AI Tool Stack for Vibe Coders — Mastery Program
Personal mastery program for a Claude Code power user closing gaps across the
2026 AI tools landscape. Built to operate, communicate, and build across tools —
then resell as a course.
Learner baseline: Claude Code power user. Stack: React, Vite, TypeScript,
Next.js, FastAPI, Python, Vercel, Railway. Solo operator in Sri Lanka. Vibe coder,
micro-SaaS builder, AI automation freelancer.
How every tool is judged: against Claude Code (your baseline) for coding tools,
against the nearest peer for everything else. No theory. What it does → how it
differs → when to reach for it → one task → how to talk about it → the production trap.
Pricing freshness
All prices below verified June 2026 via web search. AI tool pricing churns
monthly — re-verify any number before you put it in paid course material. Volatile
fields are tagged ⚠ verify. Sources are linked at the bottom of each category file.
How to use this program
- Read
00-claude-code-baseline.md first — it's the ruler everything is measured against.
- Work category files in order. Each module ends with a HANDS-ON TASK (<15 min). Do it. Don't read past a module you haven't validated by doing.
- Depth tiers tell you where to spend time:
- CORE — learn deeply, you'll use or sell this.
- SKIM — know the shape, the difference, the one task.
- REFERENCE — know it exists and the one-line pitch for client calls.
- The Decision Matrix below is your cheat sheet. It's also the single most sellable artifact in the course.
File map
| File | Covers | Modules |
|---|
00-claude-code-baseline.md | Claude Code (the ruler) | 0 |
01-coding-tools.md | Cursor, Windsurf, Bolt, Lovable, v0, Replit, Copilot, Cline, Aider | 1–9 |
02-llms.md | ChatGPT, Gemini, Grok, DeepSeek, Perplexity | 10–14 |
03-image.md | Midjourney, DALL-E 3, Flux, Ideogram, Stable Diffusion | 15–19 |
04-video-voice.md | Runway, Kling, ElevenLabs, Suno | 20–23 |
05-automation.md | n8n, Make, Zapier | 24–26 |
06-workflow-stacks.md | 3 multi-tool stacks (MVP / client / content) | — |
07-course-monetization.md | "AI Tool Stack for Vibe Coders" course design | — |
Depth tiers at a glance (tuned for this learner)
| Tier | Tools |
|---|
| CORE | Cursor, v0, Cline, ChatGPT, Gemini, Midjourney, ElevenLabs, n8n |
| SKIM | Windsurf, Bolt, Lovable, Copilot, Aider, DeepSeek, Perplexity, Flux, Ideogram, Runway, Kling, Suno, Make |
| REFERENCE | Replit Agent, Grok, DALL-E 3, Stable Diffusion, Zapier |
MASTER DECISION MATRIX — "I want to ___ → use ___"
Coding
| I want to... | Reach for | Why not Claude Code |
|---|
| Edit a big existing codebase with surgical control | Claude Code (you have it) | — |
| Same, but inside a GUI editor with inline diffs + tab autocomplete | Cursor | CC is terminal-first; Cursor gives you the IDE + Tab model |
| Stay terminal-native but inside VS Code, BYO API key, watch every step | Cline | Cline is the closest VS Code analog to CC's agentic loop |
| Go from prompt → deployed React/Next app in the browser, no local setup | Bolt.new | CC runs locally; Bolt runs the whole stack in-browser + deploys |
| Generate a polished UI component from a prompt or Figma, paste into your Next app | v0 | CC writes code; v0 is a design-to-React component generator |
| Build a full app for a non-technical client to keep editing | Lovable | CC needs a dev; Lovable is the no-code-friendly handoff |
| Spin a backend + DB + deploy from one chat, zero infra | Replit Agent | CC doesn't host; Replit is build+host+DB in one tab |
| Cheap autocomplete in any editor while you hand-drive | GitHub Copilot | CC is agentic; Copilot is completion-first |
| Free, scriptable, git-native pair programmer in the terminal | Aider | Aider is OSS/BYOK; great for cheap batch edits |
LLMs (chat / reasoning)
| I want to... | Reach for |
|---|
| Best general all-rounder, ecosystem, voice, agent mode | ChatGPT (GPT-5.5) |
| Huge context (1M tokens), Google Workspace, video/image native | Gemini 3.x |
| Real-time X/Twitter pulse, edgy tone, news | Grok |
| Dirt-cheap API for bulk/automation, self-host option | DeepSeek |
| Cited, web-grounded answers / research | Perplexity |
Image
| I want to... | Reach for |
|---|
| Best aesthetic / art direction | Midjourney |
| Quick image inside a chat you already pay for | DALL-E 3 (in ChatGPT) |
| Open weights, commercial control, API in your app | Flux |
| Legible text inside the image (logos, posters, ads) | Ideogram |
| Full local control, LoRAs, free, NSFW-allowed, ComfyUI pipelines | Stable Diffusion |
Video & Voice
| I want to... | Reach for |
|---|
| Cinematic, controllable AI video + editing suite | Runway |
| Longest/cheapest high-quality clips, image-to-video | Kling |
| Realistic TTS, voice cloning, dubbing | ElevenLabs |
| Full songs with vocals from a text prompt | Suno |
Automation
| I want to... | Reach for |
|---|
| Self-hosted, code-friendly, AI-agent workflows, own your data | n8n |
| Visual, cheap-per-op, complex branching scenarios | Make |
| Fastest path to "connect app A to app B", widest app catalog | Zapier |
Next: open 00-claude-code-baseline.md.