Drafts is in beta and rolling out gradually, so it may not be available in your workspace yet. This first release supports frontend changes, such as layout, styling, and copy. Changes to your database structure aren’t supported in drafts yet.
When to use a draft
Drafts work best for changes to how your app looks and reads, such as landing pages, marketing sites, and other frontend changes. For example:- Test a redesign. Try new colors, fonts, or a different layout in a draft, and compare it with your current design before you commit to it.
- Find the words that work. Write different headlines, product descriptions, or calls to action in separate drafts, and keep the version that reads best.
- Try new visuals and motion. See how different photos, illustrations, or video change the feel of a page, or test scroll animations, a carousel, or a sticky navigation bar.
- Prepare changes for later. Build a sale banner or a seasonal page in a draft today, and accept it when you want to add it to your project.
- Hand changes to someone else. Let a teammate or client work in a draft, then review the changes and accept them when they’re ready.
How drafts work
You create a draft from your project’s main version, make changes in the draft, then accept it to keep those changes or delete it to discard them. You’ll see six terms as you work with drafts: Main, Draft, Update, Accept, Delete, and Publish. The table below explains each one using the same example: a bakery website where you want to try a new homepage design without changing the homepage you already have.For readers who know Git
For readers who know Git
If you use Git, drafts map to familiar concepts:
- A draft is a branch from your project’s history, with its own chat.
- Update rebases the draft onto the latest version of your project. If changes overlap, Lovable resolves the conflicts by reworking the draft’s edits.
- Accept is a fast-forward merge. Your project’s history stays linear, and the draft’s edits are added as a named group.
- Delete discards the branch.
Create your first draft
Follow these steps to create a draft, make changes, compare it with your project, and decide whether to keep it.On a phone, open the ⋮ menu next to the chat input and select Drafts to open the draft switcher. You can view drafts, switch between them, and create new ones on your phone. To rename, update, accept, or delete a draft, open your project on a computer.
1
Open the draft switcher
In the editor, click Main next to your project’s name at the top. This opens the draft switcher, where you can find the drafts you’ve created.
2
Create a draft
Click New draft. The new draft opens right away as a copy of the main version of your project. It starts with the name Draft 1, and Lovable renames it based on your first prompt. To choose your own name, hover over the draft in the switcher, open its ⋮ menu, and select Rename.
3
Build in the draft
Chat with Lovable like you always do. Every edit stays in the draft, and the preview shows the draft’s version of your app.
4
Compare with your project
Use the draft switcher to move between the main version of your project and your drafts.The pill at the top shows which version you’re viewing (Main or the name of the draft you’re in), and the chat and preview change to match it. Switch between versions to compare your drafts with the main version of your project.You can create as many drafts as you like and use each one to try a different idea.
5
Accept the draft, or delete it
When you want to keep a draft’s changes, select Accept. You’ll find it in several places while you’re in a draft: in the top bar where Publish usually is, at the bottom of the draft switcher, and in the draft’s ⋮ menu.If your main project has newer edits that the draft doesn’t have yet, the button in the top bar, draft switcher, and chat shows Update instead. You can still select Accept from the draft’s ⋮ menu. Lovable updates the draft first, then accepts it.Before accepting, Lovable shows you the draft’s edits. Confirming adds them to your project’s unpublished changes and returns you to the main version of your project. The accepted draft moves to your project’s history.If you don’t want to keep the draft, delete it instead.
Accepting does not publish the changes. Publish your project when you want them to go live.
