Learning how to code opens up a lot of career opportunities. With a coding bootcamp, you’ll get the expert guidance you need to quickly learn this skill and land a high-paying job. But there are many options out there when it comes to these courses — we’ve reviewed the top coding bootcamps below to help you select the program that’s most worth your time and money.
- Code Fellows — Software Development — Top Pick
- Flatiron School — Online Software Engineering Course — Best Self-Directed Course
- App Academy — 24 Week Software Engineering Immersive Course — Best ISA Program
- Codesmith — Part-time Remote Software Engineering Immersive Course — Best for Advanced Students
- General Assembly — Software Engineering Immersive Online Course — Best Job Placement Rate
- Hack Reactor — Software Engineering Online Immersive Course — Most Immersive Experience
- Code Platoon — Intro to Coding — Most Affordable
- Fullstack Academy — Live Online Coding Bootcamp — Most Intuitive Interface
- Thinkful — Software Engineering Bootcamp — Most Beginner-Friendly
- Coding Dojo — Full-Time Remote Software Engineering Bootcamp — Most Languages Covered
Our Ranking Criteria
Coding can be complicated. To help you get your head around the more difficult concepts, we selected courses that feature talented educators who have extensive real-world experience in the industry. After reviewing dozens of coding bootcamps, we also used the criteria described below to determine which programs offer the most value to their students.
Basic Ranking Criteria
We designed this guide to make it easy for you to find the most important basic details of each course, such as how long it takes to complete and if you get a certificate when you graduate. Specifically, we highlight the following four details regarding each course:
Time to complete. Ideally, you’ll be able to complete the bootcamp as soon as possible, as this will allow you to quickly advance in your coding career.
Prerequisites required. If you’re new to coding, you should seek out a course that’s open to everyone. On the other hand, those who already have some experience should choose a program that requires prerequisites — that way, you won’t waste your money on a course that covers concepts you already know.
Flexible schedule. You may already have a busy schedule due to work and family obligations. In that case, you’ll need to find a course that offers a part-time or self-directed option.
Certificate of completion. While many coding bootcamps won’t give you a certificate upon completing their program, those that do will help make your resume look more impressive.
Advanced Ranking Criteria
In addition to the aforementioned basic ranking criteria, we also considered ranking criteria that is specific to the coding industry:
- The course covers a variety of programming languages, such as JavaScript, Python, Ruby, and SQL
- To compensate for the lack of an in-person experience, the course offers face-to-face interactions through live video lectures and activities with fellow students
- The course utilizes projects and other exercises to replicate real-world problems that the student will face on the job as a coder
- Instructors are highly skilled and experienced software developers
- Graduates of the course have been hired at top tech companies such as Amazon, Microsoft, and Google
- The program offers career services that teach students how to prepare for interviews, negotiate their salaries, etc.
- The program maintains a strong alumni network that provides the student with instant contacts and opportunities in the coding industry
10 Best Coding Bootcamps
Code Fellows
Foundations of Software Development
Intelligent Award: Top Pick
In as little as four weeks (there’s also a part-time nights and weekends track that lasts for nine weeks), this course will teach you how to use CSS and HTML to implement page layout styles, utilize JavaScript to make web projects interactive, and write JavaScript code that is efficient and matches the industry standard for syntax and style. Code Fellows classes have a student-instructor ratio of just 6:1, and their live interactive lecture style allows you to ask questions in real-time. They offer open office hours with instructors and 1:1 TA support whenever you need it as well. Code Fellows has a proven track record — 93% of their graduates are employed in the field, and they have more alumni working at Big 5 tech companies (Amazon, Apple, Facebook, Google, and Microsoft) than any other coding bootcamp. It’s also worth noting that, in addition to this 201-level course, Code Fellows offers a 101 course for absolute beginners as well as 301 and 401 courses for more advanced students.
- Price: $5,000
- Time to complete: 160 hours
- Prerequisites required: Yes
- Flexible schedule: Yes
- Includes verified certificate of participation: Yes
Who should take this course? This particular course is best suited for those who are already familiar with the basics of coding but don’t know much beyond those concepts. If you’re at a different skill level, you should check out the other Code Fellows courses.
| What we like | What we don’t like |
| Affordable pricing | No asynchronous option |
| Low student-instructor ratio | |
| Variety of courses available for different skill levels |
Flatiron School
Online Software Engineering Course
Intelligent Award: Best Self-Directed Course
With their 675 hours of industry-vetted curriculum, Flatiron School’s Online Software Engineering course covers the most important technologies that you will need to learn for both front-end and back-end development, including HTML, CSS, SQL, Ruby, and JavaScript (although ideally, they would also cover Python). One of the best aspects of this program is that you’ll be taking the course with a cohort of up to 40 peers, and you’ll be assigned a cohort lead who will mentor you throughout the entire program. Another benefit to choosing Flatiron School’s coding bootcamp is that they offer flexible scheduling — you can choose between their full-time, part-time, and self-directed programs.
