Getting an entry-level programming job is not an easy task. It requires a good understanding of computer science and the associated technologies that you are aiming to get a job in. Overall, it can be several month-long grinds on learning computer basics, frameworks and other associated technologies that are required to gain skill for the real-world job.

Coding bootcamps aim to solve the problems for people who are seeking professional guidance. Coding bootcamps are a very popular way to get started in the coding world, especially when you have little to no idea about coding or computers in general.

Intensive and Immersive

Coding bootcamps are not for the faint-hearted. It is an immersive experience for anyone who aims to get into the industry. It generally last 8-12 weeks, requiring the students to commitment and attention. It is very common to see students invest 70-100 hours every week. Many bootcamps provide equipment on their own, and only want dedication from their students. Furthermore, many bootcamps can help you with accommodation, providing packages that best suit the student’s need.

	Front-End	Back-End	Other Courses/Workshops/USP	Core technologies
The Software Guild	Yes	Yes	None	.NET/C# and Java
Launch Academy	Yes	Yes	None	Ruby, JavaScript, HTML, CSS
Iron Hack	Yes	Yes	None	HTML, CSS, Ruby, and others
Code Fellows	Yes	Yes	Yes, Data Analysis and Visualization	Python, iOS, CSS, HTML, Python
Actualize	Yes	Yes	Yes, All courses are part-time	Ruby, Databases, HTML, CSS, JavaScript
Codeup	Yes	Yes	Fullstack program	Java and PHP and other associated technologies
App Academy	Yes	Yes	Fullstack program	Ruby, SQL, JavaScript, React, Flux
Epicodus	Partial	Yes	Pair Programming	Design, CSS, C#, JavaScript, SQL, Ruby, Ruby on Rails
Fullstack Academy	Yes	Yes	CTO program, Fullstack program	HTML, CSS, JavaScript, APIs, Services
V School	Yes	No	Complete Front-end learning courses	HTML, CSS, JavaScript, Express, Node.js, jQuery.
Hackbright Academy	Yes	Yes	Focused on Women in Tech	HTML, CSS, Python, Flask.
BLOC	Yes	Yes	Specialized courses in Android, iOS, Rails, UX Design, Front-end fundamentals	HTML, CSS, Python, Flask.
Galvanize	Yes	Yes	Lucrative Data science courses	Python, HTML, CSS and others.
Thinkful	Yes	Yes	Complete online platform	Myriad.

What are the benefits of enrolling in a coding bootcamp?

It is common for beginners to start learning online. After all, there are hundreds of online tutorials and guides that one can follow to become job-ready. However, there are many problems with self-learning. First, it takes a lot of time. Secondly, there is always a risk involved in self-learning as you might end up wasting your time and effort without any concrete result.

Coding bootcamps try to minimize the gap between your skill and being job-ready. It is also time-sensitive, so you learn a lot in the period of 8-10 weeks. Let’s list the benefits of boot camps below to get a good idea of what they offer.

1. Affordable: The first thing that you will notice is how the coding bootcamps are affordable in nature when you compare it to other forms of learning. When compared to college, coding bootcamps can be extremely affordable. You can get access to cutting-edge learning with only a small amount of investment compared to college degrees.

2. Time: Time, when used correctly, is money. When it comes to invested time versus experienced gained, coding bootcamps easily beat traditional learning methods by a huge margin. It takes four years to graduate with a computer science degree whereas a coding bootcamp only take around 10-12 weeks.

3. Job Prospects: Even though having a computer science degree helps, major tech giants such as Google or Facebook, don’t have strict rules when it comes to hiring. Anyone with the right skill can join their company and start growing. These jobs require you to think like a programmer than anything else. No paper or degree can help you do so.

4. Collaboration: Learning from a coding bootcamp is similar to thriving in a collaborative environment. Not only you get hands-on experience and guidance from excellent teachers, but you can learn from your peers who are on the same-level playing ground as you are.

With the benefits established, let’s now move on to the list of boot camps that we recommend. The bootcamps take place across the world and the US.

America’s Best Coding Bootcamps

The Software Guild

The Software Guild is dubbed as the “A guild for the 21st Century.” Their approach is to make learners ready for entry-level jobs in a 12-week program. They offer both on-campus and online program spanning over nine months with a time commitment of just 20 hours/week. With industry experts over 10+ years of experience, you learn from the best and focus on gaining real-world skills faster than ever. They focus on exploring the talents of their learners with Java or .NET/C#. Both of these languages are in high demand. They also provide accommodations at a very affordable rate.

Location: Greater Cleveland OH, Louisville KY, and Minneapolis MN. Accommodation only in Greater Cleveland.

