How to use Ploof Studio

Ploof Studio is a Mac app that turns a sentence into a website. You describe the site, it writes the pages while you watch, and the preview fills in beside the chat. Then you keep talking to change anything, or point at an element in the preview and say what it should be instead.

Three promises shape everything it does.

• You own the code. Every site is plain HTML, CSS, and JavaScript. There is no Ploof Studio code inside and nothing to build, so the files run in any browser and on any host.
• Everything stays on your Mac. Your projects, conversations, and keys live in a folder on this Mac.
• Ploof Studio never hosts your site. You put it online on an account you own, through GitHub, Vercel, or a ZIP you upload anywhere. You can export it at any moment.

Ploof Studio comes with Setapp. It runs on macOS 12 or later, on Apple silicon or Intel.

1. Open Setapp

   Sign in to Setapp on your Mac if you haven’t yet. Ploof Studio uses the Setapp AI credits of the Setapp account on this Mac.

2. Install Ploof Studio

   Find Ploof Studio in Setapp and install it.

3. Open it

   Open Ploof Studio. On the first launch it shows a short tour.

The tour has seven short steps. Each one shows a small animated scene of a feature: building a site, Point, borrowing a look from another site, models, and deploying. The last step lists the shortcuts that cover most of the app.

• Select Continue to move on and Back to go back.
• Select Skip tour in the top right, or press Esc, to close it at any time.
• On the last step, select Start building.

The tour shows once. Skipping it or finishing it means it won’t come back.

1. Describe the site

   On the home screen, under What should Ploof Studio build?, write one or two sentences in the prompt bar. Say what the site is for and who it’s for, for example “A one-page site for Sunny Cups, a lemonade stand that caters summer parties.”

2. Send it

   Press Enter or select Send. Ploof Studio creates a project, names it, and starts writing.

3. Watch it build

   Each file appears in the chat as Ploof Studio writes it, and the preview on the right shows the site as soon as the first page is saved.

4. Ask for changes

   In the prompt bar, which now says Describe a change…, say what to change in plain words. Or turn on Point in the preview and select the element you mean.

Every project is a folder of plain files on your Mac, at ~/Library/Application Support/Ploof/projects/. Conversations are stored next to them in ploof.db.

To take a copy of a site anywhere, open Deploy and choose Download ZIP. The archive holds every page, stylesheet, script, and image of the project. Deploy your site covers the other ways to put it online.

Ploof Studio writes your site with your Setapp AI credits. There is nothing to connect. Each reply spends credits, and they renew every period.

The Setapp AI row at the bottom of the sidebar shows how many credits are left, with a bar under the number.

• While you have plenty, the row stays neutral.
• Under 10 percent, it turns amber and shows a warning icon.
• At zero, it turns red.

Select the row to open Settings on Providers. The Setapp AI card there shows how many credits are left this period and when they renew, with a Get more credits link.

The card can also show one of these states.

An API key is optional. Add one if you want replies billed to your own account with Anthropic, OpenAI, Vercel AI Gateway, or OpenRouter instead of your Setapp AI credits. One key is enough.

1. Create a key with the provider

   Open the provider’s key page from the table above, create a key, and copy it.

2. Open Settings

   Press ⌘ , or select Settings at the bottom of the sidebar, then select Providers.

3. Add the key

   Under API keys, find the provider and select Add key. Paste the key into the API key field.

4. Save it

   Select Save key. Ploof Studio checks the key with the provider before saving it, and the button reads Checking… meanwhile. Once it’s saved, the row says Connected and shows the last four characters of the key.

When Ploof Studio can’t save a key, it says why under the field. Nothing is stored until the provider accepts the key.

To use a different key, select Replace on the provider’s row, paste the new key, and select Save key.

To remove a key, select the trash button on its row, then Remove key. Ploof Studio deletes it from this Mac and stops using that provider until you add a key again. The key keeps working everywhere else, so revoke it on the provider’s site if you no longer need it.

The model picker sits in the prompt bar. It lists the models of every connected provider, grouped by provider, and ends with Manage providers, which opens Settings. If nothing is connected, it reads Connect a model.

Each model carries a tag that says how it trades speed for care.

While a Deep model reasons, the reply shows Thinking… with a timer. When the answer starts, that folds into a line such as Thought for 1m 12s, which you can open to read the reasoning.

A new project starts on the model the home screen shows, which is the latest project’s model while its provider is connected. On Setapp AI that is Sonnet 5 at first. With your own key it’s Sonnet 5.5, or GPT-6.1 Sol for OpenAI.

A project remembers its model. To change it, open the picker in the project’s prompt bar and choose another model, from any connected provider. The whole conversation goes to the next model, so it picks up where the last one left off.

If the project’s provider is no longer connected, the picker says so and shows its models as unavailable. Pick another model, or connect that provider again in Settings.

