Integrate Lovable with Strapi

These integration guides are not official documentation and the Strapi Support Team will not provide assistance with them.

What Is Lovable?

Lovable is an AI-powered platform that generates full-stack web applications from natural language descriptions. You describe what you need—"a recipe blog with user comments and dark mode"—and it outputs production-ready code in React, TypeScript, and Vite, then pushes everything to your GitHub repo.

Unlike traditional no-code tools that lock you into proprietary systems, Lovable generates actual code you can modify. It scaffolds the entire stack: provisions a relational database, sets up backend APIs, builds responsive frontends, and handles basic deployment scripts. Tasks that typically take a development sprint get delivered as pull requests in hours.

For teams, this means rapid prototyping without the usual engineering bottleneck. Product managers can phrase requirements in plain English instead of writing technical specifications. Since the output is standard code, developers can extend it locally or use Lovable's one-click deployment. Currently, there is no published Strapi walkthrough demonstrating integration with Lovable-generated frontends.

Why Integrate Lovable with Strapi

When you combine Strapi v5's content management with Lovable's AI coding assistant, you get a workflow that turns ideas into working features before your next stand-up. Strapi handles modeling, storing, and versioning your data, while Lovable converts plain-language requirements into React, TypeScript, and Vite code that's ready to run.

Content-driven products benefit most from this combination. Define collection and single types in Strapi's Admin Panel, publish a few entries, and you'll have REST or GraphQL endpoints that the CMS generates automatically.

These endpoints use v5's flatter response format, returning fields like title or heroImage at the top level instead of nesting them inside attributes. This cuts down the mapping logic you need in your UI. Lovable consumes the clean, flattened responses from endpoints like https://yourapp.com/api/articles, with routing and API behavior configurable via /config/api.js.

This setup dramatically shortens your MVP feedback loop. Strapi's automatic endpoint generation means you're never waiting on backend releases, and Lovable can scaffold pages, state management, and routing the moment you paste a sample JSON response into a prompt. Teams that previously spent weeks wiring CRUD screens now iterate in hours, leaving more time for actual usability testing.

Flexibility doesn't disappear after your initial deploy. Lovable commits every change to GitHub, giving you complete codebase ownership and freedom to extend Strapi integrations with custom services or plugins. You can evolve content types or add features from Strapi's headless CMS use cases without rewriting your frontend—Lovable simply regenerates affected components as needed.

This integration lets you move fast without losing structure: Strapi protects your content strategy, Lovable accelerates your presentation layer, and developer-friendly APIs keep both sides in sync.

How to Integrate Lovable with Strapi

You're about to stitch Strapi's content engine to Lovable's AI-generated React front-end. In practice, that means two parallel tasks: first, exposing a clean REST API from Strapi, and second, guiding Lovable to either auto-generate a connected UI or consume that API through custom components. The following sections outline what you need in place—and how to get your local environment talking to Strapi without mystery 404s or CORS blow-ups.

Prerequisites

Before typing a single prompt, make sure the basics are covered. You'll need:

• A running Strapi instance (local or cloud) on Node.js 20 or 22, since Strapi is a Node app and matching runtime matters.
• API access requires a read-only token or public role with safe permissions (configured in the Admin Panel), CORS setup for your Lovable domains, knowledge of REST endpoints, Strapi's flattened response format (no more attributes nesting in version 5), and necessary environment variables for STRAPI_API_URL and STRAPI_TOKEN.
• Working knowledge of REST endpoints, component architecture, and Strapi's flattened response format.
• Environment variables ready for STRAPI_API_URL and STRAPI_TOKEN, along with the usual React build vars.

Understanding Draft & Publish and the Document Service API helps when explaining "published only" rules to the AI during prompting. If any of these areas feel shaky, pause here—integration pain compounds quickly when fundamentals aren't solid.

Setting Up Your Environment

With prerequisites met, fire up Strapi and confirm the Admin Panel opens at http://localhost:1337. Next, decide how the frontend will authenticate. For quick prototyping, grant the Public role read access in Settings → Users & Permissions; for anything real, create a read-only API token under Settings → API Tokens and stash it in .env.

