14 Best YouTube Channels for Learning to Code in 2026

I learned more from YouTube than I ever did from my computer science degree. That's not an exaggeration. The professors taught me theory. YouTube taught me how to actually build things. How to debug a React app at midnight. How to set up a CI/CD pipeline without wanting to throw my laptop out the window. How to think about system design when you've got ten microservices talking to each other and two of them are on fire.

The problem with coding YouTube in 2026 is that there's too much of it. Thousands of channels pumping out tutorials, and most of them are mediocre. They recycle the same "build a to-do app" content. They read documentation at you and call it a tutorial. They promise you'll "become a full-stack developer in 30 days" and then deliver 45 minutes of screen recording with no editing and terrible audio.

This list is different. These are the channels I actually watch. The ones I recommend when someone DMs me asking how to learn a specific technology. Some of them are obvious picks that every list includes. A few of them are smaller channels that most people haven't found yet. Every single one earned its spot by consistently putting out content that made me a better developer. If a channel stopped posting or went downhill, it didn't make the cut, no matter how good it used to be.

1. Fireship

What it is: Fast-paced tech explainers, industry news, and the famous "100 Seconds of Code" series. Run by Jeff Delaney. Over 4 million subscribers.

Why it's number one: Fireship does something nobody else does well. It makes you smarter in five minutes. The "100 Seconds of Code" format is genius. You get the core concept of a technology in under two minutes, with slick animations and zero wasted words. When a new framework drops, Jeff has a video explaining what it does and whether you should care, usually within 48 hours. The longer-form "Code This, Not That" and "Code Report" series go deeper without ever getting boring. Jeff's editing is so tight that watching a Fireship video feels like reading a perfectly written blog post. No tangents, no filler, no "before we start, make sure to like and subscribe." He respects your time, and that's rare on YouTube.

Best for: Staying current with the industry. Quick concept overviews before diving deeper. Developers who hate long, slow tutorials. Anyone who wants to understand what's happening in tech without reading 50 blog posts a week.

Watch this first: The "God Tier Developer Roadmap" video is a perfect starting point. It maps the entire developer landscape in about 12 minutes and tells you what actually matters.

Pro tip: Use Fireship's "100 Seconds" videos as a triage system. When you hear about a new tool or language, watch the 100-second video first. If it sounds relevant to your work, then invest time learning it properly. Saves you from falling down rabbit holes on technologies you'll never use.

2. freeCodeCamp

What it is: The largest free coding education channel on YouTube with over 11 million subscribers. Full-length courses on everything from Python basics to machine learning. Run by Quincy Larson and a global community of contributors.

Why it made the list: freeCodeCamp is the closest thing to free college-level education that exists on YouTube. These aren't 15-minute tutorials. These are four-hour, eight-hour, sometimes twelve-hour complete courses taught by experienced developers and professors. The quality varies because it's a platform with many instructors, but the best courses on this channel rival paid Udemy content. The Harvard CS50 lectures are on here. Full courses on Docker, AWS, Kubernetes, React, and dozens more. No ads in the middle of lessons. No paywalls. No "but if you want the REAL content, buy my course." It's genuinely free, genuinely comprehensive, and the course library keeps growing every week.

Best for: Beginners who want structured, long-form learning. Self-taught developers building a foundation. Anyone who can't afford paid courses but wants college-quality instruction. Career switchers who need to learn everything from scratch.

Watch this first: Their Python for Beginners full course is one of the most-watched programming tutorials on YouTube for good reason. Clear instruction, well-paced, and it actually builds real projects.

Pro tip: Don't try to watch entire courses in one sitting. Break them into 30-minute chunks and code along. The magic of freeCodeCamp's long-form content is that you can pause, practice, and come back. Treat it like a semester-long class, not a Netflix binge.

3. ThePrimeagen

What it is: Former Netflix senior engineer who talks about developer tools, Vim, performance, and programming opinions. Over 900K subscribers across his channels. Equal parts education and entertainment.

