Often referred to as the “Swiss Pocket Knife of Languages,” C++ is arguably the most powerful OOP language in the world. It powers the entire digital landscape—operating systems, browsers, apps, databases, games, cloud storage, and more. If you want to break into the field of technology, C++ is one of the best places to start learning.
Whether you are just looking to get your feet wet, or you want to gain some marketable skills, there’s no need to commit to a costly learning path right away. There are many courses online where you can learn C++ without spending a dime. A surge of online learning portals has provided a wealth of educational opportunities right at your fingertips, all at no cost.
Featured Programs
Disclaimer: Some courses may include an affiliate link. Courses were chosen first based on the methodology with affiliate links only added after the ranking was complete.
Our list of the best courses for learning C++ online for free has been compiled using a special methodology we developed to uncover the best no-cost online instructional resources. We’ve ranked them in descending order with our favorite picks at the top, but each of these 10 free courses in C++ is worth investigating.
Ranking 10 Free Online Courses for C++
1. Learn C++
Offered by Codecademy
The founders at Codecademy feel that modern education is broken, and they are working hard to rebuild it from the ground up. They bill their platform as having “the first truly net native education” and it’s one of the best places to check out for students who want to learn programming languages (including C++) at no cost.
You can sign up for the free online C++ course in your browser and start right away with no hassles. There are no prerequisites, and it takes about 20 hours to complete. It covers just about every topic related to C++ starting with all the basics and touching on more advanced concepts as the course moves forward.
You will learn how to write your first program, design an app using conditionals and logic, and understand how to use vectors to keep your data organized. There are plenty of interactive activities, quizzes, notes, and lectures to keep you busy as you progress through each module.
You can access the course at the basic level, which is entirely free, or upgrade to Codecademy Pro for a monthly fee. The pro version offers real-world projects, peer support, and members only content. Pro members can also earn a certificate of completion.
Cost: Free
Certificate: Yes, with a Pro upgrade
Time to Complete: 20 hours
Curriculum: Introductory
User Experience: Excellent
Quality of Instruction: Excellent
Pros:
•Start anytime
•Perfect for learning all the basics
•Taught by Codecademy highly-skilled instructors
Cons:
•Certification requires a paid upgrade
2. Introduction to C++
Offered by Microsoft via edX
EdX is one of the world’s leading learning platforms for mastering all kinds of skills and is one of the best places to go when you want high-quality instruction at no cost. Established in 2012, the site features thousands of courses taught through major corporations and leading colleges like Harvard, MIT, Berkeley, and 117 others.
This particular offering—Introduction to C++—can be completed in four weeks by working between three to five hours a week, making it a great option for those who are pressed for time. In it, you will learn:
• C++ syntax
• C++ language fundamentals
• How to create functions in C++
• How to prepare for intermediate and advanced C++ topics in Microsoft follow-up courses
Taught by three experts from Microsoft, the free online course for C++ has been taken by over 300,000 students. It’s completely free in audit mode, although those who would like a certificate of completion can opt to pay for an upgrade for $99.
Cost: Free
Certificate: Yes, with a fee
Time to Complete: Four weeks
Curriculum: Introductory
User Experience: Excellent
Quality of Instruction: Excellent
Pros:
•Sponsored by Microsoft
•Easy-to-use platform
•Comprehensive and relevant
Cons:
•Students wishing to obtain a verified certificate will need to opt for an upgrade
3. C++ For C Programmers, Part A
Offered by University of California Santa Cruz by Coursera
If you already have some prior programming experience in C and you’re looking to develop them further by learning C++, this is an ideal option for you. It’s a 16-hour course taught by professor of computer science Ira Pohl and has a 93 percent satisfaction rating by former students. There are four modules in all, covering:
• Converting an existing C program to C++
• A review of Dijkstra’s shortest path algorithm
• C++ functions and generics
• C++ classes and OO
•Default constructor and initialization syntax
• Conversion and copy constructors
• List and dynamic memory allocation
• Deep copy
• Prim’s and Kruskal’s algorithms
• Use of basic container classes
• Tripod-container, iterator, and algorithm
Students can take the online C++ course for free in audit mode. For those who wish to take the final exam and obtain a certificate of completion, a paid upgrade is available.
