Coursera is a great place to learn to code—if you’ve been reading Learn to Code With Me for a while, you’ve probably seen me recommend various Coursera coding courses before.
The platform partners with top universities and industry leaders from around the world to offer high-quality courses on a flexible schedule. They teach topics from business to social science, but of course, where I think they shine are their tech and programming courses. (I might be biased, though…)
One of the coolest things about Coursera is that in addition to individual courses, they also feature structured learning paths called specializations, and even accredited online master’s degrees from leading universities. In short, Coursera has learning options for every goal, big or small.
When it comes to programming for beginners, there’s just as much variety, whether you’re eyeing software engineering or data science as a future career. In today’s sponsored post, I want to share some of the best Coursera courses and specializations for aspiring programmers.
The 10 Coursera coding specializations and courses below cover different coding languages, from HTML/CSS and JavaScript to Scala and C. Plus, these coding courses cover everything about learning to code—from the very basics of programming and computer science to the more specialized foundations of a tech career.
Please note that pricing listed below may change in the future!
You can purchase Coursera coding courses individually, or you can buy all the courses in a specialization as a bundle if you’re confident about the path in tech you want to take. Coursera also offers an annual subscription called Coursera Plus, which gives you access to 3,000+ courses for only $399 (spoiler: all of the courses in this article are included in this subscription!).
When you complete a course, you’ll receive a shareable electronic Course Certificate or Specialization Certificate that you can add to your LinkedIn and resume.
Disclosure: I’m a proud affiliate for Coursera. If you buy a course through my links on this page, I may get a small commission for referring you. Thanks!
Now let’s start looking at the 10 best Coursera coding courses!
Table of Contents
- Introduction to Computer Science and Programming (Coursera CS Specialization)
- SQL for Data Science
- Java Programming and Software Engineering Fundamentals (Coursera Coding Specialization)
- HTML, CSS, and Javascript for Web Developers
- Python for Everybody (Coursera Coding Specialization)
- R Programming
- SAS Programmer Professional Certificate (Coursera Coding Specialization)
- Functional Programming in Scala (Coursera Coding Specialization)
- Introduction to Programming in C (Coursera Coding Specialization)
- Swift 5 iOS Application Developer (Coursera Coding Specialization)
1. Introduction to Computer Science and Programming (Coursera CS Specialization)
This 3-course specialization will give you an excellent start in the fundamental concepts of computer science. You’ll get a handle on the math side of things, learn how to create 2D and interactive graphics, use coding to solve puzzles and problems, and more.
If you’d like to pursue a degree in computer science, these University of London courses will count toward an online Bachelor of Science degree if you’re admitted to their full program.
➡️ Specialization URL: https://www.coursera.org/specializations/introduction-computer-science-programming
3️⃣ Coursera computer/coding courses included:
💡 What you’ll learn: Computing mathematics, how to create graphical programs, JavaScript, p5.js library, binary and other number bases
🎓 University taught at: University of London
📈 Level: Beginner
⏰ How long it takes to complete: 4 months (Suggested: 5 hours/week)
💰 Price: $39/month X 4 months = around $156
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2. SQL for Data Science
With SQL, you’ll learn the foundational skills to start analyzing data like a data scientist. By the end of this course, you’ll be able to use different types of data like strings and numbers, write simple and complex data selection queries, and grasp the fundamentals of SQL. This Coursera course is taught by Sadie St. Lawrence, a data scientist and founder/CEO of Women in Data.
➡️ Course URL: https://www.coursera.org/learn/sql-for-data-science
💡 What you’ll learn: Filtering, sorting, calculating, modifying, and analyzing data with SQL and SQLite
🎓 University taught at: University of California, Davis
📈 Level: Beginner
⏰ How long it takes to complete: 14 hours (Suggested: 4 weeks of study, 3-5 hours/week)
💰 Price: $39/month X 14 hours = around $39
🎤 What past students say: “A nice course to get introduced to writing SQL queries in data science. Provides hands on exercises that boost confidence. Genuinely appreciate the ease with which SQL topics are covered.”