Why it made the list: ThePrimeagen is polarizing and that's exactly why he's great. He has actual opinions. When he says Vim is the best editor, he means it and he'll show you why. When he thinks a popular tool is overhyped, he says so with receipts. His content sits at the intersection of education and entertainment in a way that makes you think. You'll watch him react to a tech article and realize you learned more about system design in 20 minutes than you did reading five blog posts. His "0 to mass production" series and Vim tutorials are genuinely educational. But beyond the technical stuff, Prime models something important: what it looks like to be a senior developer who still gets excited about building things. He's not polished. He gets things wrong sometimes and corrects himself on camera. That authenticity is more educational than a perfectly scripted tutorial.

Best for: Intermediate to senior developers who want strong opinions and deep discussions. Anyone curious about Vim, terminal workflows, or performance engineering. Developers who like learning through conversation and debate, not lectures.

Watch this first: His "Developer Productivity" series will change how you think about your tools and workflow. Even if you don't switch to Vim, you'll pick up ideas worth implementing.

Pro tip: ThePrimeagen has two channels. The main channel has polished, educational content. ThePrimeTime is more casual with livestream clips and reactions. Start with the main channel for actual learning, then follow ThePrimeTime for ongoing industry commentary.

4. Traversy Media

What it is: Web development tutorials and crash courses covering HTML, CSS, JavaScript, React, Node.js, Python, and more. Run by Brad Traversy. Over 2.3 million subscribers and one of the longest-running dev channels on YouTube.

Why it made the list: Brad Traversy is the reliable workhorse of developer YouTube. He doesn't chase trends. He doesn't do controversial hot takes for clicks. He just puts out solid, well-structured tutorials that actually teach you how to build things. His "crash course" format is the gold standard. You get a technology explained from zero to functional project in 60 to 90 minutes. No fluff, no 20-minute intro about his life story. Just "here's what we're building, here's how it works, let's go." Brad has been doing this since 2009. That kind of longevity in the creator space is almost unheard of, and it means his teaching skills are extremely refined. He knows exactly how fast to go, when to pause and explain, and when to just show you the code.

Best for: Beginners and early-intermediate developers who want clear, project-based tutorials. Anyone learning web development fundamentals. Developers who need a quick crash course on a new technology before using it at work.

Watch this first: The "Web Development in 2026" roadmap video gives you a panoramic view of the entire web dev ecosystem. Brad updates it every year and it's consistently one of the most useful developer roadmap videos out there.

Pro tip: Traversy Media's crash courses work best when you already have a vague idea of what the technology does and you want to get hands-on quickly. Watch a Fireship "100 Seconds" video on a topic first, then follow up with Brad's crash course for the practical build. That combination is unbeatable.

5. Net Ninja

What it is: Bite-sized web development tutorials organized into playlists that function like mini-courses. Run by Shaun Pelling. Nearly 1.8 million subscribers and over 2,000 tutorials covering everything from React to Firebase to Flutter.

Why it made the list: Net Ninja's playlist structure is brilliant. Instead of one massive three-hour video, Shaun breaks each topic into 10 to 15 minute episodes. Episode 1 covers setup. Episode 2 covers the basics. By episode 20, you're building something real. This approach lets you learn at your own pace without losing your place in a giant video. The production quality is consistent across thousands of videos. Clean code on screen, clear audio, and explanations that don't assume you already know everything. Shaun's teaching style is patient without being slow. He doesn't talk down to you, but he also doesn't skip steps. That balance is harder to achieve than most people realize, and it's why Net Ninja playlists have become the default recommendation in countless Reddit threads and Discord servers.

Best for: Developers who prefer structured, sequential learning. Anyone working through a new framework and wanting a complete series, not random one-off videos. Beginners who need consistent pacing and clear explanations.

Watch this first: The React or TypeScript playlist is where Net Ninja shines brightest. Pick whichever technology you need to learn and work through the whole series in order.

Pro tip: Create a dedicated project folder for each Net Ninja playlist and commit after every episode. When you finish the series, you'll have a Git history that documents your learning progression. That's useful for both review and for showing potential employers that you can learn systematically.

6. Corey Schafer

What it is: Python tutorials covering fundamentals, web frameworks (Django, Flask), development environments, and general programming concepts. About 1.5 million subscribers. Returned from a long hiatus and is posting again.

