# AI build cost by JS framework, top 10

The median cost of Claude Code building the same app five times in each JS framework, ranked from cheapest. The 10 cheapest at a glance.

- Language: en
- Published: 2026-11-02
- Tags: web, ai-coding, benchmark
- URL: https://devs7ud.io/en/rankings/ranking-ai-frontend-cost-en
- Translation (ko): https://devs7ud.io/rankings/ranking-ai-frontend-cost.md

- Ranking: alltime, as of 2026-10-28
- Source: Nolan Lawson, The AI cost of JavaScript frameworks - https://nolanlawson.com/2026/10/28/the-ai-cost-of-javascript-frameworks/
- Basis: Median cost of Claude Code \(Opus 5.5\) building the same Pokémon app five times per framework. Lower ranks higher. Cost is converted from API prices, not actual spend. One app, one agent, Chromium and the home page only. The 10 cheapest of 12 are shown; the date is the post date.

1. Hono+htmx ($2.67) - https://hono.dev - Range $2.23–$3.19, 8.6 min
2. Astro ($2.76) - https://astro.build - Range $2.16–$3.63, 8.2 min
3. Nuxt ($2.82) - https://nuxt.com - Range $2.39–$4.25, 9.0 min
4. Vanilla \(Vite\) ($2.98) - https://vite.dev - Range $2.24–$3.37, 10.1 min
5. Next.js ($3.14) - https://nextjs.org - Range $2.58–$4.13, 10.9 min
6. Qwik ($3.27) - https://qwik.dev - Range $2.35–$3.80, 10.7 min
7. TanStack Start ($3.54) - https://tanstack.com/start - Range $3.11–$3.96, 10.3 min
8. SolidStart ($3.79) - https://start.solidjs.com - Range $2.84–$4.81, 11.2 min
9. React Router ($3.81) - https://reactrouter.com - Range $2.82–$3.97, 12.5 min
10. SvelteKit ($4.28) - https://svelte.dev/docs/kit - Range $3.59–$4.65, 10.8 min

Nolan Lawson had Claude Code (Opus 5.5) build the same Pokémon app five times in each of 12 frameworks. By median, Hono+htmx is the cheapest at $2.67, followed by Astro ($2.76) and Nuxt ($2.82). SvelteKit in tenth place ($4.28) costs about 1.6 times as much as first. Gracile+Lit and Angular placed eleventh and twelfth, and are left out because this table shows only the top 10. Their numbers are in the [original post](https://nolanlawson.com/2026/10/28/the-ai-cost-of-javascript-frameworks/).

The spread within a framework is larger than the gaps between ranks. The most expensive run for Hono+htmx in first place ($3.19) cost more than the cheapest run for Next.js in fifth ($2.58), so a gap of a place or two is best read as a tie. It is one app and one agent. Cost is converted from API prices, not money actually spent. The author states the same limits and suspects the current MCPs and skills may do more harm than good. The code and results are in the [benchmark repository](https://github.com/nolanlawson/agent-framework-benchmark).

Which framework do you use when you hand a front end to AI? Tell us in the comments.