From Bolt.new to Cursor: Keeping Your AI Workflow While Adding Real DevOps

You've shipped 2-3 projects with Bolt.new. The AI-powered speed is incredible. Chat, iterate, deploy—all in minutes. But now you're hitting walls: you need better debugging, you want Git history, or you're tired of worrying about breaking everything with one wrong prompt.

Here's the truth: you don't have to choose between AI assistance and professional tooling. Cursor gives you everything Bolt.new offers for coding assistance, plus the full power of VS Code, Git integration, and a proper debugging suite. This weekend guide shows you exactly how to migrate without losing your momentum.

Before You Start: What You're Gaining

Let's be clear about what changes when you move from Bolt.new to Cursor:

The best part? You keep the AI coding speed. Cursor's AI is actually better at understanding your codebase because it has access to your full project history and can search across all files.

Prerequisites: Get Ready in 15 Minutes

Before migrating, make sure you have:

• Your Bolt.new project accessible - Open it and keep the tab handy
• Cursor installed - Download from cursor.sh (it's free)
• Git installed - Run git --version in your terminal to check
• GitHub account - Optional but recommended for backups
• Node.js installed - You likely already have this from Bolt.new work

Step-by-Step Migration Guide

Step 1: Export Your Bolt.new Project

Bolt.new doesn't have a built-in "export" button, but it's using WebContainers under the hood. Here's how to get your code out:

1. Open your Bolt.new project and click on the file explorer icon in the left sidebar
2. Identify your key files:
   • package.json - Dependencies list
   • src/ folder - Your source code
   • public/ folder - Static assets
   • Config files (vite.config.ts, tsconfig.json, etc.)
3. Download method: Click the "Download" button in Bolt.new's interface (usually in the top-right menu), or use the browser's inspect tool to access the WebContainer filesystem
4. Alternative approach: If download isn't available, copy-paste your code files one by one into a local folder (tedious but reliable)

Pro tip: Create a new folder on your machine called my-project-cursor before you start copying files. This keeps things organized.

Step 2: Initialize a Local Git Repository

This is where you gain superpowers. Git gives you an "undo" button for your entire project.

What just happened? You created a snapshot of your code. Now if you break something, you can always git checkout . to undo your changes.

Step 3: Open Your Project in Cursor

Time to see Cursor's magic:

1. Launch Cursor (it looks just like VS Code—because it is VS Code, enhanced)
2. Open your folder: File → Open Folder → Select my-project-cursor
3. Install dependencies: Open the integrated terminal (Ctrl+` or Cmd+`) and run:
   npm install
4. Test your project: Run your dev server:
   npm run dev

If everything works, congrats! Your Bolt.new project is now running locally. If not, check the troubleshooting section below.

Step 4: Configure Cursor's AI Features

This is where you match (or exceed) Bolt.new's AI assistance:

1. Enable Cursor's AI: Press Cmd+K (Mac) or Ctrl+K (Windows) to open the AI chat
2. Sign up for Cursor Pro (optional but recommended):
   • Free tier: 50 AI requests/month
   • Pro tier ($20/month): Unlimited GPT-4, Claude access
   • Worth it if you were paying for Bolt.new
3. Set up keyboard shortcuts you're used to:
   • Cmd+K - Quick AI edit (like Bolt's inline edits)
   • Cmd+L - Open AI chat panel (like Bolt's chat)
   • Cmd+Shift+K - Generate code from comment

Step 5: Workflow Translation Cheatsheet

Here's how your Bolt.new habits translate to Cursor:

Skill Bridge: Vibe Concepts to Pro Concepts

You already understand these concepts from Bolt.new—here's what they're called in professional development:

• "Bolt's instant preview" → Hot Module Replacement (HMR)
  Both Bolt.new and Cursor use Vite for instant updates. No difference in speed.
• "Bolt's file explorer" → Project tree
  Cursor's sidebar works the same way, plus you can search files with Cmd+P.
• "Bolt's AI chat history" → Git commit history
  Instead of scrolling through chat, you view snapshots with git log.
• "Fixing broken builds" → Debugging with breakpoints
  Click next to a line number to pause code execution and inspect variables. Way better than console.log().
• "Netlify deploy button" → CI/CD pipeline
  Same one-click deploy, but now you control which branch deploys and can add tests.

Troubleshooting Common Migration Issues

Issue: "npm install" fails with dependency errors

Cause: Bolt.new sometimes uses unstable dependency versions.

Fix:

Issue: "Module not found" errors when running dev server

Cause: Bolt.new uses absolute imports that don't work locally.

Fix: Update your vite.config.ts or tsconfig.json to add path aliases:

Issue: Cursor's AI doesn't understand my project context

Cause: Cursor needs to index your files first.

Fix:

1. Wait 2-3 minutes for indexing to complete (you'll see a progress bar)
2. Use @filename in your AI prompts to reference specific files
3. Create a .cursorrules file at your project root with context about your tech stack

Issue: I miss Bolt's instant deploy

Fix: Set up Vercel or Netlify with GitHub auto-deploy (takes 5 minutes):

1. Push your code to GitHub: git remote add origin <your-repo-url>
2. Connect your repo to Vercel or Netlify
3. Every commit to main branch auto-deploys (even faster than Bolt)

When to Stay with Bolt.new vs Switch to Cursor

Stick with Bolt.new when:

• You're prototyping throwaway demos (sub-1 hour projects)
• You're teaching someone to code and want zero setup friction
• You're on a Chromebook or tablet without local dev environment
• You need instant shareable preview links (Bolt excels here)

Switch to Cursor when:

• Your project has 10+ files (navigation gets painful in Bolt)
• You need to debug a complex bug (breakpoints save hours)
• You want to add automated tests (impossible in Bolt)
• You're collaborating with others (Git merges are essential)
• You're deploying to production (proper CI/CD matters)
• You hit Bolt.new's customization limits (env vars, API routes, etc.)

Next Steps: Level Up Further

You've successfully migrated to Cursor. Here's what to explore next:

1. Learn Git branching - Create a feature branch for experiments so you can break things safely
2. Add testing - Start with one simple test using Vitest (ask Cursor's AI to generate it)
3. Set up GitHub Actions - Auto-run tests on every commit (free on public repos)
4. Explore Cursor's codebase chat - Ask "explain this function" or "find security issues"
5. Join the Cursor community - Discord has thousands of devs sharing AI workflow tips

Remember: you haven't abandoned Bolt.new's philosophy. You've enhanced it. You still prototype fast with AI. You still ship features in hours, not days. You've just added the safety nets and power tools that let you build production-grade apps.