- Price: Live courses: $16,900, Self-paced: $9,600
- Time to complete: 5 months (full-time), 10 months (part-time), up to 15 months (self-paced)
- Prerequisites required: No
- Flexible schedule: Yes
- Includes verified certificate of participation: Yes
Who should take this course? With their part-time and self-directed options, Flatiron School is an excellent choice for anyone who is trying to fit their coding bootcamp into an already busy schedule.
| What we like | What we don’t like |
| Flexible scheduling | Doesn’t cover Python |
| Mentorship program |
App Academy
24 Week Software Engineering Immersive Course
Intelligent Award: Best ISA Program
Are you concerned about the cost of coding bootcamps? These courses do tend to cost thousands of dollars, but you don’t need to necessarily pay for them upfront. For example, App Academy’s 24 Week Software Engineering Immersive course allows you to use an income share agreement (ISA) to defer the cost of their course until you actually land a coding job. At that point, you’ll need to send App Academy 15% of your salary for three years (max. $31,000). As for the course itself, you’ll learn everything you need to know about the JavaScript and Python programming languages. Also, most App Academy graduates are able to get hired within six months of completing the program
- Price: No upfront cost — after you’re hired, the fee is 15% of your salary for three years (max $31,000).
- Time to complete: 24 weeks
- Prerequisites required: Yes
- Flexible schedule: No
- Includes verified certificate of participation: No
Who should take this course? If you’re particularly concerned about your budget, you should strongly consider App Academy due to their ISA payment model.
| What we like | What we don’t like |
| No upfront cost | No part-time option |
| High job placement rate |
Codesmith
Part-time Remote Software Engineering Immersive Course
Intelligent Award: Best for Advanced Students
First of all, it’s important to note that this course is not open to beginners. To be accepted into Codesmith’s Part-time Remote Software Engineering Immersive course, you’ll need to pass through two stages of interviews, which will test your JavaScript skills, technical communication, nontechnical communication, and how you handle hitting roadblocks. Once accepted, you’ll learn from a rigorous curriculum that covers computer science, front-end development, back-end development, machine learning, and real-world engineering practices. Codesmith graduates have been hired at Amazon, Google, PayPal, Snapchat, and many other major companies.
- Price: Starts at $19,350
- Time to complete: 38 weeks
- Prerequisites required: Yes
- Flexible schedule: No
- Includes verified certificate of participation: No
Who should take this course? If you feel stuck in the entry-level stage of your coding career, Codesmith’s advanced course can quickly help you develop the skill set you’ll need to advance in this field.
| What we like | What we don’t like |
| Covers advanced topics | Relatively expensive |
| High job placement rate | Not beginner-friendly |
General Assembly
Software Engineering Immersive Online Course
Intelligent Award: Best Job Placement Rate
General Assembly’s Software Engineering Immersive Online course will help you get started with your coding career — they provide you with expert instruction, one-on-one career coaching, and connections to some of the top employers in the industry. Their course materials cover multiple frameworks and stacks, so you’ll come out of this program with a well-rounded skill set. With all these resources, it’s no surprise that over 12,000 General Assembly graduates have landed jobs at big-name companies such as Amazon, Microsoft, Facebook, PayPal, and IBM. Conveniently, General Assembly offers this course in both full-time and part-time formats.
- Price: $14,950
- Time to complete: 12 weeks (full-time), 24 weeks (part-time)
- Prerequisites required: No
- Flexible schedule: Yes
- Includes verified certificate of participation: Yes
Who should take this course? With their comprehensive course materials, robust career services, and flexible scheduling, General Assembly stands out as a great option for just about anyone interested in coding. It should be noted, though, that this course is not available in Ontario.
| What we like | What we don’t like |
| Part-time option | Not available in Ontario |
| Wide variety of technologies covered | |
| High job placement rate |
Hack Reactor
Software Engineering Online Immersive Course
Intelligent Award: Most Immersive Experience
For a remote bootcamp, Hack Reactor’s Software Engineering Online Immersive course is surprisingly hands-on. You’ll learn from instructors face-to-face over cloud-based live chat, and you’ll also be paired with other classmates to work on assignments together throughout the course. There are even virtual after-hours events that allow you to socialize with your fellow students. In addition to making you fluent in JavaScript, this course can help you navigate the job market with career services such as interview coaching and negotiation training.