CORS is the first thing that will break your fetch calls. Update the middleware config to whitelist Lovable's dev server:

1// ./config/middlewares.js
2module.exports = [
3  'strapi::logger',
4  'strapi::errors',
5  {
6    name: 'strapi::security',
7    config: { /* ... */ }
8  },
9  {
10    name: 'strapi::cors',
11    config: {
12      origin: ['http://localhost:5173'],
13      headers: ['Content-Type', 'Authorization'],
14    },
15  },
16  'strapi::poweredBy',
17  'strapi::query',
18  'strapi::body',
19  'strapi::session',
20  'strapi::favicon',
21  'strapi::public',
22];

After restarting Strapi, hit https://yourapp.com/api/{content-type} and verify a flattened JSON payload. Finally, add VITE_STRAPI_URL and VITE_STRAPI_TOKEN to both local and production env files so Lovable's generated code can switch contexts without rewiring requests. When you use Strapi's Populate parameter for relations and media, the API returns full objects—not just IDs—on the first fetch.

Configuring Strapi for Integration

Before Lovable can consume your content, you'll need a clean, well-secured Strapi v5 API. Start by creating Collection and Single Types in the Content-Type Builder—think recipe, author, or homepage. Each type instantly exposes endpoints like https://yourapp.com/api/recipes, following the pattern documented in Strapi's REST reference. Next, head to Settings → API Tokens and generate at least one token. A short-lived, read-only token usually works for public data; keep a full-access token for admin scripts.

Permissions matter more than most teams realize. Public and Authenticated roles determine whether Lovable will see a 200 or a 403, so double-check the role matrix after every new content type. This is where things come back to haunt you if you're not careful. Strapi's flattened v5 format means the find endpoint returns a list of objects (title, slug, documentId), while findOne returns a single object with identical shape—no more nested attributes wrapper.

Key endpoints to test include List (GET /api/recipes), Single (GET /api/recipes/{documentId}), and Draft filter (GET /api/recipes?status=published). Test each call in a tool like cURL or Postman, or by hitting the URL in your browser if it's publicly readable. If the JSON looks exactly like the fields you modeled, you're ready to involve Lovable.

Configuration Method 1: Using Lovable to Generate API-Connected Frontend

This is the fastest path from idea to working UI because Lovable handles the boilerplate for you. In the Lovable chat, feed it a prompt that describes your goal, your Strapi endpoint, and the response shape:

1You are a senior React engineer.  
2Build a recipe gallery that reads from Strapi v5.  
3API base: https://inviting-cheese-ce66d3b9e0.strapiapp.com/api  
4Endpoint: /recipes returns [{ documentId, title, coverImage, prepTime }]  
5Use documentId (not id) when routing to the detail page.  
6Flattened fields—no attributes object.  
7Generate pages: Home, RecipeList, RecipeDetail.  
8Use Tailwind for styling and React Router for navigation.

Lovable replies with a full Vite project: an api.ts hook that fetches /recipes, a RecipeCard component, and a RecipeDetail page that calls /recipes/{documentId}. Because it writes real TypeScript, you can push the repo to GitHub, run npm run dev, and watch the data flow immediately.

Iterate by narrowing prompts. Ask it to "add search by title" or "paginate the list, 12 items per page." Lovable already understands Strapi's pattern, so each refinement lands in the right file without breaking previous code. When the feature feels solid, pin the version inside Lovable's history so you can revert if a later prompt goes off the rails.

Configuration Method 2: Custom API Service Integration

If you need token refresh, custom headers, or data reshaping, generate a service layer yourself and let Lovable focus on UI. Start with a simple client:

1// src/services/strapi.ts
2import axios from 'axios';
3
4const api = axios.create({
5  baseURL: 'https://yourapp.com/api',
6  headers: { Authorization: `Bearer ${process.env.STRAPI_TOKEN}` },
7});
8
9export interface Recipe {
10  documentId: string;
11  title: string;
12  coverImage: string;
13  prepTime: number;
14}
15
16export async function getRecipes(): Promise<Recipe[]> {
17  const { data } = await api.get<Recipe[]>('/recipes');
18  return data.data;
19}
20
21export async function getRecipe(documentId: string): Promise<Recipe> {
22  const { data } = await api.get<Recipe>(`/recipes/${documentId}`);
23  return data.data;
24}

Type definitions mirror Strapi's flattened JSON, giving you compile-time safety. In Lovable, reference these functions in prompts ("call getRecipes() inside RecipeList.tsx") so the AI wires them correctly. Separating network logic makes testing easier—mock axios in unit tests—and keeps security concerns (tokens, retries, error handling) in one place. You trade a bit of upfront work for long-term clarity and flexibility.

