What is Onlook?
Onlook is an AI-powered tool used for onlook is an open-source, ai-first design tool often described as "the cursor for designers": you visually build, style, and edit a real react app on an infinite canvas while onlook writes and updates the underlying code in real time. it works with any react/next.js project styled with tailwind css — import an existing codebase or start fresh — and lets you drag, drop, and restyle live components while the ai generates code that matches your architecture. because it edits actual source files rather than a throwaway mockup, onlook closes the classic designer-developer handoff gap. it is open source and self-hostable, with a free tier (limited messages) plus paid hosted plans.. Developed by Onlook and launched in 2024, it is rated 4.4/5 on tasarim.ai and is available as a paid ai ui/ux design solution.
Onlook
Onlook is an open-source, AI-first design tool often described as "the Cursor for designers": you visually build, style, and edit a real React app on an infinite canvas while Onlook writes and updates the underlying code in real time. It works with any React/Next.js project styled with Tailwind CSS — import an existing codebase or start fresh — and lets you drag, drop, and restyle live components while the AI generates code that matches your architecture. Because it edits actual source files rather than a throwaway mockup, Onlook closes the classic designer-developer handoff gap. It is open source and self-hostable, with a free tier (limited messages) plus paid hosted plans.
Key Highlights
Visually Edit Real Code
Every canvas change is written to your real React source files.
Open Source & Self-Hostable
An open alternative to closed vibe-coding tools; you keep code control.
Codebase-Aware AI
The AI reads your components and Tailwind patterns to fit your code.
About
Onlook reframes AI design around a real codebase instead of a static canvas. Marketed as "the Cursor for designers," it opens your React app on an infinite visual canvas where you can select any element, drag it, restyle it, or describe a change in natural language — and Onlook edits the actual source files (components, Tailwind classes, layout) live, so what you see is literally your production code. It runs on any Next.js + Tailwind CSS project: import an existing repo and start editing visually, or scaffold a new project inside the editor. The AI is codebase-aware, reading your React components and Tailwind patterns so its generated code fits your project's architecture rather than pasting in generic markup, and teams can work against their real Storybook design system. Its biggest strategic point is that it is fully open source — positioned as an open alternative to closed vibe-coding tools like Bolt.new, Lovable, v0, Replit Agent, and Figma Make — which means you can self-host it and keep full control of your code. Commercially, Onlook offers a free tier limited by message count, paid hosted plans for teams that want a managed experience, and a self-hosted path for engineering-led orgs. The main trade-off is scope: it is opinionated toward the React/Next.js + Tailwind stack, so it is a poor fit for non-React apps, and, like all AI code tools, generated output still benefits from developer review before shipping.
Use Cases
Designer-Developer Handoff
Design straight in code to remove handoff friction.
Live UI Tweaking
Restyle elements visually in an existing React app.
Prototype-to-Code
Start from scratch in the editor and get a production-ready codebase.
Pros & Cons
Pros
Cons
Features
- Visual editing of live React components on an infinite canvas
- Edits real source files (components + Tailwind) in real time
- Codebase-aware AI code generation
- Works with any Next.js + Tailwind CSS project
- Import existing codebase or start fresh
- Real Storybook design-system support
- Open source and self-hostable
Benchmark Results
Source: Onlook GitHub (Resmi)
Source: Onlook (Resmi)
Source: Onlook (Resmi)
Source: Onlook GitHub (Resmi)
Source: Onlook Pricing (2026)
Pricing
Free
- Limited AI messages/prompts
- Visual editing of React + Tailwind projects
- Import existing codebase
Paid (hosted)
- Higher message limits
- Managed hosting
- Team collaboration
Free (self-host)
- Full open-source codebase
- Run on your own infrastructure
- Full control of source code