Ploof Studio names each new project with a separate model. Change it in Settings under General, in Text generation model. It writes short text, such as the title of each new project, so a fast model keeps it quick and cheap. Haiku 4.5 is the default, or GPT-6 Luna when OpenAI is your only provider.

Keys are encrypted with your Mac’s keychain and stay on this Mac. Ploof Studio sends each key only to its own provider, and never shows a saved key again, only its last four characters.

One or two sentences is plenty. You can change anything after the first build. Say what the site is for, who it’s for, and anything you already know you want, such as a section, a mood, or a color.

• “A one-page site for Sunny Cups, a lemonade stand that caters summer parties. Bright, friendly, with a menu and a booking form.”
• “A portfolio for a wedding photographer in Lisbon. Quiet and editorial, with a gallery, an about page, and a contact page.”
• “An event page for a two-day design meetup in Kraków on 14 and 15 May, with the schedule, the speakers, and a ticket link.”

Press Enter to send. Shift Enter starts a new line. A message can be up to 20,000 characters, and a counter appears as you get close.

Ploof Studio answers in the chat and writes the site at the same time. Each new file streams in as a code card, and each change to an existing file shows as a diff card with the lines it removed and added.

• Written means the file or the change is saved in your project.
• Not applied means Ploof Studio couldn’t place that change, so the file stayed as it was. Ask again, or describe the change another way.

The preview reloads each time a reply that changed files finishes.

The preview sits to the right of the chat. Until the first page is saved, it says Preview lands here. The toolbar above it holds these controls.

• Desktop fills the pane. Mobile shows the site 390 pixels wide, the width of a phone. A pane narrower than 640 pixels opens on Mobile.
• Reload preview loads the page again.
• Point lets you select an element and say what to change. Point and edit covers it.
• Deploy, at the right end, puts the site online. Deploy your site covers it.

Drag the divider between the chat and the preview to resize them. With the divider focused, the arrow keys resize too, and Enter resets it. In a narrow window, a Chat and Preview switcher at the top shows one at a time.

Links in the preview that lead to other sites open in your browser.

Type a site’s address anywhere in your message, such as stripe.com or a full https:// address. It turns into a chip. Ploof Studio reads that site’s colors, fonts, corners, and layout, and designs yours in the same spirit. You can name up to three sites in one message.

The reply first shows Reading stripe.com, then a folded card. Open it to see what Ploof Studio took from the site: the color scheme, the palette with each value, the fonts and weights, the type scale, the corner radii, shadows, the styles of headings, text, and buttons, and an outline of the page.

If a site can’t be read, the reply says so and builds without it.

Attach photos, logos, or screenshots to any message, and Ploof Studio uses them in the site.

• Select Attach images, the paperclip in the prompt bar.
• Paste an image into the prompt bar.
• Drag images onto the prompt bar and drop them.

You can attach up to 10 images to a message, in PNG, JPEG, WebP, GIF, or AVIF. Ploof Studio redraws each one as WebP, at most 2000 pixels on the long edge and 3 MB, and saves it in the project under assets/images/, so every export carries it.

Every message after the first changes the site you have. Ask for anything in plain words, such as “Make the header sticky”, “Add a pricing section with three plans”, or “Write the About page in a warmer voice”. Ploof Studio edits only the parts that need to change.

To change one specific thing on the page, Point is quicker. You select the element and Ploof Studio knows exactly which one you mean.

The sidebar lists your projects under Projects. A spinner shows on a project while it’s replying. Press ⌘ B to show or hide the sidebar.

• New project, or ⌘ N, goes back to the home screen to start a new site.
• Search, or ⌘ K, opens a palette of your projects. Type to filter, use the arrow keys to move, and press Enter to open one.

Ploof Studio names each new project from your first message. You don’t need to name it yourself.

1. Delete a project

   Hover over the project in the sidebar and select its delete button.

2. Confirm

   Select Delete project. The project and its whole conversation are removed from this Mac, and this can’t be undone. A site you already published stays where you published it.

1. Select Point

   Select Point in the preview toolbar. The preview says Click an element to change it, and the page stops following its own links and buttons while Point is on.

2. Pick an element

   Move the pointer over the page. A ring follows the element under it. Select the one you want to change.

3. Say what to change

   A small card opens next to the element. Type what it should be instead, then press Enter or select Send.

With Point on, you can walk the page with the arrow keys instead of the mouse.

The card’s header names the kind of element you picked and its text, such as “Button · See the menu”. Type the change in plain words, such as “Make this button bigger and green”, and send it.

Your message appears in the chat with a chip above it naming the element. Point stays on after you send, so you can go on picking elements and commenting.

Point sends more than your words. With each comment, Ploof Studio gets:

• the page the element is on, and exactly where it sits in that page
• the element’s tag and its text as it appears on screen
• its size and its computed styles
• the CSS rules that style it, including which ones take effect and which ones another rule overrides

That is why a short comment such as “less padding” is enough. Ploof Studio knows which button you mean, down to the styles behind it.

