Private Projects

Public vs. private projects

App2 offers two visibility options for your projects. The key difference is who can see and access your work.

Public projects

Public projects are visible to everyone and appear in App2's community showcase.

What "public" means:

• Listed on App2 homepage in "From the Community" section

• Preview URL accessible to anyone

• Anyone can view and fork your project

• Appears in search results

Benefits of public projects:

• Showcase your work: Build a portfolio of apps

• Get feedback: Community can see and learn from your projects

• Inspire others: Help fellow developers with examples

• Free tier: Available to all users at no cost

Who can see public projects:

• Anyone visiting App2.dev

• Search engines (Google, Bing, etc.)

• Anyone with the project URL

• Community members browsing showcase

Default setting: All projects are public by default on the Free tier.

Tip: Public projects are great for learning, building portfolio pieces, and open-source contributions.

Private projects

Private projects are hidden from public view and only accessible to your workspace team.

What "private" means:

• Not listed in community showcase

• Preview URL restricted to workspace members

• GitHub repository is private

• Only workspace members can view and fork

• Hidden from search engines

Benefits of private projects:

• Complete privacy: Keep your work confidential

• Client projects: Build apps for clients privately

• Proprietary apps: Protect business logic and code

• Controlled access: Share only with team members

• Pre-launch development: Work privately until ready to launch

Who can see private projects:

• Workspace owners

• Workspace members

• Anyone you explicitly invite to the workspace

Requirement: Pro or Lifetime subscription ($25/month or $400 one-time)

Note: Private projects require a Pro subscription. Upgrade to access this feature.

Setting project visibility

When creating a project

Choose visibility during project creation:

1. Start creating a new project (homepage or "New Project" button)

2. Select template (Web or Mobile)

3. Choose visibility:

   • Public: Free tier and Pro tier

   • Private: Pro tier only (shows upgrade prompt if on Free)

4. Complete project creation

Free tier users: Public is the only option. Attempting to create a private project shows an upgrade prompt.

Pro users: Choose public or private for each project.

Changing visibility later

Update project visibility in project settings:

1. Open your project

2. Click Settings (gear icon)

3. Go to Project → General

4. Find Visibility setting

5. Select Public or Private

6. Save changes

Visibility change effects:

• Public → Private: Removed from community showcase immediately

• Private → Public: Added to community showcase

Upgrade required: Changing to private requires Pro subscription. You'll see an upgrade prompt if you're on Free tier.

Warning: Changing a public project to private removes it from the community showcase and may break external links.

Community showcase

Public projects appear in the community showcase on App2's homepage, helping users discover inspiring projects.

Where public projects appear

Homepage section:

• "From the Community" section (visible to all visitors)

• Filtered by category (Social Media, Productivity, etc.)

• Sorted by Popular, Trending, or Recent

Community page:

• Dedicated page at app2.dev/community

• Browse all public projects

• Filter by category and app type

• Search by title or description

Showcase features

Filtering options:

• Popular: Most forked projects

• Trending: Recently created with high engagement

• Recent: Newest projects

Categories:

• Social Media

• Productivity

• E-commerce

• Health & Fitness

• Education

• Finance

• Travel & Lifestyle

• Entertainment

• Games

• Business

• Utilities

Project cards show:

• Project title and description

• Creator username

• Screenshot/preview image

• Fork count

• App type (Web/Mobile)

Benefits of being featured

When your public project appears in the showcase:

• Visibility: Reach thousands of App2 users

• Forks: Others can fork and build on your work

• Portfolio: Demonstrate your skills

• Feedback: Get community reactions

• Trending: Popular projects get more visibility

Tip: Create high-quality public projects to build your developer portfolio and inspire the community.

Choosing the right visibility

Use public projects when

• Building for learning: Experimenting and practicing

• Open-source work: Contributing to the community

• Portfolio projects: Showcasing your skills

• Getting feedback: Want community input

• Teaching: Creating examples for others

• No sensitive data: No proprietary code or secrets

Examples:

• Personal portfolio website

• Open-source tool or library

• Learning project (todo app, calculator)

• Template for others to fork

• Community contribution

Use private projects when

• Client work: Building apps for paying clients

• Proprietary apps: Protecting business logic

• Sensitive data: App contains confidential information

• Pre-launch projects: Not ready for public viewing

• Commercial products: Building SaaS or products to sell

• Team collaboration: Internal company tools

Examples:

• Client's e-commerce platform

• Startup MVP in development

• Internal company dashboard

• App with proprietary algorithms

• Pre-launch mobile app

Decision guide

Ask yourself:

1. Does this contain sensitive information? → Private

2. Am I building this for a client? → Private

3. Is this proprietary or commercial? → Private

4. Do I want community feedback? → Public

5. Is this for learning or portfolio? → Public

6. Am I comfortable with anyone seeing the code? → Public if yes, Private if no

Default recommendation:

• Learning projects: Public

• Professional/client projects: Private

• Personal apps with no sensitive data: Public

• Business applications: Private

FAQ

Can I have both public and private projects?

Yes. Pro subscribers can create unlimited projects with any visibility. Mix public portfolio projects with private client work.

Do private projects cost more?

No. Private projects don't cost extra beyond the Pro subscription ($25/month). The Pro plan includes both public and private projects.

Can I change a public project to private?

Yes. Pro subscribers can change visibility anytime in project settings. The project is immediately removed from the community showcase.

What happens to forks when I make a project private?

Existing forks remain public (they're independent projects). New forks are only allowed for workspace members.

Can people see my private project preview URL?

No. Preview URLs for private projects are restricted to workspace members only. Anyone else gets an access denied error.

Are my project files secure in private projects?

Yes. Private projects use private GitHub repositories with access restricted to your workspace. Code is not visible to anyone outside your team.

Can I share a private project with someone?

Yes. Invite them to your workspace as a member. They'll then have access to all workspace projects.

Do public projects appear in search engines?

Yes. Public project pages are indexed by search engines. This is great for portfolio visibility but means your code and app are discoverable online.

Can I upgrade to Pro just to make one project private?

Yes. Upgrading to Pro gives you access to private projects across your entire workspace. All existing and future projects can be made private.

What about API keys and secrets in public projects?

Never commit API keys or secrets to any project (public or private). Use environment variables and keep sensitive data in Supabase secrets or Vercel environment variables.

Related links

• Plans and Credits - Pro subscription details

• Getting Started

• FAQ

• Workspaces