The Last-Mile Editor for your Code
Not a mockup — the real, running app. Import any repo, restyle it live on a canvas, ask AI on your own key, then commit straight to your Git. The code stays yours: open source, local-first, no lock-in.
Why Nova
Most tools force a trade: a prompt box that hides your code, or an editor with no canvas. Nova gives you the canvas, the code, the live app, and AI — over files that never stop being yours.
HTML, JSX, TSX and Tailwind — any framework, any repo, even a single pasted component. Not locked to one stack.
Boot the entire project in the browser and edit it as it actually runs — not a faked preview of a static mock.
Local-first and fully open source. Files live on your disk, changes go through your Git, AI runs on your device or your own key. No backend, no lock-in.
Nova Lite runs a coding model right in your browser — free, private, no key. Want more power? Bring your own key, or upgrade to a managed Nova model. Either way it edits your real files and the canvas updates instantly.
Direct manipulation never burns a token. Use AI when you want leverage, your mouse when you don't — you choose the cost.
Design, code, run, and commit in a single place. No export step, no handoff, no context-switch between tools.
How it works
Clone a full GitHub repo, open a folder from disk, or paste a component. Nova works in your browser — no upload, no account.
Click any element and shape real CSS with a full inspector, or ask the built-in AI to make the change. Edits round-trip to source.
Boot the whole app live in the browser, review a clean diff, then commit, push, or open a pull request — without leaving the tab.
Webflow-grade controls over live code. Layout, spacing, typography, color, effects — with a layer tree, breakpoints, preview, and a built-in code editor.
Select, restyle, and rewrite text right on the rendered page — what you see is the real DOM.
Navigate nested structure, collapse branches, and jump straight to the source line in the built-in editor.
Design across desktop, tablet, and mobile breakpoints, then flip into a true preview mode.
Style + Settings tabs, flexbox & grid, an assets manager, and a drag-in palette of sections, buttons, and more.
Pin comments anywhere on the canvas, and invite teammates as editors, commenters, or viewers — synced in the cloud.
Nova edits your files, not a proprietary format. Leave any time with code that reads like you wrote it.
Works with
A marketing page, a component library, your docs, or a whole repo — Nova opens the code you already have. HTML · JSX · TSX · Tailwind.
Compare
The only editor that runs your real app and ships to your own Git.
Scroll the table sideways to compare →
| Feature | ✦ Nova | Tempo | Onlook | CSS Studio |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Framework reach (today) | Framework-agnostic* — React, Next.js, Vite, HTML, JSX/TSX, Tailwind + CSS · any repo | React + Vite + Tailwind | Next.js + Tailwind | React, HTML, Vue, Svelte, Angular, Tailwind |
| Runs your real app in the browser | Yes — WebContainers — plus a native runner when projects outgrow the tab | No | No — Points at your localhost | No — You run it |
| Round-trips to your own Git | Yes — Commit, push & PRs | Partial — Partial | Yes — Writes to your local code | Yes — Via your agent |
| Where AI runs | On your device, or your own key | Tempo servers (credits) | Hosted AI | Your own agent |
| Visual edits cost tokens | Never | Varies | Varies | No — agent writes |
| Code ownership | Your Git — open source | Its starter-repo format | Your local code — open source | Your code, agent writes |
| Pricing | Free · Pro $8/mo | Free / $30 / $4,500 mo | OSS free · cloud sales-led | $99 one-time |
* Nova runs any framework with a dev or start script — Vite, Next.js, CRA, Astro, Remix, Nuxt, SvelteKit, Gatsby, Angular and more. Full click-to-edit today covers React / Next.js (JSX/TSX) and static HTML; other frameworks run live and stay editable in Code view.
Comparison based on each tool’s public docs as of June 2026. Competitors evolve — corrections welcome.
Pricing
The editor is free forever — your code, your keys, your machine. Upgrade when you want your projects backed up and synced across every device.
Everything you need to edit and ship.
Your work, backed up and synced everywhere.
Build together, with AI built in.
Prices in USD · cancel anytime. Cloud sync is the only paid feature today — the editor itself stays free.
Open source
Built to be modified, themed, and forked. It's all yours — go nuts; that's the whole point.
Free to start · invite-only alpha