Why it made the list: If you want to learn Python, Corey Schafer's channel is where you go. Period. His Python tutorials are legendary in the developer community. They're not outdated either. The core Python concepts he teaches haven't changed, so videos from a few years ago are still perfectly relevant. Corey has a gift for explaining things clearly the first time. You don't need to rewind and re-watch sections. He anticipates the questions you're going to have and answers them before you ask. His series on Python OOP, decorators, and generators are the best explanations of those topics on YouTube. Not one of the best. The best. His Django and Flask tutorials also set the standard. Multiple professional developers I know credit Corey's channel as the reason they got their first Python job. That kind of impact from free content is remarkable.

Best for: Anyone learning Python, from complete beginner to intermediate. Backend developers building with Django or Flask. Developers who value clear, no-nonsense teaching.

Watch this first: The Python OOP series. Object-oriented programming confuses a lot of beginners, and Corey's explanation is the clearest one you'll find anywhere, free or paid.

Pro tip: Corey's Git tutorials are wildly underrated. Most developers learn Git through trial and error (and a lot of StackOverflow). Watch his Git series instead. It covers the commands you'll actually use daily and explains what's happening under the hood. Understanding Git properly is one of those skills that separate good developers from great ones.

7. Web Dev Simplified

What it is: Front-end focused tutorials on JavaScript, CSS, React, and web development concepts. Run by Kyle Cook. About 1.74 million subscribers.

Why it made the list: Kyle Cook does exactly what the channel name promises. He takes complicated web development concepts and makes them simple. His JavaScript explanation videos are some of the best on the platform. Topics like closures, promises, the event loop, prototypal inheritance. These are concepts that trip up developers for months, and Kyle explains them in 15 minutes with clear examples. What sets Web Dev Simplified apart from similar channels is the consistency of the teaching format. Kyle identifies a concept, explains why it's confusing, breaks it down with minimal code examples, then builds up to a real-world use case. Every video follows this arc and it works every time. He also posts comparison videos like "React vs Vue" or "REST vs GraphQL" that give you a genuinely balanced view instead of just promoting whatever he personally uses.

Best for: JavaScript developers at any level. Front-end developers who want to fill knowledge gaps. Anyone who needs a concept explained clearly and concisely without wading through a 2-hour tutorial.

Watch this first: The "Learn JavaScript in 1 Hour" video or any of his "X in Y Minutes" concept explainers. Pick a topic you've always been fuzzy on and give it 15 minutes.

Pro tip: Kyle's "Junior vs Senior Developer" series shows the same problem solved two ways: the way a beginner would do it and the way an experienced developer would approach it. These videos are gold for leveling up your code quality because they don't just show you the "right" way. They show you WHY the junior approach falls apart and what mental models the senior developer uses.

8. The Coding Train

What it is: Creative coding, algorithms, and programming challenges using p5.js, Processing, and JavaScript. Run by Daniel Shiffman, a professor at NYU. About 1.75 million subscribers.

Why it made the list: Daniel Shiffman is the most energetic human being on developer YouTube. His enthusiasm is so genuine that it makes you want to code just by watching him. But The Coding Train isn't just vibes. The educational content here is serious. Daniel covers algorithms, physics simulations, neural networks, fractals, and generative art. He makes concepts like pathfinding algorithms and evolutionary computation accessible by visualizing them through creative projects. You're not just reading about A* search in a textbook. You're watching it come alive on screen while Daniel excitedly explains each step. This channel does something unique: it reminds you that coding is fun. When you've been grinding through work projects and tutorials and you start forgetting why you got into programming in the first place, watch a Coding Train video. It's a reset button for your motivation.

Best for: Developers who want to explore creative coding. Anyone learning algorithms who prefers visual, interactive explanations. Programmers who feel burned out and need to reconnect with the joy of building things. Students studying computer science concepts.

Watch this first: The "Coding Challenges" playlist. Pick any challenge that sounds interesting. Each one is self-contained and teaches you something specific through a creative project.

