Build

Build your first app

One command. One paste. A live URL.

You have an idea. You want a real deployed app — auth, AI, database, file storage, a live URL — without stitching five services together. Here’s the whole path.

1. Run this in a terminal

$npx -p @recursiv/cli@latest recursiv quickstart

The quickstart command walks you through everything you need:

  • Checks for GitHub CLI (install it first if you don’t have it: brew install gh on macOS, winget install GitHub.cli on Windows, then run gh auth login).
  • Creates a free Recursiv account if you don’t already have one — you’ll paste an email and a 6-digit code from your inbox.
  • Asks which AI client you’re using (Claude Code, Claude Desktop, Codex, or OpenCode) and installs the Recursiv MCP server into that client’s config.

About 3 minutes. When it finishes, fully quit and reopen whichever client you picked so the MCP loads.

2. Paste this into your AI client

Open your AI client in an empty folder. Paste this as your first message, replacing the bracketed idea with your own:

Build me [YOUR ONE-SENTENCE APP IDEA, e.g. "a personal CRM
with contacts, deals, and notes"].
Use the Recursiv MCP:
1. Call `provision_app` (app_name, slug, template: 'nextjs'
   for web or 'expo' for phone, agent_system_prompt). It
   creates a GitHub repo from the Recursiv starter, clones it
   here, and sets up project + database + AI agent.
2. Read CLAUDE.md and SDK.md in the cloned repo. Use
   r.auth, r.databases, r.agents, r.storage, r.chat,
   r.integrations.
3. Edit to match my idea, push, then call `deploy_project`.
   On any tool error, read the `hint` field in the response
   and self-recover.
4. Print the live URL when done.

When the first tool-approval dialog appears, click Always allow recursiv — otherwise the client pauses every few seconds.

3. Wait, then open your URL

The build takes about 20 minutes the first time. When the agent prints the URL, it looks like https://<your-slug>.on.recursiv.io. Open it — that’s your app.

That URL is permanent. Every later deploy updates it in place.

After the URL

Keep chatting in the same window:

  • “Add Google sign-in.”
  • “Add a Stripe checkout.”
  • “Add a notes field to the contact form.”
  • “Connect my Gmail via r.integrations so the assistant can draft follow-ups.”

The agent edits, redeploys, and your URL updates.

Pricing

Free to start with $5 in credits, no credit card required. Builder plan is $49/mo + usage when you outgrow free.

If you get stuck

Ask the agent “what are you doing right now?” — it’ll narrate and resume. For tool errors, paste the error back and ask the agent to retry; the MCP tools are idempotent and most carry actionable hint fields the agent can read.