- Price: $17,980
- Time to complete: 12 weeks
- Prerequisites required: Yes
- Flexible schedule: No
- Includes verified certificate of participation: No
Who should take this course? This is an excellent course, but the relatively high cost and lack of any part-time scheduling will rule it out as an option for some students.
| What we like | What we don’t like |
| Immersive experience | Relatively expensive |
| Robust career services | No part-time option |
Code Platoon
Intro to Coding
Intelligent Award: Most Affordable
Code Platoon’s Intro to Coding program is unique because it doesn’t cost anything at all. There are also no live lectures or deadlines for assignments — you can complete their coursework whenever you want at your own pace. The 12 sessions, 2.25 hours of on-demand videos, and 140 coding challenges that make up this course are designed to teach beginners the fundamentals of JavaScript. While you’ll need more training in order to work as a professional coder, but this is an excellent way to get started.
- Price: Free
- Time to complete: 12 Sessions
- Prerequisites required: No
- Flexible schedule: Yes
- Includes verified certificate of participation: No
Who should take this course? If you’re particularly busy, then it might be difficult to even keep up with the fixed schedule of a part-time coding bootcamp. Code Platoon’s self-directed program allows you to complete your coursework whenever you find the time. With a cost of $0, it’s a great choice for aspiring coders who are concerned about their budget as well.
| What we like | What we don’t like |
| Completely free | Only covers basic concepts |
| Beginner-friendly |
Fullstack Academy
Live Online Coding Bootcamp
Intelligent Award: Most Intuitive Interface
It’s important for classes that are based online to have an intuitive web interface — you don’t want to waste your time trying to figure out how to navigate a course’s website when you should be studying and learning new concepts. The proprietary learning platform of Fullstack Academy’s Live Online Coding Bootcamp is very well-designed. It’s easy to access the video lecture that accompanies each coding concept, complete your assignments, and then see how your instructor would have gone about completing the assignments. There’s also a “Help Desk” button that you can press to get live support via chat or video conference whenever you’re in need of assistance.
- Price: $17,910
- Time to complete: 17 to 28 weeks
- Prerequisites required: Yes
- Flexible schedule: Yes
- Includes verified certificate of participation: No
Who should take this course? If you can afford it, this is one of the best courses available for anyone who wants to get started on their coding career.
| What we like | What we don’t like |
| Particularly intuitive interface | Relatively expensive |
| On-demand live support |
Thinkful
Software Engineering Bootcamp
Intelligent Award: Most Beginner-Friendly
Thinkful’s Software Engineering Bootcamp will teach you all the coding skills you need to be a front-end or back-end software developer. The technologies covered include HTML, CSS, JavaScript, and Node. You’ll also learn how to manage web development projects using the popular Agile methodology approach. Furthermore, Thinkful offers some flexibility with their full-time and part-time options — though it should be noted that even the full-time option will take you five months to complete. Thinkful graduates have gone on to land jobs at some of the biggest companies in the tech industry, including Google, IBM, Twitter, Amazon, and Walmart Labs.
- Price: $16,000 (full-time), $7,900 (part-time)
- Time to complete: 5 months (full-time), 6 months (part-time)
- Prerequisites required: Required for full-time, not required for part-time
- Flexible schedule: Yes
- Includes verified certificate of participation: Yes
Who should take this course? In addition to the benefits described above, Thinkful’s beginner-friendly approach makes it an especially good option for those who don’t have any experience with coding.
| What we like | What we don’t like |
| Flexible scheduling | Takes at least five months to complete |
| Beginner-friendly |
Coding Dojo
Full-Time Remote Software Engineering Bootcamp
Intelligent Award: Most Languages Covered
Coding Dojo’s Full-Time Remote Software Engineering Bootcamp is notable for the sheer number of coding languages that it covers. While many programs only review one stack, Coding Dojo will teach you three full stacks — you’ll learn how to use JavaScript, Java, Python, jQuery, SQL, MongoDB, and even AWS EC2. With this versatile skill set, you shouldn’t have any problem getting hired as a coder. Indeed, 89.1% of Coding Dojo graduates were able to find a job within just six months of completing the course.
