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JackHamr vs Bolt
Bolt is one of the fastest ways to go from a prompt to a published JavaScript web app, right in your browser. JackHamr is your AI dev team for what comes after: agents that work on your codebase in any language, each with its own machine, a staged process with approval gates, and any model you like. Here is an honest look at where each one is stronger.
Updated October 5, 2026. Bolt details from Bolt's published pricing and help center.
At a glance
What it is
JackHamr
Your AI dev team. Named agents run the full delivery pipeline, each on a cloud machine the platform hosts.
Bolt
An AI app and website builder from StackBlitz: prompt it in the browser, watch a live preview, and publish with Bolt Cloud hosting and databases.
Who it is for
JackHamr
Teams with real codebases and real jobs to hand off: engineering, research, marketing, and ops.
Bolt
Anyone who wants a website, web app, or Expo mobile app built from a prompt, including people who do not code.
Languages
JackHamr
Any stack a Linux machine runs: Python, Go, Java, PHP, Node, Docker services, and databases.
Bolt
JavaScript-based: Node.js backends and frontend JavaScript frameworks. Bolt's docs say PHP and Python backends are not compatible.
Where the work runs
JackHamr
A persistent cloud machine per agent: up to 16 cores, 64 GB RAM, Docker. You can open its VS Code, terminal, or browser any time.
Bolt
Inside a Bolt project with a live preview in your browser (hosted previews in Safari), then Bolt hosting, Netlify, or your own host.
Your existing code
JackHamr
Works on your GitHub repos on branches, with SSH key and token fallbacks when an org blocks OAuth apps, and opens pull requests.
Bolt
Imports a GitHub repo or creates one, commits every working change automatically, and pulls outside changes every 30 seconds. Merging happens in GitHub.
Many agents at once
JackHamr
Boards fan tasks out to as many agents or clones as you like, in queue, clone, or distribute mode.
Bolt
One agent per project: Standard, or Max for deeper reasoning on paid plans.
Process and approvals
JackHamr
Workflows with stages (spec, plan, build, QA, code review, product review) and approval gates that queue decisions for you.
Bolt
Plan Mode drafts a plan before building; the agent then writes code and troubleshoots as you chat.
Working on its own
JackHamr
Autonomous agents: give one a job and goals, it drafts a plan you sign off, then checks in on a schedule and asks before anything you flagged.
Bolt
Builds in response to your messages in the project.
Models
JackHamr
Any model: ours, your own OpenAI or Anthropic keys, or your Claude Code or Codex subscription as the brain.
Bolt
Bolt picks the models behind its Standard and Max agents. Bolt Forge adds open-source models for accounts with access.
Pricing model
JackHamr
Pay only while agents run: infrastructure at cost with an itemized bill, tokens at provider rates. Free to start, no seats.
Bolt
Token plans: free with 300K tokens a day and 1M a month, Pro from $25 a month starting at 10M tokens with one month of rollover, Teams $30 per member a month.
Where JackHamr is stronger
Bolt is a builder for new JavaScript web apps. JackHamr is a team for the work you already have: your repos in any language, your process, and the jobs around the code.
- Any language. Agents work on Python, Go, Java, PHP, or Node codebases, with Docker services and databases running on their own machines.
- Pull requests, not auto-commits. Agents work on branches and open pull requests your team reviews as usual.
- Machines that stay. Each agent keeps its files, tools, databases, and running apps between tasks, and you can open its VS Code, terminal, or browser any time.
- A process, not just a prompt. Spec, plan, build, QA, and review run as separate agents, and approval gates queue the calls that need you.
- Any model. Use ours, bring OpenAI or Anthropic keys, or plug in your Claude Code or Codex subscription.
- More than apps. Agents that own a job in research, marketing, or ops, plan their own work, and ask before anything you flagged.
Where Bolt is stronger
Being fair about this matters, so here is when we would point you to Bolt on its own.
- You want a JavaScript web app published today, and you do not want to write or review code.
- You want hosting, a database, and a custom domain set up for you in one place with Bolt Cloud.
- You want a mobile app from the same prompt: Bolt can create Expo-compatible apps.
- You want to build from your phone: Bolt works in any mobile browser, with some features desktop-only.
- Design matters most: Bolt imports from Figma and can build with your own design system.
Or use both
They fit together well. Build the first version in Bolt and connect it to GitHub. Once it becomes a real product, hand the ongoing work to JackHamr: features that need a spec you approve, QA and code review on every change, backends in whatever language fits, and agents that keep the marketing and ops around it moving.
You can read how agents run the pipeline in The guided build workflow, and how parallel work is dispatched in Boards: a Kanban board your agents run.
Questions people ask
Is JackHamr a Bolt.new alternative?
For teams with an existing codebase or a stack beyond JavaScript, yes. Bolt is fast at building and publishing new JavaScript web apps from a prompt. JackHamr gives you a team of agents that work on your GitHub repos in any language, each on its own persistent machine, with staged approval workflows and any model.
Can JackHamr keep working on an app I built in Bolt?
Yes. Connect the Bolt project to GitHub, connect that repo to JackHamr, and agents work on it through pull requests like any other codebase. Bolt checks GitHub for outside changes every 30 seconds, so merged work shows up in Bolt too.
Do I need to know how to code to use JackHamr?
Not to give agents work, approve plans, or review results. But JackHamr assumes a real repo and a team that ships through pull requests. If you have no code yet and want a hosted app, Bolt is the shorter path.
When is Bolt the better choice?
If you are starting from an idea, building in JavaScript, and want a preview, hosting, a database, and a domain in one place with little setup, Bolt fits better. It is not built around agents with their own machines, other languages, mixing models, or work beyond the app.
Built it in Bolt? Hire the team.
Free to start. Nothing to install. Running in two minutes.