Technologies Focused: .NET/C# and Java.

Prices: Software Guild aim to provide complete experience when it comes to learning, and that’s why their program costs $10,000. The cost covers everything including license, machines and other expenses related to the program. Furthermore, you can pay them installations and get access to the laptop 24/7. Accommodation cost in Greater Cleveland is only $800 per month.

“The Software Guild is a selective program that pairs master practitioners with apprentice students to build technical proficiency through deliberate practice with the tools and techniques used by professional teams”. — Eric Ward, CEO of The Software Guild.

Launch Academy

Launch Academy is a popular coding bootcamp in Boston, MA and Philadelphia, PA. They try to impart the best learning to the students in two phases. The 8-week ignition (part-time) and 10-week immersive on campus (full-time). The ignition part is completely optional and is for a student who has no prior computer science background. The 2nd phase is more inclined towards real software building than teaching discrete concepts. The ignition part covers topics such as Ruby Basics, Data Structures, Looping, HTML & CSS, etc. The on-campus phase focuses more on advanced topics such as SQL, HTTP, Rails, JavaScript, ReactJS and group projects.

Location: Boston MA, Philadelphia PA

Technology Focused: HTML, CSS, Ajax, Sinatra, Rails, Ruby, OOP, TDD, APIs.

Price: The whole program will cost you around $15,500. They also offer flexible financing options with the help of Skillsfund. All you need to do is start the program by paying $1,000 upfront, and you are good to go.

“Our team genuinely cares about every single student and our industry leading student/teacher ratios empowers their passion towards student’s success.” — Evan Charles, CEO of Launch Academy.

IronHack

IronHack takes on the coding bootcamps from a different perspective as they offer various courses for different target audience. Currently, they offer four programs.

1. 1. Web Development Bootcamp for 8-weeks,

1. 1. UX/UI Design Bootcamp for nine weeks,

1. 1. Front-End Web Development for ten weeks,

1. Web-Development Part-time for six months.

The first three programs are on-campus courses and require physical presence whereas the last one is aimed at people who are working in the industry. They differ by providing a specialized course for different roles. If you want to become a Front-End ninja, just pick the right program, and you are good to go.

Locations: Madrid, Barcelona, and Miami FL

Technologies Focused: Myriad.

Price: All the four courses have different pricing. Let’s go through them below.

• • UX/UI Design Bootcamp: $10,000

• • Web Development Bootcamp: $9,500

• • Web Development Part-time: $12,000

• Front-End Web Development: $2,500

“I think what sets Ironhack apart from the other schools is our focus on building a truly global and diverse community of both alums and hiring partners. We were one of the first schools to have a presence in the US and Europe with campuses in Miami, Madrid and Barcelona and the first that offered courses in another language other than English (Spanish). Of course, like many of the other top schools we’re very focused on quality and outcomes, but that would be the biggest differentiator.” — Ariel Quiñones, co-founder of Ironhack

Code Fellows

Code Fellows continues diversity with their six intensive programs to teach coding and get you job-ready. The six programs that they offer are as follows.

• • Code 101: Intro to Software Development & Careers in Tech — It is a one-day workshop that aims to offer a glimpse of what computer science has to offer and make them ready for the journey ahead.

• • Code 102: Intro to JavaScript — It is a one-week workshop that refines the further understanding of computer science and introduces many core computer science concepts such as functions, array, loops using JavaScript.

• • Code 201: Foundations of Software Development — This is where most of the action take place and the course last 4 to 8 weeks. You will be able to create front-end technologies such as JavaScript, CSS, and HTML to create web apps.

• • Code 301: Intermediate Software Development — With enough knowledge, you can now take on frameworks and different libraries and create more sophisticated applications.

• • Code 401: Advanced Software Development — In this course, you will be able to choose the language of approach and gain mastery in it. You can choose Full-Stack JavaScript, Python and iOS learning path and become job-ready.

• Code 501: Introduction to Visualization and Data Analysis with Python. — Get your hands dirty with Python and data visualization techniques.

They started their journey in 2013 and grew quickly. Their first few batches made to the end and got jobs. Also, their approach seems to have a more structured and long-lasting approach that other coding bootcamps.

Location: Seattle WA, Portland OR

Technologies Focused: JavaScript, Python, iOS, CSS, HTML.