Cost: Free
Certificate: Yes, with a fee
Time to Complete: 16 hours
Curriculum: Introductory to intermediate
User Experience: Excellent
Quality of Instruction: Excellent
Pros:
•Start anytime and go at your own pace
•Perfect for students with prior C programming experience
•Offered through a leading university
Cons:
•Certification requires a fee
4. Google For Education: C++
Offered by Google
Google’s free C++ course is an excellent resource for learning C++ from the ground up. There is plenty of interesting material here, including real-life examples, videos, practice exercises, and notes, all rolled up into the company’s unique learning platform.
The topics range from beginner level to more advanced concepts and the materials are super user-friendly, with an eye on detail. Each concept is accompanied by an exemplary code with the output, and the resources can be referred to time and again as a refresher. A final quiz will test your knowledge on what you’ve learned. Additionally, if you want to collaborate or share notes with fellow students, you can head over to the C++ Google Code University Forum and connect with your peers.
While there is no certification, this is one of our top choices for free online courses in C++ because of the sheer scope of the materials covered. It’s easy to progress through each lesson at your own pace, and upon completion you should have a thorough understanding of all the various aspects of C++
Cost: Free
Certificate: No
Time to Complete: Varies
Curriculum: Introductory to advanced
User Experience: Excellent
Quality of Instruction: Excellent
Pros:
•Excellent user interface
•Engaging content
•Comprehensive
Cons:
•Certification is not offered
5. C++ Tutorial for Complete Beginners
Offered by Udemy
If you are just starting out in the world of programming, this free online C++ tutorial is for you. Featuring nearly 18 hours of on-demand video instruction, it’s designed for total beginners. As long as you are computer literate, know how to download and unzip files, and can navigate the internet, this free course will teach you everything you know to get started with C++.
There are eleven modules and 86 lectures in this self-paced offering, which has been highly rated by over 35,000 former students. It was developed and is taught by UK software development trainer John Purcell, the author of 14 other successful courses on Udemy.
Udemy is a terrific platform for learning many new skills, and they offer classes both free and paid classes. Additional features like instructor direct messaging and a certificate of completion can be unlocked if you opt for the paid version. However, if you don’t need these extras, the class is superb at the basic no-cost level.
Cost: Free
Certificate: Yes, with a paid upgrade
Time to Complete: 18 hours
Curriculum: Introductory
User Experience: Excellent
Quality of Instruction: Excellent
Pros:
•Top-rated instructor
•Excellent user experience
•Go at your own pace
Cons:
•Certification only available at the paid level
6. Beginning C++ Templates
Offered by Udemy
If you understand the basic C++ constructs like classes and functions, it may be time to advance your skills to learn more about templates. Used to create high-performance algorithms and classes, templates are a vital part of almost all high-performance libraries, yet at times they can be challenging.
This course aims to take students through the basics of templates starting with syntax and moving through advanced topics like variadic templates, specialization, and more. It’s a well-reviewed offering, and previous students rave about this course as being very thorough and informative. It can be taken for free on the Udemy platform.
