So, you’re interested in becoming a web designer or developer of some sort and you want to learn to code. Go you!
One of the best things that you can do for any career path is to uplevel your skills. By learning to code, you can offer more services, raise your prices, and deliver better and more custom results for your clients. A win-win for sure.
Let’s get right to the good stuff and talk about 10 places to learn to code online no matter what kind of budget you’re on or experience you have.
Before we start: Do you have to learn how to code to be a web designer? What careers require coding experience?
I’ll keep this super quick because I respect your time, but we could argue about this all day!
Learning to code as a web designer is a really good idea, but it’s not necessary. It can help you do more, quicker. It can also help you be able to complete more jobs without needing help. You’ll have more confidence to say yes to more projects because you know you have the tools to accomplish pretty much anything on the web.
But you don’t have to learn to code as a web designer. There several no-code out there that will allow you to craft beautiful and strategic sites without code.
Elementor is my favorite page builder for WordPress and you can design pretty much anything on it. Whether you code or not, it can speed up your web design workflow like CRAZY. I use Elementor Pro (It’s $199/yr for unlimited site licenses, which is a killer deal for a web designer, to be honest!) but you can also start with the free Elementor plugin and then upgrade when you’re ready to.
To be a web developer or a software developer, you’ll need to learn to code. And in adjacent career paths, like web design and UX design, it helps your skill set and earning potential if you’re comfortable with coding.
I’m a huge proponent of moms, women, and people in general learning to code, especially if they’re interested in a career that will be boosted by coding skills. So let me show you a few places I’d recommend for learning to code as a beginner!
Where should you learn to code?
Let’s start off with some free or fairly inexpensive options. These tend to be more self-study and they’re fantastic for people who are able to follow programs and learn new things without direct instruction.
Some of these have more human contact than others. For example, some have video lessons and some even have access to tutors or peers who will review your work and leave feedback. For the most part, free and inexpensive options for learning to code will have less direct feedback, which can be a downside, but you can absolutely learn a ton from these kind of resources.
1.) Treehouse
Price: 2-week free trial, then $25/month+
Treehouse is not free, but it does have a trial available. It’s one of my top recommendations for moms learning how to code because of how inexpensive and structured it is. You can choose different learning paths depending on which skills you’re focusing on and there are a lot of chances to submit questions if you’re stuck on something. With plans as low as $25/month, it’s a pretty good deal for what’s included.
You’ll watch videos, apply your knowledge, take quizzes, and you can participate in the forums and ask questions if you need to. I think Treehouse is the best choice for someone learning to code if you need structure and a roadmap, but you don’t want to spend a lot of money. The user interface is super friendly-looking and the teachers are well-spoken and beginner-friendly, which is a big thing in the world of learning to code for sure.
Check out Treehouse here (Start a free trial if you like what you see!)
2.) FreeCodeCamp
Price: 100% Free
This one is my favorite free resource for learning to code by far, especially because of how comprehensive it is. I actually started learning to code here in junior high and they’ve kept themselves super up to date since then, it’s impressive.
FreeCodeCamp looks a little more intimidating as a beginner, but I promise you that if you jump in and start learning, you will learn a lot from FreeCodeCamp. The forums on this site are wonderful because it’s such a popular place to learn to code, so you’ll always be able to connect with someone and discuss issues you’re coming across or ask questions.
The modules are laid out in a linear way and it makes less sense to jump around and learn different things on this site, but that can be a good thing if you get overwhelmed by too many choices. If you’re wanting to learn to code for web design, I recommend going through their first module at the minimum. If you want to get into software development as a career, I recommend finishing FreeCodeCamp over anything else if you’re looking for a free way to learn to code. When you log in, you’ll see that they’ve laid out a free and very extensive curriculum that you can use to get up to speed on programming and software development skills.
Here’s a quote from their intro page:
freeCodeCamp is a proven path to your first software developer job.
More than 40,000 people have gotten developer jobs after completing this – including at big companies like Google and Microsoft.