Implementing Dynamic Content Components

Reusable components keep your UI sane as the CMS grows. Prompt Lovable with the exact field map:

1Create a <RecipeGrid> that accepts:  
2recipes: { documentId, title, coverImage, prepTime }[]  
3Display coverImage at 16:9, title below, and "Ready in X minutes" pill.  
4On click, route to /recipe/{documentId}.

Because the data matches Strapi's response, Lovable produces a grid that just works—no adapters required. For rich text, include a hint: "description contains Markdown." To use Strapi's Media Library, mention "coverImage is a full URL already; don't prepend the domain."

Common patterns—filter dropdowns, search boxes, infinite scroll—evolve by tweaking the same component rather than rewriting from scratch. When relations or media need extra fields, use Strapi's populate=* query and update the prompt accordingly so Lovable regenerates props without guessing.

Testing the Integration

Fire up Lovable's preview and confirm the pages render real data. In browser DevTools, check that /recipes and /recipes/{documentId} calls return 200s and carry the right token. Flip a recipe to draft in Strapi, reload, and ensure it disappears—proof that the status=published filter is in place. Break something on purpose (rename a field) and verify your error handling surfaces a friendly message.

Audit network logs for CORS or 401 errors; missing headers here will bite you in production. A quick pass through mobile breakpoints rounds out the sanity check. Clean logs, accurate data, responsive layout—you're done.

Project Example: Build a Recipe Blog with Meal Planning

You need a content-heavy recipe platform but don't have weeks to build a frontend from scratch. Here's how I'd approach "FlavorHub"—a Strapi-powered recipe archive with meal-planning features on a Lovable-generated React interface.

Strapi v5 handles the core content with collection types for Recipe, Ingredient, and WeeklyPlan. Since v5 returns flattened JSON responses, hitting https://yourapp.com/api/recipes gives you direct fields like title, cookingTime, and image instead of nested attributes. Lovable maps this data straight into props without extra parsing.

Here's the prompt that bootstraps the project:

1You are a senior React engineer. 
21. Review this Strapi v5 recipe endpoint: https://inviting-cheese-ce66d3b9e0.strapiapp.com/api/recipes 
32. Generate TypeScript interfaces that match field names exactly; use documentId, not id. 
43. Build a Vite + React + Tailwind app called FlavorHub with:
5   • RecipeList (grid) pulling 12 recipes per page
6   • RecipeDetail route at /recipe/:slug
7   • WeeklyPlanner component that lets users drag recipes into a 7-day grid
8   • [Strapi SDK client](https://strapi.io/blog/best-ai-sdks-for-building-intelligent-applications) in /lib/strapi.ts with typed helpers
9   • Dark-mode toggle
10Follow Strapi v5's flattened response format. No assumptions—reflect the API verbatim.

Lovable generates a complete repository, pushes it to GitHub, and launches a preview. The generated RecipeList.tsx calls your endpoint with populate=* and handles pagination via page and pageSize parameters, following Strapi's REST guidelines exactly.

The user flow works smoothly: editors add recipes in the Strapi Admin Panel, hit Publish, and FlavorHub's grid updates within seconds through a useRecipes hook. When users drag pasta dishes and salads into the WeeklyPlanner, it persists selections locally while sending PATCH requests to Strapi's weeklyplans endpoint.

The challenging parts involve modeling many-to-many relations (recipes ←→ ingredients) without bloating queries, rendering rich Markdown instructions, and supporting dynamic filters like "gluten-free under 30 minutes." Keep payloads lean by selecting only needed fields and letting Strapi's population rules handle media URLs.

Responsive layout, dark mode, and draggable meal planning emerge from Lovable's iteration cycle: adjust the prompt or use Visual Edit, commit, test, repeat. Combining Strapi's structured content with Lovable's real, editable code takes you from concept to functioning recipe hub in days.

FlavorHub is a demo—production needs authentication, rate limiting, and CI/CD. But it demonstrates how Strapi v5 and Lovable handle the boilerplate while you focus on user experience instead of infrastructure.

Strapi Open Office Hours

If you have any questions about Strapi 5 or just would like to stop by and say hi, you can join us at Strapi's Discord Open Office Hours, Monday through Friday, from 12:30 pm to 1:30 pm CST: Strapi Discord Open Office Hours.

For more details, visit the Strapi documentation and Lovable documentation.