Dyad: Drop $90/mo in AI Coding Subscriptions for Free

Step 1: Install Dyad

Head to github.com/dyad-sh/dyad and follow the install instructions for your OS. Dyad ships as a desktop app — download, open, done. No Docker, no CLI wizardry required.

Step 2: Connect a Free Model Key

On first launch, Dyad asks for a model provider. The fastest zero-cost path: grab a free Gemini API key from aistudio.google.com, paste it in, and select a Gemini model. Prefer local/private? Point it at Ollama instead. No key is stored on any external server — it stays in your local config.

Step 3: Prompt Your First App

Type a plain-English description of what you want to build in the prompt bar. Dyad generates the full project files and shows a live preview. A useful first prompt to run:

> "Build a single-page todo app with a clean UI, local storage persistence, and a dark mode toggle."

This exercises routing, state, and styling in one shot — a good benchmark for any vibe-coding tool.

Step 4: Inspect and Edit the Source

All generated files land in a folder on your disk immediately. Open them in VS Code, Cursor, or any editor. Dyad does not abstract your code behind a proprietary format — what you see is plain source you can deploy anywhere.

Step 5: Iterate With Follow-Up Prompts

Dyad maintains context across turns. Type a change request ("Add a priority tag to each todo item") and it patches the existing files rather than regenerating from scratch. No credits consumed per message — iterate as many times as you need.

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Why This Works

Vibe-coding tools charge for two things: inference compute and convenience. Dyad removes the compute cost by routing to models you already have access to (Gemini free tier, Ollama running locally). The convenience layer — the prompt-to-preview loop — is open source under Apache 2.0, so there is no moat left to monetize against you. Owning your code on disk also means no vendor can gate your own project behind a paywall if you stop subscribing.

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Pro Tips

• Start with Gemini Flash for speed during early iteration, then switch to a more capable model for final polish — both can be free or near-free.
• Commit after each working prompt. Dyad does not version your history automatically; a quick git init and regular commits give you a safety net before big changes.
• Use Ollama for sensitive projects. If your app touches private data, route through a local model so no prompt leaves your machine.
• Check the GitHub releases tab weekly. Dyad is shipping fast — features added post-install won't appear unless you update the desktop app.

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Dyad won't cover every edge case that a fully managed platform handles, but for the standard prompt-to-working-app workflow, it matches the paid tools at zero recurring cost. Worth running the install before renewing any of those subscriptions.