# Getting Started Guide

Thunkable is a drag-and-drop platform that allows anyone to design, develop, and deploy powerful mobile and web apps — all without writing code.

Whether you're a student, educator, entrepreneur, or hobbyist, you can bring your app ideas to life using intuitive visual tools and powerful logic blocks.

***

### Create Your First App

When you open your Projects Page in Thunkable, you’ll see two ways to get started:

#### 1. **Use the AI Template Generator** ✨ *(Recommended)*

The fastest way to jumpstart your project. Just describe what you want to build — for example, “a task manager for students” or “a recipe app that filters by ingredients” — and the AI Template Generator will create a starter app with:

* Screens and layouts
* Functional components
* Basic logic

After your prompt previews your starting point, you can immediately start to customize and expand the project as much as you like. 

> 📘 See our[ AI Project Generator](https://docs.thunkable.com/getting-started/gen-ai/ai-template-generator) Docs

#### 2. **Start from Scratch**

If you want complete creative control or already know how you want your app to work, start with a blank project. You’ll build your UI, add logic, and connect data sources step by step.

***

### The Thunkable Design + Blocks Interface

Thunkable’s editor has two key areas:

* **Design Tab**: Drag and drop components like buttons, images, lists, maps, and more to visually build your app’s UI.
* **Blocks Tab**: Add logic to your app using code blocks — no syntax required.

You can switch between these tabs anytime as you build.

### **The Design Editor**

Designing the visual aspect of your app is accomplished with screens, [user interface (UI) components](https://docs.thunkable.com/app-design/ui-components), and [navigators](https://docs.thunkable.com/app-design/screens-and-navigators). You can combine, style and customize them to give your app personality and style that best suits your brand.​

{% @arcade/embed flowId="45waGxDSTGEy7WuYCfJT" url="<https://app.arcade.software/share/45waGxDSTGEy7WuYCfJT>" %}

### **The Blocks Editor**

Thunkable [blocks](https://docs.thunkable.com/blocks/thunkable-blocks-overview) are the building blocks of a great experience for your app users. Every component has its own set of blocks to start or trigger an event and set and change properties.

{% @arcade/embed flowId="nG71Y4lFtK06IfnPPmkt" url="<https://app.arcade.software/share/nG71Y4lFtK06IfnPPmkt>" %}

***

### Preview and Test Your App

As you build, you can **preview your app in real time**:

* Use the [**Live Test**](https://docs.thunkable.com/getting-started/live-test) button in the top-right corner to open a web preview.
  \*
* Download the [**Thunkable Live**](https://thunkable.com/mobile) mobile app on iOS or Android to test directly on your phone.
* You can also [**publish**](https://docs.thunkable.com/publishing) **your app** to the web or to app stores once it’s ready.

{% @arcade/embed flowId="jFbL6dHnRgiDmd0UAhEj" url="<https://app.arcade.software/share/jFbL6dHnRgiDmd0UAhEj>" %}

***

### Next Steps

Here are some great ways to keep learning:

* 📘 View tutorials in the [Thunkable Academy](https://academy.thunkable.com/)
* 💬 Join the [Community Forums](https://community.thunkable.com/)
* :tv: Check out our [YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/@Thunkable) page

{% hint style="success" %}
**Have feedback on this doc?** Please take a moment to share your feedback here: [Thunkable Docs Feedback](https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfCwn5L2xyla-LSLZX0DSWFcFeJ43qp-r1tELCacuVS2zduLA/viewform?usp=sf_link). Your valuable insights will help us improve and better serve you in the future.
{% endhint %}


---

# Agent Instructions: Querying This Documentation

If you need additional information that is not directly available in this page, you can query the documentation dynamically by asking a question.

Perform an HTTP GET request on the current page URL with the `ask` query parameter:

```
GET https://docs.thunkable.com/getting-started/get-started.md?ask=<question>
```

The question should be specific, self-contained, and written in natural language.
The response will contain a direct answer to the question and relevant excerpts and sources from the documentation.

Use this mechanism when the answer is not explicitly present in the current page, you need clarification or additional context, or you want to retrieve related documentation sections.