# 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.

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### 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.

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### 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>" %}

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### 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

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