Migrate from Lovable to Dyad: Local AI App Builder Setup Guide 2025

If you've been using Lovable, v0, or Bolt for AI-assisted app development, you've likely felt the friction of vendor lock-in and privacy concerns. Dyad offers a compelling alternative: a local, open-source AI app builder that runs entirely on your machine with your own API keys.

This guide walks you through migrating your workflow from Lovable to Dyad, covering setup, project migration, and optimization tips for power users.

Why Migrate from Lovable to Dyad?

Before diving into the technical steps, understand the key advantages that make this migration worthwhile:

Privacy & Control: Dyad runs locally on your machine. Your prompts, code, and AI interactions never leave your computer unless you explicitly send them to your chosen LLM provider.

No Vendor Lock-In: With Lovable, you're tied to their infrastructure and terms of service. Dyad lets you bring your own API keys (OpenAI, Anthropic, local models), maintaining complete portability.

Cost Efficiency: You pay directly for API usage rather than subscription tiers. For heavy users, this often translates to significant savings.

Speed: Local execution means faster response times and no network latency between your IDE and the AI builder.

Prerequisites

Before starting, ensure you have:

• An API key from your preferred LLM provider (OpenAI, Claude, or local model setup)
• macOS, Windows, or Linux machine with at least 4GB RAM
• Your existing Lovable projects exported or documented
• Basic familiarity with command-line tools (optional but helpful)

Step 1: Download and Install Dyad

Unlike Lovable's cloud-only approach, Dyad requires a simple local installation:

1. Visit https://www.dyad.sh/#download
2. Select your platform (Mac, Windows, or Linux)
3. Download the executable—no sign-up required
4. Run the installer and follow the platform-specific setup prompts

macOS users: You may see a security warning since Dyad isn't yet notarized. Right-click the app and select "Open" to bypass the warning on first launch.

Windows users: The installer handles PATH configuration automatically. Restart your terminal after installation.

Step 2: Configure Your AI API Keys

This is where Dyad diverges significantly from Lovable. You control which LLM powers your builder:

1. Open Dyad and navigate to Settings
2. Select "API Configuration"
3. Enter your API key for one of these providers:
   • OpenAI (GPT-4, GPT-4o)
   • Anthropic (Claude 3 Opus, Sonnet)
   • Local models (via Ollama or similar)

# Example: Verify your API key is valid with curl
curl https://api.openai.com/v1/models \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer sk-your-key-here"

Pro tip: Don't hardcode keys in environment variables. Dyad stores them securely in your local configuration directory.

Step 3: Export Projects from Lovable

While there's no automatic migration tool, exporting your Lovable work is straightforward:

1. In Lovable, open each project and select "Export"
2. Download the project as a .zip containing source code, assets, and configuration
3. Store these exports in a dedicated folder (e.g., ~/Projects/lovable-exports/)

What transfers cleanly:

• React/Vue component code
• HTML/CSS/JavaScript assets
• API endpoint configurations
• Environment variables (though you'll need to re-enter sensitive ones)

What requires manual work:

• Lovable-specific plugins or integrations
• Custom build configurations
• Third-party SaaS connectors

Step 4: Create a New Project in Dyad

1. Launch Dyad and click "New Project"
2. Choose your project template (React, Next.js, Vue, vanilla JS)
3. Name your project (e.g., lovable-migration-app)
4. Select your primary AI model from the dropdown

// Example: Dyad creates this structure automatically
project/
├── src/
│   ├── App.jsx
│   ├── components/
│   └── styles/
├── .env.local
├── package.json
└── dyad.config.json

Unlike Lovable's opinionated structure, Dyad gives you full control over folder organization.

Step 5: Port Your Code from Lovable

Now the hands-on work begins. For each exported Lovable project:

1. Open both Dyad and your exported Lovable files side-by-side
2. Copy components incrementally rather than bulk-importing (this helps catch incompatibilities)
3. Test after each component to ensure Dyad's AI understands your patterns

Migration Checklist

| Element | Lovable Approach | Dyad Approach | Notes | |---------|-----------------|---------------|-------| | State Management | Built-in hooks | Your choice (Redux, Zustand, Context) | Dyad doesn't impose patterns | | API Calls | Lovable runtime | Your implementation | Full control, no middleware | | Styling | CSS Modules/Tailwind | Your preprocessor choice | Dyad supports all standard tooling | | Deployment | Lovable hosting | You choose (Vercel, Netlify, etc.) | More flexibility, more responsibility |

Step 6: Leverage Dyad's Local AI for Refinement

Once components are in Dyad, use the local AI builder to refine them:

1. Highlight code and ask the AI to "Add error handling to this API call"
2. Request accessibility improvements: "Make this form WCAG compliant"
3. Ask for performance optimizations: "Reduce bundle size for this component"
4. All processing happens locally—no data leaves your machine

This is Dyad's killer feature compared to Lovable's cloud-only generation.

Step 7: Set Up Deployment

With Lovable, deployment was often simplified through their platform. Dyad requires you to choose your own infrastructure:

Recommended options:

• Vercel: Zero-config deployment for Next.js projects
• Netlify: Simple Git integration for any static/SPA sites
• Render: Good for full-stack apps with backends
• DigitalOcean App Platform: Self-hosted alternative

# Example: Deploy to Vercel from Dyad project
vercel deploy --prod

Common Migration Issues and Solutions

Issue: "Dyad AI doesn't understand my custom component patterns"

• Solution: Add inline comments explaining your architecture. Dyad learns from context.

Issue: "API keys aren't persisting between sessions"

• Solution: Verify ~/.dyad/config.json has proper read/write permissions.

Issue: "Performance is slower than Lovable"

• Solution: This typically means your local machine is processing more complex AI requests. Upgrade your LLM provider or increase available RAM.

Optimization Tips for Power Users

1. Use a local LLM for instant feedback via Ollama while keeping OpenAI/Claude for complex generation tasks
2. Create reusable prompt templates in your Dyad workspace to standardize component generation
3. Version your .dyad project files in Git to track AI-generated changes alongside your manual edits
4. Batch similar requests when refining multiple components to maximize context utilization

Conclusion

Migrating from Lovable to Dyad takes 2-4 hours depending on project complexity, but the payoff is significant: complete privacy, no vendor lock-in, and full control over your AI app building process.

The shift from cloud-based to local-first represents a maturation of AI development tooling—you're no longer constrained by a platform's opinions. Join the growing community at r/dyadbuilders to share your migration experiences and discover how others are leveraging Dyad's unique capabilities.