In this guide10 sections
Firebase Studio is being retired, but Firebase is not. That distinction matters. Your Studio workspace, its browser-based development environment, and any data left inside it are affected by the shutdown. Firestore, Firebase Authentication, App Hosting, and the rest of the Firebase services used by your application can continue running.
Google disabled new Firebase Studio sign-ups and workspace creation on June 22, 2026. Existing workspaces remain available until March 22, 2027, when Firebase Studio closes and remaining workspace data is permanently deleted. The sensible response is not a rushed rewrite. It is a controlled export, a destination chosen around how your team actually works, and a migration test completed well before the deadline.
This guide starts with the official Google migration paths, then compares practical alternatives such as Lovable, Replit, Cursor, and Base44. The goal is to preserve the application, not merely move files from one editor to another.
Firebase Studio shutdown timeline and what it affects
Google announced the Firebase Studio sunset on March 19, 2026. New users and new workspaces were disabled on June 22, 2026. Existing workspaces can still be opened, edited, tested, and deployed until March 22, 2027. On that final date, Studio shuts down and remaining workspace data is deleted. Google lays out the dates in its official Firebase Studio migration guide (opens in a new tab).
The deadline applies to Firebase Studio, the cloud development workspace formerly built around Project IDX. It does not announce the end of Firebase as a backend platform. An application can keep using Firestore, Authentication, Storage, Cloud Functions, Analytics, and App Hosting after its source code moves to another development environment.
Treat the workspace as temporary from this point forward. Even if you intend to continue using Studio for several months, create an independent copy now, verify that the copy builds, and document any configuration that exists only in the workspace. Waiting until the final week turns ordinary dependency and credential problems into a business-continuity incident.
| Date | Change | What project owners should do |
|---|---|---|
| March 19, 2026 | Sunset announced and migration tooling began rolling out | Inventory every active Studio workspace |
| June 22, 2026 | New sign-ups and new workspaces disabled | Stop planning new work around Studio |
| March 22, 2027 | Studio shuts down and remaining workspace data is deleted | Complete and verify migration before this date |
Dates reflect Google's Firebase Studio migration documentation as checked in August 2026.
Watch out
Do not read the Studio shutdown as a reason to abandon Firebase automatically. Decide separately whether to change the editor, the hosting layer, and the backend. Moving all three at once adds risk without necessarily adding value.
What to export before you choose a replacement
A source-code ZIP is necessary, but it is not a complete migration. A working application also depends on package versions, environment variables, deployment settings, database rules, indexes, OAuth callbacks, domains, secrets, and institutional knowledge. Build an inventory while the current workspace still opens normally.
Google supports downloading a ZIP and moving code through GitHub. GitHub is generally the better long-term handoff because it preserves a reviewable history from the point you connect it and can become the source of truth for the next platform. Download a ZIP as an additional recovery copy, not as the only copy.
One easy-to-miss item is agent history. Google states that Gemini chat history is not included in the standard exported ZIP. Studio stores the relevant files under /home/user/.idx/ai. Save that directory separately if past prompts and responses contain design decisions, debugging context, or setup instructions your team may need later.
- Source code and assets, preferably in a Git repository plus an offline ZIP.
- The lockfile and runtime version used by the working project.
- A list of environment-variable names and where each value is managed. Never commit secret values to Git.
- Firebase project IDs, App Hosting configuration, Firestore rules, indexes, Storage rules, functions, and scheduled jobs.
- Authentication providers, approved domains, OAuth redirect URLs, email templates, and account-linking behavior.
- Custom domains, DNS records, analytics tags, monitoring, and third-party webhook endpoints.
- Studio-specific scripts, extensions, preview behavior, and agent chat history from /home/user/.idx/ai.
- A small set of test accounts and acceptance tests for the application's critical workflows.
Tip
Open the exported project outside Firebase Studio and run a clean install and production build. An archive is not a backup until you have proved that another environment can use it.
The two official Google migration paths
Google recommends two destinations, each aimed at a different working style. Google AI Studio is the browser-oriented path for rapid, prompt-led prototyping. Google Antigravity is the code-first path for developers who want a local agentic environment, terminal access, and deeper control over an existing repository.
Choose Google AI Studio when the project began in Firebase Studio's App Prototyping agent and the main value is moving quickly from a prompt to a web application. Choose Antigravity when the project came from a template or imported repository, or when the team already treats the codebase as the product rather than the generated preview.
Neither choice requires replacing the Firebase backend. Google explicitly positions the migration as a change in its AI development tools while continuing Firebase as the backend. This makes the lowest-risk plan an editor migration first, followed by a separate backend review only if cost, data model, portability, or compliance requirements justify one.
| Destination | Best fit | Main trade-off |
|---|---|---|
| Google AI Studio | Browser-based prompt prototyping and Firebase-connected app creation | Less like a conventional local IDE workflow |
| Google Antigravity | Existing repositories, terminal work, and code-first agent workflows | Assumes more comfort with local development and source control |
Best Firebase Studio alternatives by workflow
There is no single replacement for every Firebase Studio user because Studio combined several jobs: prompting, editing code, previewing, managing a backend, and deploying. The right comparison starts with the job you need to preserve. A founder building a customer portal from prompts has different needs from an engineer maintaining a TypeScript repository.
