Category · 24 posts
Vibe coding works great until you try to ship to production. Then the security holes, the missing auth, the database that doesn't scale, the AI hallucinating critical business logic — it all comes due at once.
This cluster is the honest version of what vibe coding actually delivers in 2026. Hands-on reviews of every major tool (Cursor, Claude Code, Bolt, Lovable, Replit, base44, Windsurf, Codex). Comparisons that name the trade-offs. And rescue case studies from real client work — what breaks, how to fix it, when to keep the AI code vs. start over.
Quick Answer
Curated by Justin McKelvey · 24 posts in this cluster · Updated June 2026
Seven AI coding agents are worth using in 2026 — Claude Code, OpenAI Codex, Cursor, Windsurf, Bolt, Lovable, and Replit Agent. Here's how each one stacks up on pricing, autonomy, and fit.
Claude Code and Cursor are the two most important AI coding tools in 2026. They're not competing — they solve different problems. Here's when to use each (and why most serious developers run both).
Supabase vs Firebase in 2026: Supabase is 3–5x cheaper for the same workload, gives you SQL + open-source escape hatches. Firebase wins for mobile-first and complex offline. Full breakdown with pricing math, code snippets, and the migration story.
Base44 is the AI app builder Wix bought for $80M, six months after launch. 2M+ users by 2026. Here's the honest review — what works, what breaks, and whether the Wix acquisition made it better or worse.
Supabase vs Firebase in 2026: Supabase is 3–5x cheaper for the same workload, gives you SQL + open-source escape hatches. Firebase wins for mobile-first and complex offline. Full breakdown with pricing math, code snippets, and the migration story.
Base44 vs Lovable in 2026: both ship full-stack apps from prompts at ~$16-$25/month. Base44 bundles its own database; Lovable uses Supabase. The real differences (and which one to pick for what).
Replit vs Lovable in 2026: Replit is a browser IDE + Agent for code-curious builders. Lovable is a prompt-to-app generator for non-coders. Pricing, workflow, and which wins for what.
Base44 is the AI app builder Wix bought for $80M in 2025. It generates full-stack apps from text prompts — frontend, backend, database, auth, and hosting all included. Here's what it is, how it works, and who it's for.
Railway vs Vercel in 2026: Vercel is unbeatable for Next.js frontends + edge. Railway is the lower-cost full-stack play for SaaS that needs a database. Real cost math, when each wins, and why I deploy my own consultancy site on Railway.
Claude Code and OpenAI Codex are both terminal-native autonomous coding agents. Here's the honest comparison after shipping production work in each — pricing, focus discipline, model lineup, and when to use which.
Cursor is an AI-first IDE. OpenAI Codex is a terminal-native autonomous agent. They're often compared, but they target different workflows. Here's when each one wins.
Seven AI coding agents are worth using in 2026 — Claude Code, OpenAI Codex, Cursor, Windsurf, Bolt, Lovable, and Replit Agent. Here's how each one stacks up on pricing, autonomy, and fit.
Six months with Claude Code. Honest review covering pricing, models, focus discipline, code quality, and the kind of work it's actually best at — from a fractional CTO who ships in it daily.
Six months with OpenAI Codex. Honest review covering pricing, models, autonomy, code quality, and the kind of work it's actually best at — from a fractional CTO who ships in it daily.
I shipped two production features this month — one in Cursor, one in Windsurf. Here's the honest comparison: pricing, agent mode, code quality, and when each one actually wins.
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