Level up · before you start

From Replit, Lovable or Base44 to Claude Code.

Built your app in a browser tool and never used Claude Code or Cursor? Here is how to level up once before you level up with us: your code on GitHub, on your computer, with an agent that understands it. About an hour, no coding needed.

Start the guideAlready there? Skip to the level up

Why move at all?

Browser builders are great at the first version. Getting that version ready for real users takes work they are not built for: reviewing every change, testing, a proper release. That work happens where professional teams work: code on GitHub, an agent on your computer. Seven steps get you there.

  1. 01 Create a GitHub account

    GitHub is where your code lives outside the builder. It keeps every version, and every serious coding tool knows how to read it.

    1. Go to github.com/signup and create a free account.
    2. Turn on two-factor authentication (Settings → Password and authentication). Your code is your business; protect it like your bank.

  2. 02 Move your app's code to GitHub

    Every builder can hand its code to GitHub. The menu names change now and then; look for GitHub, Export or Download.

    • Lovable: open the project, choose GitHub → Connect, and let it create the repository. Lovable keeps it in sync both ways.
    • Replit: open the Git tool in your Repl, connect your GitHub account, create a repository and push.
    • Base44: use the GitHub export, or download the code, then create a new repository on GitHub and upload it.
    • Bolt: use the GitHub integration, or Export → Download and upload it to a new repository.

    Make the repository private unless you mean to share it.

  3. 03 Get the basics on your computer

    Two free tools, installed once:

    • Git, to copy the code to your computer and send changes back: git-scm.com/downloads. On a Mac it is often already there; type git --version in the Terminal to check.
    • Node.js (the LTS version), which most apps built in these tools need to run: nodejs.org.

    Prefer buttons to a terminal? GitHub Desktop does the next step with a click.

  4. 04 Copy the code to your computer

    On your repository's GitHub page, click Code and copy the address. Then, in a terminal:

    git clone https://github.com/your-name/your-app.git
cd your-app

    That folder is your app. Everything from here happens inside it.

  5. 05 Set up Claude Code (or Cursor)

    Claude Code is an AI coding agent that works in your terminal, inside your project folder. Install it:

    # macOS, Linux, WSL
curl -fsSL https://claude.ai/install.sh | bash

# Windows (PowerShell)
irm https://claude.ai/install.ps1 | iex

    Then, in your app's folder, start it with claude. The first time, it opens your browser to sign in with your Claude account. Claude Code needs a paid Claude plan or API credits.

    Prefer an editor? Cursor is a code editor with the same kind of agent built in: install it, Open Folder, pick your app's folder, and talk to the agent in the side panel.

  6. 06 Run your app on your computer

    Ask the agent to do it with you. Good first sentences:

    • Explain this project to me: what it does, how it is organised, how to run it.
    • Install what this app needs and start it locally. Usually that is npm install, then npm run dev.
    • Which settings or keys does it need? The builder kept them for you (database address, API keys). Copy them into a .env file, and never commit that file.

    When the app opens in your browser at localhost, you have levelled up once: the app is yours, on your machine, and an agent that understands it sits next to you.

  7. 07 Keep GitHub and the builder in step

    Save your work with a commit and push it back (or ask the agent: commit and push this). If you still edit in Lovable or another two-way builder, pull before you start (git pull) so the two never drift apart.

Now level up with us.

Your app is on your computer and an agent sits next to it. Add ProdReady to Claude Code with one line, sign in with your email, then ask: is my app production-ready? The due diligence is free. When you want it fixed, say SDLC on.

claude mcp add --transport http prodready https://mcp.prodready.si/mcp --scope user

Then type /mcp, pick prodready, choose Authenticate. In Cursor, add https://mcp.prodready.si/mcp under Settings → MCP.

Start free due diligenceWhat levelling up means

Questions

Do I need to know how to code?

No. You need to be able to open a terminal or an editor and read what the agent tells you. The agent writes the code; you decide what you want and check the result.

Can I keep using Lovable, Replit or Base44?

Yes. Your code on GitHub is a copy you control. Many people keep designing in the builder and do the heavy lifting with Claude Code or Cursor; pull before you edit so the two stay in step.

Is Claude Code free?

Claude Code needs a paid Claude plan or API credits. Cursor has a free tier and paid plans. The ProdReady due diligence is free in either.

Claude Code or Cursor?

Both work with ProdReady. Claude Code lives in the terminal and is the most direct. Cursor is an editor with the agent built in, which many people find easier to start with.