Pro tip: Follow along with Daniel's coding challenges but change the output. If he builds a fractal tree, build a fractal coral reef. If he simulates flocking behavior, add predators. Modifying his examples forces you to truly understand the code instead of just copying it. That's where the real learning happens.

9. TechWorld with Nana

What it is: DevOps tutorials covering Docker, Kubernetes, CI/CD, Terraform, AWS, and cloud infrastructure. Run by Nana Janashia. Over 1.1 million subscribers.

Why it made the list: DevOps content on YouTube is generally terrible. Either it's a 30-second overview that teaches you nothing, or it's a 10-hour course that assumes you already know half the material. Nana found the middle ground. Her Docker tutorial is the most-watched Docker learning resource on YouTube, and it earned that status because it starts from zero and actually gets you running containers in a real workflow. Same with her Kubernetes content. Same with Terraform. Nana teaches DevOps the way Brad Traversy teaches web development: clear structure, practical examples, no unnecessary complexity. She doesn't just show you commands to type. She explains WHY you'd use Docker in the first place, what problems Kubernetes solves, and when each tool is the right choice. If you're a developer who keeps putting off learning DevOps because it seems intimidating, Nana's channel is where that excuse dies.

Best for: Developers who need to learn DevOps and cloud technologies. Anyone working toward a promotion that requires infrastructure knowledge. Backend developers who want to understand deployment pipelines. Anyone preparing for AWS, Azure, or GCP certifications.

Watch this first: The Docker tutorial for beginners. Even if you've used Docker casually, watch this. Nana explains concepts you probably skipped over and it fills gaps you didn't know you had.

Pro tip: Nana's videos follow a "concept then hands-on" pattern. Watch the concept explanation first without coding along. Then rewatch the hands-on portion and follow every step. This two-pass approach works better than trying to understand and type at the same time.

10. Theo (t3.gg)

What it is: Opinionated takes on web development, TypeScript, tRPC, and the modern JavaScript ecosystem. Former Twitch engineer. Over 500K subscribers and growing fast.

Why it made the list: Theo fills a gap that most tutorial channels don't even know exists. He doesn't teach you syntax. He teaches you how to think about technical decisions. Which database should you use? When does a monolith make more sense than microservices? Is the new framework everyone's hyping actually good, or is it marketing? Theo answers these questions with the context of someone who's built real products at scale. His T3 stack (TypeScript, tRPC, Tailwind, Next.js) has become one of the most popular web development stacks for a reason: it works, and Theo explains exactly why each piece is there. The channel is more conversational than tutorial-based, which won't appeal to everyone. But if you're past the "teach me React" stage and you're at the "help me make better architectural decisions" stage, Theo's content is exactly what you need.

Best for: Intermediate to advanced web developers. Anyone making technology choices for projects or teams. Developers who want opinions backed by experience, not just documentation repackaged as a tutorial.

Watch this first: Any of his "hot take" or technology breakdown videos on a stack decision you've been mulling over. You'll either agree strongly or disagree strongly, and both outcomes make you think harder about your own choices.

Pro tip: Theo regularly posts "ping" videos reacting to developer drama, new releases, and industry news. These are great for staying in the loop, but don't confuse them with his deeper technical content. His longer videos on architecture and stack choices are where the career-changing insights live.

11. Sebastian Lague

What it is: Visual programming projects exploring algorithms, simulations, and game development. About 1.9 million subscribers. Every video is a cinematic deep-dive into a coding project.

Why it made the list: Sebastian Lague makes the most beautiful coding content on YouTube. Full stop. His videos aren't tutorials in the traditional sense. They're documentaries about the process of solving hard problems with code. He'll build a chess engine from scratch and show you every wrong turn, every optimization, every moment where the algorithm clicked. His videos on terrain generation, ant simulations, and ray marching are works of art that also happen to teach you about algorithms and computer science. The production quality is Netflix-level. The code is visible and explained. The pacing makes you feel like you're solving the problem alongside him. Sebastian won't teach you JavaScript basics. But he'll show you what's possible when you combine programming knowledge with creativity and persistence. That's a different kind of education, and it's one that most tutorial channels can't provide.