You don’t have to wait for a reply to finish. While one runs, the prompt bar says Queue a change… and its send button becomes Queue message. The Point card’s button becomes Queue change.

Queued messages wait in a tray above the prompt bar that says how many are queued, and the preview toolbar shows the count too. When the current reply finishes, the next queued message is sent, and each one gets its own reply. Select Remove from queue on a row to drop it.

The queue pauses in two cases, and the tray says why.

• Paused because you stopped the reply
• Paused because the last reply failed

Select Send next to carry on, or send a new message, which sends the oldest queued one first.

Select Stop generating in the prompt bar at any time. Ploof Studio keeps the text that arrived and every file it finished. Only the file it was writing at that moment is lost.

If a reply fails, the chat says why and offers Try again, which sends the same message again. Files the failed reply already wrote stay in the project. Some errors also offer Open Settings.

Select Deploy at the right end of the preview toolbar. It’s available once Ploof Studio finishes replying. The dialog, Put your site online, offers three paths.

Both GitHub paths share one repository per project. Once it exists, the dialog links to it and offers to push your latest changes.

1. Choose Vercel, via GitHub

   In the deploy dialog, select Vercel, via GitHub.

2. Connect GitHub

   Select Connect GitHub. Ploof Studio shows a short code. Select Copy code and open GitHub, paste the code on the GitHub page that opens, and select Authorize. Back in Ploof Studio, the step says Connected as and your GitHub name.

3. Create a repository

   Ploof Studio fills in a Repository name from your project. Keep it or type your own. Under Who can see the code, choose Public or Private, then select Create.

4. Publish on Vercel

   Select Import on Vercel. Sign in to Vercel and select Deploy. After that, every push updates your site.

   Back in Ploof Studio, the dialog shows that Vercel is publishing, which usually takes under a minute, and then Live at with your site’s address.

The Vercel deploy guide goes through this path in more detail.

1. Choose GitHub Pages

   In the deploy dialog, select GitHub Pages.

2. Connect GitHub

   Connect GitHub the same way as on the Vercel path, with the code Ploof Studio shows. If you connected it before, this step is already done.

3. Create a repository

   Keep the suggested Repository name or type your own, then select Create. GitHub Pages repositories are public.

4. Turn on GitHub Pages

   Select Turn on GitHub Pages. GitHub publishes your site, which usually takes a minute or two, and the dialog then shows its address.

If the project’s repository is private, GitHub Pages won’t work. The last step offers Use Vercel instead, or Change visibility on GitHub to make the repository public.

The GitHub Pages deploy guide goes through this path in more detail.

1. Save your site

   In the deploy dialog, select Download ZIP, then Save ZIP. The Mac save panel opens on your Downloads folder with the project’s name filled in. Choose where to save it.

2. Drop it on Vercel

   Select Open Vercel Drop and drag the .zip file onto that page. You need a free Vercel account, and each drop creates a new project.

The ZIP is the whole site, so you can also upload it to any other host, or keep it as a copy.

After the first deploy, keep changing the site in Ploof Studio. When you open Deploy again and GitHub doesn’t have the latest version, the dialog says so. Select Push latest changes. It reads Pushed when it’s done, and Vercel or GitHub Pages updates the site.

When GitHub already has the latest version of your site, the button stays disabled.

• Public means anyone can see the code. It works with GitHub Pages too.
• Private means only you can see it. Vercel works with a private repository. GitHub Pages doesn’t.

You choose this only on the Vercel path. The GitHub Pages path always creates a public repository.

Once your site is live on Vercel or GitHub Pages, the deploy dialog shows Add your own domain. It has two tabs.

Find a domain suggests names for your site and checks which are free. Type words or a domain in Words or a domain, such as “sunny cups” or “sunnycups.com”, and select Search. Each free name shows its first-year price on Vercel and Cloudflare. Select More ideas for another batch.

You buy the domain on your own Vercel or Cloudflare account. After you select a buy link, come back and select Show me how to connect it.

Connect a domain walks you through the steps for your host. Type the domain in Your domain and it fills into the steps.

Ploof Studio never buys a domain for you and never holds one. The domain, like the site, stays on accounts you own.

Everything lives on your Mac, in ~/Library/Application Support/Ploof/.

• Each project’s site is a folder of plain files in projects/, with your images under assets/images/.
• Your projects and conversations are stored in ploof.db.

To take a site elsewhere, use Download ZIP in the deploy dialog.

API keys and your GitHub sign-in are encrypted with your Mac’s keychain and stay on this Mac. Ploof Studio sends each key only to its own provider.

To disconnect GitHub, open Settings, select Integrations, and select Disconnect. Your repositories and live sites stay on GitHub.

The Privacy Policy covers what data Ploof Studio handles and why.

Write to support@ploof.dev with a question, a bug, or an idea. A person reads every message and replies.

The Terms of Use and the Privacy Policy cover Ploof Studio and this website.