Prices: Below is the price of each program offered by CodeFellows

• • Code 101: Intro to Software Development & Careers in Tech:$49.00

• • Code 102: Intro to JavaScript:$199.00

• • Code 201: Foundations of Software Development:$3,500.00

• • Code 301: Intermediate Software Development:$4,500.00

• • Code 401: Advanced Software Development: $12,000.00

• Code 501: Introduction to Visualization and Data Analysis with Python:$3,000.00

“Code Fellows is an immersive code program that takes students with aptitude to job ready in 18 weeks. Based in Seattle, WA the company has over 90% placement with an average starting salary of over $71k. For students who are evaluating if code school is right for them, Code Fellows offers a one day Code 101 program.” — Ivan Storck, Co-Founder of Code Fellows

Actualize

Actualize aims to change the coding bootcamp paradigm by going part-time than full-time. The change in approach is because not everyone wants to do full-time bootcamps. The fact that “everyone has a different learning style and speed,” makes Actualize a good choice for many learners out there. Let’s discuss on how they approach their program below.

• Pre-work: Pre-work includes working from home that lasts from one to five weeks. Students are asked to work on fundamentals using Ruby programming language.

• Bootcamp: On-campus teaching starts with bootcamps. With an interaction cycle of exercises and instructions, the student can learn more of it. In short, things are not rushed, and learning is the main priority. The bootcamp also offers capstone project which can be used to showcase skill to potential employers.

• Apprenticeship: Apprenticeship stage focuses on providing a real-world experience where you get access to real world projects and requirements to handle. You will be placed in The Difference Engine, a web agency that aims to improve your skills and get ready for the real job offer.

Locations: Chicago IL, New York NY, San Francisco CA

Technologies Focused: Ruby and other associated technologies.

Price: It will cost you $12,500 for the program. They also offer financial aid for their program.

“All of our graduates are guaranteed the opportunity to become apprentices for our web development consultancy, The Difference Engine. This allows them to develop the skills, experience, and portfolio that employers are looking for.” — Jay Wengrow, CEO of Actualize.

Codeup

Codeup offers a 4-month highly accelerated, intensive program for transforming non-techies to entry-level developers. They will also refund half of the tuition fees if you get a job after graduating. Codeup takes the path of teaching with five distinct steps including Assess, Prepare, Accelerate, Apprentice and Launch. Each of the steps take care of different learning phase for a non-techie and ensure that they gain invaluable experience doing so. They have a good student to teacher ratio of 10:1, so you will not feel ignored at all. Moreover, you will work on a real project for 700 hours if you want too as it is optional. However, it is suggested to do so as you will gain invaluable marketing experience and get paid at the same time.

Locations: San Antonio TX

Technologies Focused: Myriad

Price: The cost of the program is $17,500.

“Codeup is deeply dedicated to serving our students by providing them the education to become software developers, the career coaching to interview effectively, and are so confident in our program & students that we even offer a tuition refund guarantee.” — Kay Jones, CEO of Codeup

App Academy

App Academy is one of the coolest coding bootcamps in the USA. The reason is that they don’t take tuition cost until you get placed. By this, they provide the most value to your learning. Once you are placed, you will be charged 20% of your one-year salary. Sound great, right? However, to get in, you need to clear two rounds of coding challenges, one technical interview, and one non-technical interview. After that, you will be able to take part in their 12 weeks program to become a top-notch developer. Their approach is to provide a different learning experience and is not aimed at complete beginners. Below is their program schedule.

• • Ruby and SQL learning — Week 1 to 5.

• • JavaScript, Flux, and React learning — Week 6 to 9.

• Algorithms and career support — Week 10 to 12.

Locations: San Francisco CA and New York NY

Technologies Focused: Ruby, Rails, SQL, React, JavaScript and Flux.

Price: 20% of your first-year salary.

“App Academy is the most selective web development school in world, “says Kush Patel, CEO of App Academy. “We invest in our students’ success by not charging tuition unless they find a job, which allows us to select students based on merit and not on how much they can pay.”

Epicodus

Epicodus is one of the finest coding bootcamps in the US. Its aim is to provide 800 hours of classroom learning with minimal time watching lectures and maximum time coding. Not to mention, they offer pair programming environment where you are teamed up with a fellow learner to solve problems. Once you graduate, you will be awarded a certificate that will help you get a job. Their focus is only on the Web and mobile development.  They use pair programmer for better learning experience. Below are the steps they take to teach students the required job skills.

1. 1. Introduction phase where you learn basics.

1. 1. Learning C# or Ruby or CSS (depends on your choice)

1. 1. Learning JavaScript.

1. 1. Learning Rails or .NET or Design. (depends on your choice made in 2nd step)

1. 1. Internship to get real-world experience.

1. Graduation.

Locations: Portland OR, Seattle OR, Philadelphia PA

Technologies Focused: Ruby, Rails, SQL, JavaScript, C#, CSS, and Design.