Best for: Developers who appreciate the craft of programming. Anyone interested in algorithms, simulations, or game development. Programmers who want inspiration and deep-dive project walkthroughs rather than step-by-step tutorials.

Watch this first: The "Coding Adventure: Chess" video. Even if you don't care about chess, watching Sebastian build an AI opponent from scratch is a masterclass in problem-solving and algorithmic thinking.

Pro tip: After watching a Sebastian Lague video, try to implement a simplified version of whatever he built. You won't match his production quality, but the exercise of translating his approach into your own code teaches you more than passive watching ever will.

12. Kevin Powell

What it is: CSS-focused tutorials, tips, and deep-dives. Self-described "CSS Evangelist." Over 1 million subscribers.

Why it made the list: Most developers are bad at CSS. They know just enough to get things roughly positioned and then they fight with it until the layout looks acceptable. Kevin Powell exists to fix that. He is the best CSS educator on the internet. Not YouTube. The entire internet. His explanations of Flexbox, Grid, container queries, and modern CSS features are so clear that concepts you've struggled with for years suddenly make sense in a 20-minute video. Kevin doesn't just show you how to center a div. He teaches you the mental model for how CSS layout actually works. Once you have that mental model, CSS stops being a guessing game and becomes a predictable tool. He also covers responsive design, accessibility, and performance in a way that makes you care about doing CSS right. Building a strong developer personal brand starts with a solid portfolio site, and Kevin's channel will make sure yours doesn't look like it was built in 2015.

Best for: Any developer who writes CSS (so basically everyone). Front-end developers who want to actually understand layout instead of copying StackOverflow answers. Designers transitioning to development who want pixel-perfect implementations.

Watch this first: His Flexbox or CSS Grid tutorial. Pick whichever one confuses you more. After 30 minutes with Kevin, it won't.

Pro tip: Kevin regularly does "can I recreate this design?" challenges where he takes a complex design and builds it live. These are incredible learning resources because you see his thought process in real time. You learn not just what CSS properties to use, but how an expert approaches a layout problem from the beginning.

13. Tech With Tim

What it is: Python programming, machine learning, game development, and software engineering tutorials. Tim started the channel as a teenager and now has nearly 1.9 million subscribers.

Why it made the list: Tim's origin story is part of why this channel works so well. He started creating coding tutorials when he was a kid, which means his teaching style evolved alongside his skills. He explains things the way a fellow learner would, not the way a professor would. His Python projects are genuinely fun. Building games with Pygame. Creating chatbots. Automating things with scripts. Tim makes you want to build something after every video. His more recent content on machine learning and AI is solid too. He doesn't oversimplify, but he doesn't assume you have a PhD either. If you want to learn a new programming language through building actual projects instead of doing dry exercises, Tim's approach is a great fit. The project-first mentality means you're always building something tangible, which keeps motivation high.

Best for: Python beginners and intermediate developers. Anyone who learns best by building projects. Developers interested in machine learning but intimidated by the math-heavy resources. Younger developers who want to learn from someone who grew up coding on YouTube.

Watch this first: Pick any Python project tutorial that sounds interesting to you. The Pygame series is fun if you like games. The Flask series is practical if you want to build web apps.

Pro tip: Tim's livestreams are underrated. He does live coding sessions where he builds things from scratch, makes mistakes, and debugs in real time. Watching an experienced developer debug is one of the most valuable learning experiences you can have, because debugging is the skill nobody teaches but everyone needs.

14. Hussein Nasser

What it is: Backend engineering deep-dives on databases, networking, proxies, protocols, and system design. Over 700K subscribers. Formerly an engineer at Uber.

Why it made the list: This is my "channel most lists won't include" pick, and I think it's one of the most valuable on this entire list. Hussein teaches the stuff that sits below your application code. How does a database index actually work? What happens at the TCP level when your API gets a request? Why is your WebSocket connection dropping? What's the actual difference between HTTP/2 and HTTP/3? Most developers treat infrastructure as a black box. You send a request, something happens in the middle, and you get a response. Hussein opens that black box and shows you every gear. His explanations of database internals, load balancing, connection pooling, and caching aren't abstract computer science. They're practical knowledge that helps you debug production issues, choose the right database, and design systems that don't fall over at scale. This is the content that separates mid-level developers from senior engineers. If you want to understand why things work, not just how to use them, Hussein's channel is required viewing.

