Compare Your Options

How to build your MVP,compared honestly.

In 2026, founders weigh the same options at once: an agency, vibe coding it themselves, a freelancer or fractional CTO, or an AI-native studio. Here's how they stack up.

What are the options for building an MVP?

There are four common paths: hire an MVP agency, vibe-code it yourself with Lovable/Bolt/ Cursor, hire a freelancer or fractional CTO, or use an AI-native product studio. Each wins on a different axis — speed, cost, control, security, or judgment. The guides below compare them head-on so you can pick deliberately.

MVP agency vs. vibe coding it yourself

When to keep building in Lovable/Bolt/Cursor, when to hire — and the hybrid most founders actually want.

Lovable / Bolt / Cursor vs. hiring a studio

What AI builders are great at, where they break, and what a studio adds (security, scale, ownership).

Not sure where you are? Read about the 70% wall or get a free 48-hour audit.