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3. Java Programming and Software Engineering Fundamentals (Coursera Coding Specialization)
Explore a career as a software engineer throughout this 5-course Coursera coding specialization that mainly teaches you the fundamentals of Java programming. It’s ideal for beginner-level students who want to learn the basics of software development and build a project of their own at the end.
➡️ Specialization URL: https://www.coursera.org/specializations/java-programming
5️⃣ Coursera coding courses included:
- Programming Foundations with JavaScript, HTML, and CSS
- Java Programming: Solving Problems with Software
- Java Programming: Arrays, Lists, and Structured Data
- Java Programming: Principles of Software Design
- Java Programming: Build a Recommendation System
💡 What you’ll learn: HTML/CSS, JavaScript, Java
🎓 University taught at: Duke University
📈 Level: Beginner
⏰ How long it takes to complete: 5 months (Suggested 3 hours/week)
💰 Price: $49/month X 5 months = around $245
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4. HTML, CSS, and Javascript for Web Developers
Build web pages from the ground up using HTML and CSS, which are two of the simplest and best programming languages for beginners. During this Coursera coding course, you’ll code a mobile-friendly restaurant web page and a fully functional web app.
➡️ Course URL: https://www.coursera.org/learn/html-css-javascript-for-web-developers
💡 What you’ll learn: HTML/CSS, JavaScript, Ajax
🎓 University taught at: Johns Hopkins University
📈 Level: Beginner
⏰ How long it takes to complete: 26 hours (Suggested: 5 weeks of study, 4-6 hours/week)
💰 Price: Certificate = $79 or Audit only = Free
🎤 What past students say: “Very good all-round intro and specialisation to HTML5, CSS3 and JavaScript. The constant loop back to real world problems is very helpful in applying the learned skills.”
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5. Python for Everybody (Coursera Coding Specialization)
This 5-course specialization introduces fundamental programming concepts, including data structures, networked application program interfaces, and databases—all programmed with Python. In the capstone project, you’ll pursue your own project to visualize data, as well as designing and creating your own applications for data retrieval and processing using Python.
➡️ Specialization URL: https://www.coursera.org/specializations/python
5️⃣ Coursera coding courses included:
- Programming for Everybody (Getting Started with Python)
- Python Data Structures
- Using Python to Access Web Data
- Using Databases with Python
- Capstone: Retrieving, Processing, and Visualizing Data with Python
💡 What you’ll learn: Python 3, XML, JSON, SQL, data analysis, SQLite3, D3.js
🎓 University taught at: University of Michigan
📈 Level: Beginner
⏰ How long it takes to complete: 8 months (Suggested: 3 hours/week)
💰 Price: $49/month X 8 months = around $392
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6. R Programming
In this Coursera coding course, you’ll learn how to program in R — which is the language for effective data analysis. Understand the basic data types in R, use control structures, learn how to configure statistical programming software, loop functions, and debugging tools in R, and more. You’ll also get to work on programming assignments to sharpen your skills.
➡️ Course URL: https://www.coursera.org/learn/r-programming
💡 What you’ll learn: R, RStudio
🎓 University taught at: Johns Hopkins University
📈 Level: Intermediate (You should have beginner level experience in Python and familiarity with regression).
⏰ How long it takes to complete: 5 months (Suggested: ~3 hours/week)
💰 Price: $49/month X 5 months = $245 USD
🎤 What past students say: “Optimal R-learning course. Teaching key R concepts that are carefully selected and extracted from a huge R knowledge base. One of the best introductions: containing both simple and complex R programming topics.”
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7. SAS Programmer Professional Certificate (Coursera Coding Specialization)
In this 3-course specialization, you’ll learn how to write SAS programs to access, explore, prepare, and analyze data. SAS programming can be used for applications spanning data science, machine learning, and artificial intelligence! By the end of the three coding courses, you’ll be ready to take the SAS® Base Programming Specialist certification exam to boost your marketability.