Price: The whole program will cost you $4,875. They also have provisions to pay gradually, starting at $975.

“Epicodus is focused on affordability and accessibility: we have one of the longest programs and lowest tuitions of any school in the industry, and have a high acceptance rate along with high completion and placement rates.” — Michael Kaiser-Nyman, CEO of Epicodus

Fullstack Academy

Fullstack Academy provides full stack learning experience to their students. Their aim is to make learners best in their sub-trade and become eligible to work for startups and other big companies such as Google, Facebook, etc. They cover everything that you will need as a software developer including basic computer science concepts, back-end development, front-end development, tools & best practices, databases, and CTO programs. The learning path has been divided into three steps.

1. 1. Step 1: Full stack foundations that last four weeks and covers core concepts and JavaScript learning.

1. 1. Step 2: Learn how to build complex projects. You can also take CTO program that enables you to become a better programmer and manager.

1. Step 3: In this step, you will enter the project phase where you will be matched with potential employers. The process will continue until you get a job.

Locations: New York NY, Chicago IL

Technologies Focused: HTML5, CSS3, JavaScript, AngularJS, Node.js, Services and APIs, etc.

Price: You can take any of the two program types at the offer. The first one is Full-Time Software Engineering Immersive Course which will cost you $16,810 and Fullstack Flex-Immersive course for $15,680. Both courses are similar in the core curriculum, the only difference being the flexibility.

“Full stack is successful not just because of our graduates’ strong career outcomes, but because we have created a community of developers who are passionate about helping each other achieve more than they could alone.” — Mogan Subramaniam, CEO of Fullstack Academy.

V School

If your goal is to change careers and become a web developer, V School says that their Full Stack Javascript course is the way to go. They chose this stack because it gives students the ability to create full stack applications with one core language, and gives them deep skills in the most widely used language in the industry. To optimize the learning environment you can take V School classes in person, (housing and transportation scholarships available), or from the comfort of your home or office through their live streaming online interactive version of all classes. Full Stack and Front End classes available.

Locations: Provo UT, Salt Lake City UT, Beirut, Lebanon and Online Interactive.

Technologies Focused: HTML5, CSS3, JavaScript, AngularJS, Node.js, jQuery, Express, MongoDB and others.

Price: They offer Full Stack JavaScript course for only $14,300 and $5,100 for Front End JavaScript course.

“V School graduates are the fastest to be hired from any school or bootcamp in the country. We work closely with industry to review our curriculum, approve teaching methodologies and mentor/apprentice our students throughout the entire course. V School students deeply learn the most relevant skills and languages possible to be best prepared to begin their career as a developer.” — Michael Zaro, CEO of V School.

Hackbright Academy

Hackbright Academy offers two courses for students who are willing to jump in the IT industry. The first course is a part-time course that aims to deliver a first-hand introductory experience at programming, whereas the full-time Software Engineering Fellowship course aims to deliver a complete modern web development experience to the students. Also, they are the leading software engineering school where more women graduate compared to UC Berkeley and Stanford. So, if you are a woman looking for a break into the IT industry, Hackbright Academy can be a great choice to make the transition.

Locations: San Francisco CA

Technologies Focused: HTML5, CSS3,  Flask, Python, and other technologies required for becoming a successful web developer.

Price: They offer Introduction to Programming course for only $3,000 and Software Engineering Fellowship for $16,570.

“Hackbright provides an inclusive and supportive environment where women thrive in learning computer science fundamentals and professional software development skills so they can pursue careers as software engineers. Hackbright provides support in the full process of changing careers, from multiple experienced engineering mentors per student to a lifetime of career services support for professional development.” — Sharon Wienbar, CEO of Hackbright Academy.

BLOC

BLOC is a leading coding platform available in the US. They started their journey in 2011 and offered a lot of value to its students both on-campus and online. Currently, they offer three tracks for different student’s needs and interest. They are as follows.

1. Web Developer Track — The track offers special 27-week part-time online bootcamp for learners. In this track, you will learn different frameworks and languages of your choice. You can choose anything between Ruby on Rails or JavaScript with AngularJS.
2. Software Developer Track — This full-time track which enables the student to work on becoming a competent software developer. It is great for those want to jump into the IT industry. The course takes 36 weeks to complete.
3. Designer Track — Designer track is also a full-time course aimed at students who are interested in designing. You will learn both Frontend and UX/UI skills, enabling you to do complex projects on your own.

All the courses have full-tuition refund warranty, which means that you will get all your tuition fees back if you don’t get a job as per the track selected.

Locations: San Francisco CA

Technologies Focused: HTML5, CSS3,  Flask, Python, and other technologies required for becoming a successful web developer.