If you are new to programming, we recommend you start at the beginning and earn these certifications in order.
To earn each certification, build its 5 required projects and get all their tests to pass.
You can add these certifications to your résumé or LinkedIn. But more important than the certifications is the practice you get along the way.
Check out their YouTube Channel here
3.) Skillshare
Price: 2-week free trial, then $8.25/month if you pay annually or $19/month if you pay monthly
Skillshare is a good platform to go with if you’re not sure exactly where you want to take your coding career and you want to get a good, general overview of what it’s like in different career roles before jumping into something specific.
If you want to get a higher-level look at the tech and skills involved in different career opportunities, Skillshare is an awesome and accessible place to do that.
You can get a free trial with my link and then after that, it’s $19/month or $99/year (totals out to $8.25/month) to keep your subscription. If you’d rather not pay for the sub, the 2-week trial is definitely long enough to take several courses and get a better idea of what skills or job position you want to pursue.
I actually keep an active Skillshare subscription going to explore new hobbies, skills, and tools. It’s not allllllways the best for in-depth knowledge, but you’ll be surprised what you can learn over there that does go into depth. They have some awesome, non-boring classes on CSS, JavaScript, and React that I highly recommend trying out if you’re interested in going into web or software development.
For example, there are long and detailed courses once you start looking for specific tools and skillsets. Searching for JavaScript, CSS, or React (or another specific coding technology) will net you a list of hours-long courses that fully show you the ropes.
Get a 14-day free trial of Skillshare with my affiliate link here
4.) SuperHi
Price: One free course, other courses range from $149-$499
SuperHi offers all kinds of coding tutorials and online courses for all skill levels. Their website is super impressive and absolutely stunning – I’m so into their stuff and I would love to take one of their courses.
I just signed up for an account over there and plan to check out their free course and will come back here to report on what it was like when I finish it! Their courses are on the spendy side but they do look high-quality. If you like courses to be aesthetically pleasing and all packaged up nicely, this might be an option you’ll want to check out.
They also wrote a book on how to learn to code if you’re more of a book person. It’s $29 for a digital copy or $49 for a physical one. That seems like a lot for a book, but not so much if you’re comparing it to a textbook. You can find it over on their site!
Free SuperHi Resources:
5.) Skillcrush
Price: $549 per course or $1599 for their “Break Into Tech” course bundle with all 13 of their courses
Skillcrush is a company that I really appreciate for existing. They focus on helping women create profitable careers in tech, whether you want to get hired or start your own business. With their programs, they offer career mentorship, instructor feedback, job-ready checklists, interview prep, and real-world portfolio projects, which is big. I think that’s why their courses are priced on the higher end and that totally makes sense.
Their courses will help you out if you’re interested in any of these areas:
- Web design
- Web development
- Software development
- Digital marketing
- UX (User Experience Design)
I have not taken any of their courses because I am currently a web designer and don’t feel like I need to right now, but if I were to pivot over to software development at some point I’d have my eye on their courses.
If you’re intrigued but want to try out their stuff before you commit, they do have a free Coding Camp course that you can jump into without paying a cent or entering CC info – you just need to sign up with an email for this.
6.) SheCodes
Price: Free intro workshop, $99-$990 for their core coding workshops
Another female-focused coding initiative, SheCodes provides interactive workshops for women learning web and software development skills. They’ve got a workshop completion rate of 92%, which is actually wildly amazing for online courses.
You’ll learn the ropes of the technologies behind both of those things in condensed, online workshops with live support and lots of structure. you also get feedback on all of your assignments and projects during the workshops, which last anywhere from 3 weeks to 4 months.
They also offer free, live 60-minute coding sessions with a real developer for anyone wanting to try before you buy, so that’s cool of them.
7.) Codecademy
Price: Free for some content, Codecademy Pro starts at $19/month
Codecadmy allows you a good amount of access for free and if you are looking for more structure you can upgrade for a reasonable price. At $19/month on an annual plan, it’s one of the most affordable paid options.
