Lovable publish not working: what is failing, and what a visitor sees

Your app says it published, and a visitor still sees an old version, a locked page or a sign-in that fails. Or the Publish button itself stops with a "Publishing failed" banner. "Lovable publish not working" covers both, and they have different fixes.

The preview and the published app are separate. Lovable says only publishing puts your app on a public URL, and later changes are not pushed live on their own. Hosting serves the pages; the backend handles data and sign-in. Either side can be the one failing.

When the Publish button fails

The banner names one of six categories and offers the matching action.

1. Temporary issue. A short-lived problem such as a timeout or a rate limit on a connected service. Click Try again; Lovable says retries usually succeed.
2. Error in your app. A build error or an edge function that could not be deployed: the app ran in the preview but cannot be built for production. Click Try to fix, or describe the issue in the project chat, then publish again.
3. Configuration issue. A problem in the project setup, such as a file too large to include. Click Try to fix, then publish again.
4. External connection or secret. Something outside the project, such as an expired Supabase connection or a connected service at its plan limits. Reconnect the integration or update its plan or quota, then click Try again.
5. Database change conflicts with existing data. Click Ask the assistant to help and go through the fix with it, since it touches real data.
6. Internal error. Lovable's banner puts this one on its own side. Try again after a few minutes; if it keeps failing, contact Lovable support with your project link.

Source: Lovable: Publish your project

When publishing is blocked, not failing

Some states stop publishing without a failure:

• "Fix security issues to publish": the workspace blocks publishing with critical findings. Resolve them, then publish.
• "Publish requires approval" (an Enterprise workspace policy): select Request approval and write a short note for the approvers.
• "You don't have permission to publish this project": publishing needs editor access or above.

Source: Lovable: Publish your project

When it published, but visitors still have a problem

They see the old version. A dot on the Publish button means the project has changes newer than the live version. Open the Publish dialog and click Publish changes.

Nobody else can open it. On Free and Pro, visibility is Public by default with an Invite only option; Business and Enterprise have Public, Workspace and Custom. Set the audience to Public in the Publish dialog, then click Publish changes so it takes effect.

Pages load, but sign-in and data fail. The backend may be paused. Lovable says pausing affects the app's data and logic, not page hosting, and a paused backend may not restart on its own. Go to More, Database and click Wake up on the paused card.

The custom domain is not Live. Until it shows Live, visitors on that address do not reach the app. Open Project, Settings, Domains and read the status; if it shows Offline, click Recover, review the DNS records shown and update them at your DNS provider.

It is down for everyone. Check status.lovable.dev for incidents, open the Publish dialog to confirm the project is still published, and check your email for an inactivity notice (Free-plan projects can be unpublished for inactivity). If visitors see "App temporarily unavailable", the Free-plan request limit was reached: newer apps are limited to 1,000 server requests per project per 10 seconds, and visitors can try again after a minute.

Sources: Lovable: How Lovable hosts your app · Lovable: Custom domains

Why you can't see it yourself

You're signed in, your customers aren't. In the editor you see the banner and the preview, signed in as an editor, with an awake backend. A visitor sees only the published address and meets whatever the published side actually does.

FAQ

Why can't visitors see my latest changes? Lovable does not push later edits live automatically. A dot on the Publish button means there are newer changes; click Publish changes.

Does a paused backend take my site down? No. Pages still load, but data and sign-in fail until you click Wake up under More, Database.

Published? Prove a real stranger gets in

A published app that works from your own account proves nothing about a new visitor. Your AI reads your code. VibeFix signs up like a stranger.

Free check. Paste your live app's link at vibe-fixer.com. An AI agent opens your live app like a brand-new person and confirms the problem a new user hits, and how serious it is. No card needed. The free check never changes your app.

Want it fixed? For $79, an AI agent finds which cause is breaking your app, fixes it in your code and re-checks your live app. You pay after the re-check passes. If we can't complete your re-check, you get your money back. Today the fix is for apps built with Lovable, or any app whose code is on GitHub.

Related: It works in the preview but breaks after I deploy · Supabase login not working on my published Lovable app · Blank white page after publishing

VibeFix is independent. Lovable and Supabase are trademarks of their owners.

Which one got you: the Publish banner, or a visitor seeing something you never saw in the editor?

Originally published at vibe-fixer.com. I'm building VibeFix, an AI agent that finds what is breaking your live app, fixes it in your code and re-checks it.