Price: You need to contact them for pricing.

“Founded in 2011, Bloc is the oldest and most successful online coding bootcamp, offering highly structured, mentor-led programs in web development and design for those who aspire to new careers but cannot quit their current job.” — Clint Schmidt

Galvanize

Galvanize is very different from what you have read until now. Galvanize tries to impact the IT industry more with their diverse courses, workshops, degrees and much more. They span from the depths of Data Science to the vessels of Web Development. They also offer degrees and other part-time courses that can fit almost any audience. They also have a tutorial section where you can learn great things about tech. You can get somehow job ready by the end of the course period.

Locations: Austin TX, Boulder CO, Denver CO, Fort Collins CO, New York NY, Phoenix AZ, San Francisco CA, Seattle WA

Technologies Focused: Myriad.

Price: Let’s list the prices of the different courses that they offer.

• • Web Development — $21,000

• • Data Science — $16,000

• Data Engineering — Contact them for pricing.

You can also check their workshops for varied pricing and requirement. They are too many to cover here, so we leave it up to you to explore.

“Galvanize is fueling the future, with immersive in Data Science and Web Development that teach students the technical knowledge to excel in tech’s top fields.”  — Adam I, CEO of Galvanize.

Thinkful

If you are one of those people who just doesn’t want to do on-campus bootcamps and still wants to become a top-notch entry-level developer, Thinkful might be for you. Thinkful is 100% online platform that lets you explore diverse courses including Full stack development, AngularJS, Python, Node.js, and other technologies.

The key selling point of the platform other than being a complete online platform is one-to-one mentorship program. They offer each of their courses flexible and full-time so you can pick anyone that fits your needs.

The flexible timing requires you to invest 20 hours per week, whereas the full time course requires you to study 50 hours per week with a 2 week less graduation time than flexible timing. Another big difference between the flexible and full-time course is the mentor meetings.

Full-time lets you meet your mentor daily whereas flexible lets you meet your mentor three sessions per week.

Locations: Online

Technologies Focused: Myriad.

Price: Web Development Bootcamp — $9000 flexible for six months and $14,000 a full time for four months. Other skill courses start from $300 per month. Click here to know more.

“Thinkful is the largest online coding bootcamp. Students choose to learn with us because they’re seeking incredible support from their first line of code through getting hired.” — Darrell Silver, co-founder of Thinkful.

Coding Bootcamps Vs. CS college

Now that we have discussed all the popular coding bootcamps in the USA, let’s move our focus on how a CS college compares to coding bootcamps. It is easy to jump to conclusion and say that Coding bootcamps are better than college, even though, the reality is far complex. To understand how both of them compare, let’s list pros and cons of both the platforms and also try to answer which one is best for you.

Bootcamps

Pros:

1. Bootcamps cost significantly less compared to a college degree.
2. You can get job ready by the end of the course period.
3. Bootcamps spans over mostly 3-4 months.
4. Bootcamps are great for changing career paths.
5. Bootcamps result in the better return on investment compared to CS college.
6. Instructor to students ratio is better.
7. More career oriented.
8. Highly interactive.

Cons:

1. Bootcamps are all about practical knowledge and don’t teach you the core of computer science.
2. Most of the bootcamps focus on web development and not other aspects of computer science. If you want to learn assembly language? You are out of luck.
3. It is very intensive and time sensitive. Can be seen as a pro as well.
4. Very narrowed curriculum.

CS College

Pros:

1. In Depth knowledge of computer science.
2. Great for academic pursuits.
3. Learning can be done at reasonable pace.
4. Prepares you for other roles in IT industry and not just Web Development.
5. With a CS college degree, you are in a better position compared to bootcamps when moving ahead to higher degree course or aiming to get a more complicated job that requires in-depth knowledge.

Cons:

1. Practical skills stay at a minimum when graduating.
2. Time and money both are higher compared to Bootcamps.
3. ROI is poor compared to Bootcamps.
4. Student to teacher ratio is higher.
5. Most of the time, instructors are not around when needed.

With the above pros and cons, you can clearly make up your mind on which one is better. According to Bootcamps Vs. College article on Triplebyte, it is easy to differentiate between the two. Also, Bootcamp graduates tend to earn more than B.S. in computer science. If you are looking for an in-depth computer science learning experience, CS degree is for you. If you want an intensive practical experience, Bootcamps is for you.

Conclusion

That’s all for now. We went through America’s best coding bootcamps. We also discussed the benefits of coding bootcamps and their difference with College degree. What’s your opinion on College degree and coding bootcamps? Have you attended one of those bootcamps? If yes tell us about your experience by commenting below.