Update a draft with newer project changes
A draft starts as a copy of your project. After you create it, you or a teammate might make newer changes to the project. Those changes don’t appear in the draft automatically. When newer changes are available, Lovable shows a New edits available message above the draft’s chat and a purple Updates available indicator in the draft switcher. Select Update to bring the newer project changes into the draft. You can update from the message above the chat, from the main button where Accept usually appears, or from the draft’s ⋮ menu. If the newer project changes overlap with edits in the draft, Lovable adjusts the draft’s edits to work with the updated version. The update can take a few minutes, and Lovable may add a follow-up message to the draft’s chat. You don’t need to update a draft before accepting it. If your project has newer changes, Lovable updates the draft first and then accepts it. To do both steps yourself, select Accept draft after updating in the update dialog.Delete a draft
To delete a draft, open its ⋮ menu, select Delete, and confirm. Deleting removes the draft and all of its edits. Your project stays unchanged, and the deleted draft can’t be restored.Use drafts with your team
Everyone with edit access to the project sees the same drafts. Each draft shows who’s currently working in it. If you open a draft that someone else is using, Lovable suggests creating your own draft so you can work separately. When someone accepts a draft, its changes are added to the project for everyone. Any other open drafts then show New edits available until they’re updated. If several drafts are accepted around the same time, Lovable processes them one at a time. When more than one draft is waiting, an Accepting drafts card appears above the project chat and shows the order. You can remove a waiting draft or drag drafts to change the order.What happens to your app’s data
A draft keeps your changes to the app separate, but the app still uses your project’s real data. If you add, edit, or delete information while testing in a draft, those changes are real, just as they are when you test your project directly. Lovable doesn’t support changes to your database structure in a draft, and it can’t turn on the built-in backend (Cloud) from one either. If you ask for either, Lovable directs you back to the main version of your project. It also blocks changes that would break the app for everyone and explains why in the draft’s chat. For now, use drafts for changes to how your app looks and reads. Turn on Cloud, and make changes to your database structure or login setup, in the main version of your project.Current limitations
Keep these in mind while drafts are in beta.- Drafts support frontend changes, such as layout, styling, and copy. For now, turn on the built-in backend (Cloud) and make changes to your database structure or login setup in the main version of your project.
- Drafts don’t support Git sync yet. Edits you accept still sync to your connected repository like any other project change.
Troubleshooting
If drafts aren’t working as expected, these are the most common causes.Accept or Update is grayed out
Accept or Update is grayed out
Hover over the button to see why it’s unavailable. Common reasons include:
- The draft has no edits yet.
- Lovable is still working in the draft.
- An update, accept, or another operation is already in progress.
Update failed
Update failed
The draft couldn’t bring in your project’s newer edits, usually because the project was busy at that moment.Select Update to try again. If it fails again, wait until Lovable finishes any work in the main version of your project, then retry.
This draft has been accepted — start a new draft to keep building
This draft has been accepted — start a new draft to keep building
You’re viewing a draft that was already accepted, usually after opening it from your project’s history. You can still read its chat and review its edits, but you can’t continue building in it.Select New draft to continue from the current version of your project.
This draft expired and was cleaned up — create a new draft to continue
This draft expired and was cleaned up — create a new draft to continue
Drafts with no edits are removed automatically after 24 hours. Because this draft never contained any edits, no work was removed. Create a new draft to continue.
You're signed out of your app in a draft's preview
You're signed out of your app in a draft's preview
Each draft preview has its own web address, so your sign-in doesn’t carry over automatically. If your app has user accounts, sign in again inside the draft preview.The draft keeps you signed in while you build in it, and your account and its data are unaffected.
FAQ
Common questions about working with drafts.Why don't I see drafts in my project?
Why don't I see drafts in my project?
Drafts is in beta and rolling out gradually, so it may not be available in your workspace yet. There’s nothing you need to enable. When drafts are available, you’ll see the Main pill next to your project’s name in the editor.
Does building in a draft affect my published app?
Does building in a draft affect my published app?
No. A draft’s edits stay in the draft until you accept it. Accepted edits are added to your project’s unpublished changes and reach your published app only when you publish.
Can I reopen a draft after accepting it?
Can I reopen a draft after accepting it?
You can reopen an accepted draft from your project’s history to read its chat and review its edits, but you can’t continue building in it.To continue the idea, create a new draft from the latest version of your project. To undo everything the accepted draft added, restore an earlier version from version history. You can’t revert individual edits from an accepted draft one by one.
Is there a limit on the number of drafts?
Is there a limit on the number of drafts?
No. You can create as many drafts as you need.
Who can work with drafts?
Who can work with drafts?
Anyone with edit access to the project can create, build in, update, accept, and delete drafts. People with view-only access can switch between drafts and view their previews, but draft actions are disabled for them. Drafts don’t appear in preview links.
Do drafts use extra credits?
Do drafts use extra credits?
No. Building in a draft uses credits the same way as building directly in your project. Open drafts don’t use credits on their own.
Can I use drafts in a project with a database?
Can I use drafts in a project with a database?
Yes. A draft’s preview uses your project’s real data, so any data you add, edit, or delete while testing in a draft is changed for real. For now, make changes to your database structure in the main version of your project.
Can I use drafts with a connected GitHub or GitLab repository?
Can I use drafts with a connected GitHub or GitLab repository?
Yes, but Git sync doesn’t support drafts directly yet. You can still work in drafts, and edits you accept sync to your default branch like any other project change.
Why did my draft disappear?
Why did my draft disappear?
A draft with no edits is removed automatically after 24 hours. If you accepted the draft, you’ll find it in your project’s history.