Use the shortlist below as a destination filter, not a universal ranking. Run the same small migration test in your two strongest candidates: import or connect the repository, configure non-production credentials, build the app, fix one real bug, and deploy a preview. That exercise reveals far more than a feature checklist.
| Option | Choose it when | Watch before committing |
|---|---|---|
| Google AI Studio | You want Google's official prompt-first continuation and plan to retain Firebase | Confirm the migrated app, environment variables, and publishing workflow |
| Google Antigravity | You want Google's official code-first route for an existing repository | Budget time for local setup and team onboarding |
| Lovable | You want a visual, prompt-led web app workflow with managed deployment | Check backend architecture, portability, credits, and production controls |
| Replit | You want code, runtime, collaboration, Agent, and deployment in one browser workspace | Model ongoing compute and deployment needs for the app |
| Cursor | You have a healthy repository and want AI assistance inside a local code editor | You must choose and operate hosting and backend services separately |
| Base44 | You prefer an all-in-one builder with managed data, auth, functions, integrations, and hosting | Test export, extension, and governance needs against the platform model |
Note
If the project is still only an idea, compare builders from scratch using our best AI app builders guide. If it already has users or data, migration safety should outweigh novelty.
When to keep Firebase after leaving Studio
Keeping Firebase is usually the most conservative option when the application already depends on Firestore collections, Authentication user IDs, Security Rules, Cloud Functions, Storage paths, or App Hosting. The source code can move while those services remain in place. You change the development cockpit without rebuilding the aircraft.
A backend migration becomes reasonable when there is a separate architectural reason: the team needs relational SQL, complex joins, self-hosting, a different regional or compliance posture, predictable workload economics, or a platform already standardized across the company. Those are backend decisions. The Studio deadline itself does not make them necessary.
If you do change the backend, split the work into observable stages. First make the exported app build in the new environment against the existing Firebase project. Then place data access behind a stable application layer, migrate one domain at a time, reconcile records, and keep a rollback path until the new system is proven. Our Supabase connection guide explains the corresponding auth and row-level access model if PostgreSQL is part of the plan.
- Keep Firebase when the current data model and services work and only the development environment must change.
- Review Firebase when the product has outgrown its data model, governance, cost profile, or portability requirements.
- Avoid changing editor, backend, auth, and hosting in one release unless the application is disposable.
A low-risk Firebase Studio migration runbook
Migrate a non-production copy first. The objective is to prove that the destination can install dependencies, use configuration safely, access a test backend, and publish a preview. Only then should the production domain or deployment pipeline move.
- 1
Inventory the workspace
Record repository status, runtime, build command, environment-variable names, Firebase resources, domains, integrations, and owners.
- 2
Create independent copies
Connect GitHub where practical, download a ZIP, and separately archive useful agent history from /home/user/.idx/ai.
- 3
Choose the destination by workflow
Test the official Google path and one credible alternative if platform fit is uncertain.
- 4
Rebuild from a clean checkout
Install dependencies without Studio caches, run tests, create a production build, and document every manual fix.
- 5
Recreate configuration safely
Add secrets in the destination's secret manager, update approved domains and callbacks, and keep test and production values separate.
- 6
Deploy a preview
Verify sign-in, database reads and writes, uploads, functions, email, payments, analytics, and error handling on the new host.
- 7
Cut over with rollback
Reduce DNS risk where possible, preserve the old deployment briefly, monitor critical events, and define who can reverse the release.
- 8
Close the old workspace deliberately
Confirm every active project has an owner and verified copy before relying on the final shutdown to remove it.
Which Firebase Studio replacement should you choose?
Choose Google AI Studio when you want the least conceptual change from prompt-first prototyping and are comfortable following Google's new browser-based path. Choose Google Antigravity when source control, terminal access, and local code ownership define the workflow. Choose Cursor when you already know how the application will be hosted and mainly need a strong AI coding editor.
Choose Lovable when the priority is creating and refining a web product through conversation, with visual iteration and managed publishing in the same workflow. Read our Lovable review and Lovable production checklist before treating a successful prototype as a finished migration.
Choose Replit when a cloud development workspace, runnable environment, collaboration, and publishing should remain integrated. Choose Base44 when the team values an all-in-one managed backend and builder; our Base44 review covers the platform in more depth. For an existing business-critical project, select the tool that makes ownership, testing, and incident response clearest, even if another option produces the first screen faster.
Key takeaways
- Firebase Studio closes on March 22, 2027, and remaining workspace data will be deleted.
- Firebase services such as Firestore and Authentication are not being shut down with Studio.
- Export source, configuration inventory, and agent history. The normal ZIP does not include the chat-history directory.
- Google AI Studio is the official prompt-first path; Google Antigravity is the official code-first path.
- Choose alternatives by workflow and migration evidence, not by the longest feature list.
- Prove a clean build, preview deployment, authentication, data access, and rollback before production cutover.
Frequently asked questions
Yes. New sign-ups and workspace creation were disabled on June 22, 2026. Existing workspaces can continue until March 22, 2027, when Firebase Studio shuts down and remaining workspace data is permanently deleted.