- Price: $15,745
- Time to complete: 14 weeks
- Prerequisites required: No
- Flexible schedule: No
- Includes verified certificate of participation: No
Who should take this course? If you’d like to learn as many coding languages as possible, this is the perfect course for you. You’ll need to find another option if you’re located in Texas, though.
| What we like | What we don’t like |
| Covers more technologies than most bootcamps | Not available in Texas |
| Career services for life | No part-time option |
Online Course Comparison Chart
| Course | Price | Features |
| Code Fellows — Foundations of Software Development — Top Pick | $5,000 | X No prerequisites required
✓ Flexible schedule ✓ Certificate of participation |
| Flatiron School — Online Software Engineering Course — Best Self-Directed Course | Live courses: $16,900, Self-paced: $9,600 | ✓ No prerequisites required
✓ Flexible schedule ✓ Certificate of participation |
| App Academy — 24 Week Software Engineering Immersive Course — Best ISA Program | No upfront cost — after you’re hired, the fee is 15% of your salary for three years (max $31,000) | X No prerequisites required
X Flexible schedule X Certificate of participation |
| Codesmith — Part-time Remote Software Engineering Immersive Course — Best for Advanced Students | Starts at $19,350 | X No prerequisites required
X Flexible schedule X Certificate of participation |
| General Assembly — Software Engineering Immersive Online Course — Best Job Placement Rate | $14,950 | ✓ No prerequisites required
✓ Flexible schedule ✓ Certificate of participation |
| Hack Reactor — Software Engineering Online Immersive Course — Most Immersive Experience | $17,980 | X No prerequisites required
X Flexible schedule X Certificate of participation |
| Code Platoon — Intro to Coding — Most Affordable | Free | ✓ No prerequisites required
✓ Flexible schedule X Certificate of participation |
| Fullstack Academy — Live Online Coding Bootcamp — Most Intuitive Interface | $17,910 | X No prerequisites required
✓ Flexible schedule X Certificate of participation |
| Thinkful — Software Engineering Bootcamp — Most Beginner-Friendly | $16,000 (full-time), $7,900 (part-time) | X No prerequisites required
✓ Flexible schedule ✓ Certificate of participation |
| Coding Dojo — Full-Time Remote Software Engineering Bootcamp — Most Languages Covered | $15,745 | ✓ No prerequisites required
X Flexible schedule X Certificate of participation |
Tips for Succeeding in a Coding Bootcamp
1. Consider the cost
How much do coding bootcamps cost?
Coding bootcamps are available at a wide range of costs, with the full courses in this guide ranging from $5,000 to $31,000. Generally, you can expect to pay somewhere between $10,000 to $20,000.
Will my employer pay for me to take the course?
Many employers will pay for the cost of third-party training programs such as coding bootcamps. Before you pay for one of these courses yourself, you should see if your employer has a program that would at least partially pay for this training.
2. Get your tech squared away
For most coding bootcamps, the only piece of equipment you’ll need is a desktop or laptop computer that’s capable of streaming live video lectures. In terms of specs, you should be fine as long as your computer has at least an i5-level processor and 8 GB of RAM.
3. Use the right study resources
Some courses start with the fundamentals of coding, while others will assume you already have a firm understanding of these concepts. If you’re unfamiliar with these fundamentals and would like to learn them yourself, we recommend the following books: JavaScript for Kids: A Playful Introduction to Programming by Nick Morgan (the title of this one is a little misleading, as this is an excellent introduction for adults as well), Code: The Hidden Language of Computer Hardware and Software by Charles Petzold, and The Pragmatic Programmer: From Journeyman to Master by Robert C. Martin.
Frequently Asked Questions About Coding Bootcamps
What jobs can you get after completing a coding bootcamp?
There are a variety of jobs that you can get once you’ve fully developed your coding skills, including web developer, software application developer, software quality assurance (QA) engineer, database administrator, and business intelligence analyst.
Are there free online coding bootcamps?
There are free coding courses available on the internet, but these resources should be seen as more of an introduction to coding than a complete coding bootcamp. To develop all the skills you’ll need for your day-to-day work as a programmer, you’ll need to pay for a full course.
How long is the average coding bootcamp?
The typical course length of a coding bootcamp ranges from 12 weeks to 10 months. Some bootcamps also have a self-directed option that allows you to take as long as you want.
Is a coding bootcamp worth it?
The value of a coding bootcamp depends on where you are in your career. If you already have a lot of experience working as a coder, these courses likely won’t teach you much that you don’t already know. If you have only had an entry-level job as a coder, one of the more advanced bootcamps should help you move forward in your career. If you’re completely new to the coding industry, a beginner-friendly bootcamp is one of the most efficient ways to develop the skill set you’ll need to land your first entry-level coding job.