI-assisted React development.

1. Fork the repository
2. Create a feature branch
3. Make your changes
4. Submit a pull request

License

MIT License - feel free to use this for any project!

Acknowledgments

• Lovable.dev - Inspiration for the AI-first development approach
• shadcn/ui - Excellent component library and design system
• Vercel - Amazing tooling ecosystem (React, Vite, etc.)
• Tailwind Labs - Revolutionary CSS framework

Happy coding!