➡️ Specialization URL: https://www.coursera.org/specializations/sas-programming
3️⃣ Coursera courses included:
- Getting Started with SAS Programming
- Doing More with SAS Programming
- Practical SAS Programming and Certification Review
💡 What you’ll learn: Base SAS, SAS functions, SAS programming, SAS data sets
👋 Taught by: SAS
📈 Level: Beginner
⏰ How long it takes to complete: 5 months (Suggested: 4 hours/week)
💰 Price: $79/month X 5 months = approx. $395
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8. Functional Programming in Scala (Coursera Coding Specialization)
Did you know that Scala is at the core of huge sites like Twitter and Tumblr (plus Coursera itself)? This 5-course specialization will prepare you to work on similar projects. The coding courses inside teach you how to write elegant functional code, analyze and manipulate data, design libraries and APIs, create reactive applications, and more. During your capstone project, you’ll use real-world data to build a large data-processing application of your own.
➡️ Specialization URL: https://www.coursera.org/specializations/scala
5️⃣ Coursera coding courses included:
- Functional Programming Principles in Scala
- Functional Program Design in Scala
- Parallel programming
- Big Data Analysis with Scala and Spark
- Functional Programming in Scala Capstone
💡 What you’ll learn: Scala, Apache Spark, functional programming
🎓 University taught at: École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL)
📈 Level: Intermediate (At least one year of programming experience, in any language.)
⏰ How long it takes to complete: 7 months (Suggested: 7 hours/week)
💰 Price: $49/month X 7 months = approx. $343
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9. Introduction to Programming in C (Coursera Coding Specialization)
In this 4-course programming specialization, you’ll be using C code to develop algorithms and solve complex problems. At the end of this Coursera coding specialization, you’ll incorporate what you’ve learned into a Monte Carlo simulation for calculating poker hand probabilities.
As a bonus, if you’d like to apply for a master’s degree at Duke’s Pratt School of Engineering, Coursera highlights that “Successful completion of this Specialization will be considered by admissions as a demonstration of your skill and enhance your master’s application.”
➡️ Specialization URL: https://www.coursera.org/specializations/c-programming
4️⃣ Coursera coding courses included:
- Programming Fundamentals
- Writing, Running, and Fixing Code in C
- Pointers, Arrays, and Recursion
- Interacting with the System and Managing Memory
💡 What you’ll learn: C, compiler, debugging, algorithms
🎓 University taught at: Duke University
📈 Level: Beginner
⏰ How long it takes to complete: 5 months (Suggested: 4 hours/week)
💰 Price: $49/month X 5 months = approx. $245
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10. Swift 5 iOS Application Developer (Coursera Coding Specialization)
In this 4-course specialization, you’ll go from the absolute basics of the Swift language and how to code iOS applications to selling your very own mobile apps in the app store. Learn how to build fully functional apps with user interactions, in-app purchase integrations and subscription features.
➡️ Specialization URL: https://www.coursera.org/specializations/swift-5-ios-app-developer
4️⃣ Coursera coding courses included:
- Introduction to Programming in Swift 5
- Introduction to iOS App Development with Swift 5
- Tables, Data & Networking in iOS
- iOS App Store & In-App Purchases
💡 What you’ll learn: Swift 5, Xcode, working with data in iOS, monetizing apps
👋 Taught by: LearnQuest
📈 Level: Beginner
⏰ How long it takes to complete: 4 months (Suggested: 3 hours/week)
💰 Price: $79/month X 4 months = approx. $316
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Level up your skills (affordably) with Coursera’s coding courses
Coursera coding courses and specializations are a great, affordable way to level up your skills, switch careers, or learn something new just for fun and personal projects, without having to go back to school or spend a ton of money on coding bootcamps. With Coursera Plus, you’ll only pay $399/year for unlimited access to over 3,000 courses, specializations, and certificates (compare that to college tuition!).
Since you can learn from your own home with 100% flexibility, Coursera’s courses are great if you have a full-time job, you’re a parent, or you’re busy with other responsibilities.No matter what your goals are, these Coursera coding courses can start you off in tech on the right foot!
Note: there are affiliate links in this post.