Best for: Backend and full-stack developers who want to understand infrastructure deeply. Developers preparing for system design interviews. Anyone who's been told to "learn how things work under the hood" and didn't know where to start. Engineers aiming for tech lead or staff-level positions.

Watch this first: His video on how database indexing works. It will change how you think about database queries and probably improve your application's performance the same week you watch it.

Pro tip: Hussein's podcast-style episodes work great as commute listening. Put them on during your drive or train ride. You don't need to see the screen for most of his architectural discussions, and absorbing backend concepts passively adds up fast over time.

How to Actually Learn from YouTube (Not Just Watch)

Here's the uncomfortable truth about coding YouTube. Watching tutorials feels like learning but often isn't. You follow along, the code works on screen, you feel smart. Then you close the tab and can't recreate any of it. That's tutorial hell, and most self-taught developers have been stuck there at some point.

The fix is simple but requires discipline. First, never just watch. Always code along, and when the instructor does something, pause the video and try to predict what they're about to type before they type it. If you can't predict it, you don't understand it yet. Second, after finishing a tutorial, close it and build something similar but different on your own. If you followed a React to-do app tutorial, build a React shopping list. Same concepts, different application. This forces you to transfer knowledge instead of just replicate steps.

Third, take notes. Not transcriptions. Brief notes about concepts and patterns you want to remember. "Use useCallback when passing functions to memoized child components" is a useful note. "First we import React" is not. Keep a running document of insights from each channel you watch. After a few months, you'll have a personalized reference guide that's more valuable than any cheat sheet you could download.

Fourth, limit yourself to two or three channels per technology. If you're learning React, pick Traversy Media for the crash course, Web Dev Simplified for concept deep-dives, and Net Ninja for a structured series. Watching the same topic explained five different ways feels productive but it's procrastination disguised as research.

My Recommended Learning Paths

Since people always ask how to combine these channels, here's what I'd recommend based on your situation.

Complete beginner, no coding experience: Start with freeCodeCamp's Python or JavaScript full course. Supplement with Web Dev Simplified or Corey Schafer for specific concepts you get stuck on. Once you're comfortable with basics, add Traversy Media crash courses to build real projects.

Junior developer, 0 to 2 years of experience: Fireship for staying current. Net Ninja playlists for learning new frameworks. Web Dev Simplified for filling JavaScript knowledge gaps. Start watching ThePrimeagen and Theo for broader thinking about tools and architecture. This is also when you should be contributing to open source to supplement your learning.

Mid-level developer, 3 to 5 years: Hussein Nasser for backend depth. Theo for architectural thinking. ThePrimeagen for productivity and tooling. Sebastian Lague for inspiration and algorithmic thinking. TechWorld with Nana if DevOps is a gap in your skillset. At this stage, the goal is depth and breadth, not basics.

Career switcher: freeCodeCamp for structured foundations. Traversy Media for practical web development skills. Kevin Powell for CSS. Tech With Tim if you're going the Python route. Pair this with actual coding practice. These channels work best as supplements to hands-on projects, not replacements for them.

What I Deliberately Left Off This List

A few channels that appear on every other "best coding YouTube channels" list are missing from mine. That's intentional.

I didn't include channels that have effectively stopped posting. There are channels with millions of subscribers and legendary back catalogs, but if they haven't posted in over a year, I can't recommend them as current resources. Old tutorials can still be valuable, but you need active channels to stay current with tools and frameworks that change every six months.

I also left off channels that are primarily "day in the life" or lifestyle content. Some of those are entertaining, but they don't actually teach you to code. Watching someone's morning routine at Google isn't education. It's entertainment.

And I skipped channels where the primary business model is selling courses. When every free video is basically a trailer for a $300 course, the incentive structure means the free content is intentionally incomplete. The channels on my list give you the full picture in their free content.