Build and run your first Vaadin app in 5 minutes. You'll create a full-stack web app in pure Java. No HTML, no JavaScript, no REST plumbing — just components, events, and instant hotswap.
Vaadin Quickstart
Before you start
You'll need three things. If you already write Java, you probably have all of them.
5 minutes
That's how long this takes.
A Java™ Development Kit (JDK) 17 or 21
Liberica, Temurin, or any modern JDK
An Integrated Development Environment (IDE)
IntelliJ IDEA, VS Code, Eclipse, or NetBeans
Step 1:
Download your starter
Go to start.vaadin.com and click Download. You'll get a ready-to-run Spring Boot + Vaadin project as a .zip.
The defaults are fine for this quickstart — you don't need to change anything.
Bookmark it: start.vaadin.com is a configurator, not a tutorial — experienced Vaadin developers use it as their default way to start any new project.
Step 2:
Open it in your IDE
Unzip the file and open the project folder in your IDE.
IntelliJ IDEA
File → Open… and select the unzipped folder. IntelliJ detects the Maven project and imports dependencies automatically.
Visual Studio Code
Install the Extension Pack for Java, then File → Open Folder… and select the unzipped folder.
Eclipse
File → Import → Existing Maven Project and select the unzipped folder.
NetBeans
File → Open Project… and select the unzipped folder. NetBeans recognizes the Maven project and resolves dependencies automatically.
Step 3:
Enable Hotswap
Hotswap applies your code changes to the running application without restarting it — no rebuild, no lost state. It's the difference between a slow Java workflow and a fast one.
Turn it on now! Install the Vaadin plugin for your IDE and use it to start the application:
IntelliJ IDEA
Install Vaadin from the JetBrains Marketplace, then click the green Vaadin run icon next to the Application class.
Open http://localhost:8080 in your browser. First start takes ~30 seconds while Maven downloads dependencies.
Visual Studio Code
Install the Vaadin extension from the VS Code marketplace, then run Run with Vaadin from the command palette.
Open http://localhost:8080 in your browser. First start takes ~30 seconds while Maven downloads dependencies.
NetBeans
Install the Vaadin plugin from the NetBeans plugin portal, then right-click the project → Run with Vaadin.
Open http://localhost:8080 in your browser. First start takes ~30 seconds while Maven downloads dependencies.
Why a plugin? It launches the JVM with the right agent for hotswap. Running with plain mvn spring-boot:run works, but you'll lose hotswap and have to restart for every change.
Step 4:
Make your first change
Create a new class MainView.java in src/main/java/com/example/
(next to the Application class)
package com.example;
import com.vaadin.flow.component.button.Button;
import com.vaadin.flow.component.html.H1;
import com.vaadin.flow.component.html.Paragraph;
import com.vaadin.flow.component.orderedlayout.VerticalLayout;
import com.vaadin.flow.component.textfield.TextField;
import com.vaadin.flow.router.PageTitle;
import com.vaadin.flow.router.Route;
@Route("")
@PageTitle("Hello, Vaadin!")
public class MainView extends VerticalLayout {
public MainView() {
add(new H1("Hello, Vaadin!"));
var nameField = new TextField("What is your name?");
add(nameField);
var greeting = new Paragraph();
greeting.setVisible(false);
add(greeting);
add(new Button("Say Hello", event -> {
greeting.setText("Hello, %s!".formatted(nameField.getValue()));
greeting.setVisible(!nameField.isEmpty());
}));
}
}
Save the file. Switch back to your browser — the new UI appears without a reload.
Step 5:
Make a change without writing code
Vaadin Copilot is a visual, AI-empowered development tool built into dev mode. You can inspect components, drag-and-drop, edit themes, or just ask in plain English.
In your running app, open Copilot: ⇧ + ⌘ ⌘ on Mac ⇧ + Ctrl Ctrl on Windows / Linux
(Hold Shift and press ⌘ or Ctrl twice in quick succession.)
Click the AI assistant icon in the Copilot toolbar and try!
Copilot prompt:
Add a date-of-birth field with a date picker, and validate that the user is at least 18.
Copilot edits your Java source directly — re-runs hotswap — and your app updates in place. Open MainView.java in your IDE: the new field is right there in the code.
First-time AI use: Copilot will prompt you to sign in with a free Vaadin account. The visual tools (drag-drop, theme editor, inspector) work without sign-in.
You're All Set! Where to next?
You just built a full-stack web app in Java.
Pick your next step. Build something real, explore the components, or ship to production.
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Drag-and-drop UI editing, theme tweaks, and AI prompts — without ever leaving the browser.
Explore Copilot