Their free courses are pretty in-depth. You can take introductory HTML, JavaScript, Java, React, Python, SQL, C++, CSS, C#, PHP, Ruby and how to build a website with Wix all for free. I always recommend jumping in with one programming/coding language and committing to learning it, but if you think you might want to explore multiple languages then this would be one to check out.
Take a look at Codecademy here
8.) Coursera
Price: Free to audit courses, $79/course or $49/month to receive a verified certificate upon completion
Coursera is an online course platform that was developed with the idea of making university-level classes more accessible. In the 2000’s and 2010’s, a ton of these kinds of sites popped up, but Coursera stands out due to all of the reputable schools offering free or affordable courses on the site.
You can learn from Ivy League and other respected universities from around the world and each course is packaged up neatly and clearly structured. Some courses are self-paced and you can get started at any time, while other courses are led during specific dates. If you need more structure and accountability, I recommend trying out the courses that open and close and have a more active student pool as well as an engaged instructor.
Coursera also has courses in languages other than English. You can find courses in Spanish, French, Russian, Portuguese, Chinese, and more on the platform.
If you’re interested in earning a certificate from the course you take, you can opt to pay per course or pay a monthly fee when pursuing a specialization on Coursera. Some universities will accept Coursera certificates as college credit and some employers (including Google) may recognize Coursera certifications and value them on a resume.
I’ve audited 9 Coursera courses and have 1 paid certificate from them after completing one in particular that I wanted to show off – I’d recommend auditing any course that you want for free before starting to pay, but I think their certificates are a good value. Here’s a few courses they have available:
- HTML, CSS, and Javascript for Web Developers by Johns Hopkins University
- Intro to Web Development by UC Davis
- Web Design: Strategy and Information Architecture by California Institute of the Arts
- UX Design Fundamentals by California Institute for the Arts
- Software Development Processes and Methodologies by University of Minnesota
- Object-Oriented Java Programming: Data Structures and Beyond Specialization by UC San Diego
Try out Coursera here and get 50% off if you decide to buy a certification (courses are free to audit, though!)
9.) Khan Academy
Price: Free
I was homeschooled in high school and I used the heck out of Khan Academy, especially with math. They’re such an awesome non-profit with a goal to provide free, world-class education to anyone with internet access and they’re really crushing that goal and have been since they launched. They’ve added a lot of new courses to their website since I last used it and they now have a few coding-related ones.
Khan Academy is free and good quality, but they aren’t necessarily focused on career development or anything to do with freelancing or starting a business, so that’s something to consider. They primarily focus on students in primary and secondary school, so this isn’t the best place for career-level education in programming, but they do have a few courses to check out.
- Computer programming on Khan Academy
- AP/College Computer Science Principles
- Computers and the Internet
10.) edX
Price: Free to audit courses, $249 to get a verified certificate upon completion
EdX is another digital learning platform originally created by a couple of big-name universities.
They’re pretty similar to Coursera but their certification program is priced a bit differently. The quality of the courses on edX is pretty legendary (along with Coursera) just because of the institutions producing the courses over there.
Because of the university-backed classes, you will get in-depth content but you might miss out on some of the career-focused information and portfolio building that some of the other platforms have. Universities can sometimes be slow to adapt their programs to be fully applicable to real life + real careers, but it’s still a great place to take some introductory courses. Especially if you feel like you’d like a bit of support but don’t necessarily want to pay for that.
Wrapping it up: 10 Best Places to Learn to Code Online
Niiiiice, you made it all the way through the list! 10 great places to learn to code online whether or not you’re budgeting money for it. I think that you can learn a ton either way, free or paid.
Here’s everything linked again for a quick reference:
If you have any questions about learning to code online as a mom or in general, drop me a comment below! Would be happy to give some pointers and help out in any way I can. Good luck on your coding journey!
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Hey, what’s up? I’m Lucia, a work from home mom of three and a freelance writer. I’m here to spill the tea and tips on starting and growing an online business as a mom. It’s not the easiest thing in the world, but it’s possible and I’m rooting for you!