Cost: Free
Certificate: No
Time to Complete: One hour and 16 Minutes
Curriculum: Intermediate
User Experience: Good
Quality of Instruction: Excellent
Pros:
•Taught by Poash Technologies trainer and developer Umar Lone
•Short and easy to complete
•Perfect for understanding generic algorithms and classes
Cons:
• The course may be too short for some
7. C++ Advanced Topics
Offered by LinkedIn Learning
If you already have some C++ training already under your belt, this C++ Advanced Topics course will help propel you to the next level. It’s taught by industry-expert Weiman and offered on the LinkedIn Learning platform. It is a short course that takes just over three hours to complete, but after you’re done you should have a good grasp on advanced C++ concepts such as:
• Classes and objects
• Class inheritance
• Move semantics
• Lambda functions
• The C preprocessor
• Unit tests
• Strings
All courses on LinkedIn Learning are free to users who already have a premium account on the social platform. To take this online C++ course for free as a non-member, you can take advantage of the one-month trial. Just be sure to cancel before the month is up to avoid any charges.
Cost: Free Try a free trial for Linkedin Learning.
Certificate: No
Time to Complete: Varies
Curriculum: Advanced
User Experience: Excellent
Quality of Instruction: Excellent
Pros:
•Short and sweet
•Go at your own pace
•Excellent reputation
Cons:
•You will need to cancel the free trial to avoid charges if you do not have a linked in premium account.
8. C++ For Programmers
Offered by Udacity
This free online C++ course for programmers is part of a nanodegree program on the Udacity platform called Introduction to Programming. It’s taught by expert instructor Catherine Gamboa and consists of rich-learning content and quizzes to give students a solid foundation in C++. There are nine lessons covering:
• Basics
• Arithmetic operations
• Control flow
• Pointers
• Array
• Functions
• Classes
• Overloading
• Templates
Students who wish to complete the course should have previous familiarity with at least one other programming language. It takes approximately three weeks to complete and can be taken at your own pace. This is a terrific option for students who want to learn all the basics in a no-frills, no nonsense kind of way. There are no in-depth discussions on theory as the entire course is designed to maximize learning and minimize distractions.
Cost: Free
Certificate: No
Time to Complete: Three weeks
Curriculum: Introductory
User Experience: Good
Quality of Instruction: Excellent
Pros:
• Learn all the basics in the least amount of time
• Part of a nano-degree program
• Video tutorials and interactive quizzes
Cons:
• Certification not offered
9. Object-Oriented Data Structures in C++
Offered by University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign via Coursera
Taught by computer science Professor Wade Fagen-Ulmschneider at the University of Illinois, this highly-rated free online C++ course is worth checking out. It’s designed to teach students how to write a program in C++, and consists of four informative modules:
• Orientation; Writing a C++ Program
• Understanding the C++ Memory Model
• Developing C++ Classes
•Engineering C++ Software Solutions
The course takes approximately 21 hours to complete. There are 13 quizzes, 22 videos, and 28 readings. This is the first in a series of courses that make up the Accelerated Computer Science Fundamentals Specialization on Coursera. It is completely free in audit mode, although students who wish to obtain a certificate of completion can do so for a fee. Financial aid is available.
Cost: Free
Certificate: Yes, with a fee
Time to Complete: 21 hours
Curriculum: Introductory to Intermediate
User Experience: Excellent
Quality of Instruction: Excellent
Pros:
•Led by an award-winning professor
•Highly rated
•Plenty of excellent material
Cons:
•Certification is only offered at the paid level
10. C++ Programming Tutorial for Beginners: Learn in 2 Hours
Offered by Guru 99
Let’s face it. Not everyone learns the same way. While many students enjoy interactive platforms and on-demand videos, there is a select group out there who learns best by reading. If this sounds like you, this free C++ online course on Guru 99 will suit you well.
The team at Guru 99 has put a lot of effort into providing instruction that is thorough yet easy to understand. This C++ tutorial is intended to be taken at your own pace, but also serves as a crash course that can be completed in two hours for those who want to learn fast. Students will be introduced to:
• The 5 Basic Concepts of C++
• How to Download and Install C++ on Windows
• The C++ Hello World Program
• Variable Types
• C++ Variable
• The Const Qualifier
• Scope of a Variable
• Variable Type Conversion
• Register Variables
One cool resource that goes along with this tutorial is a free PDF of the top 24 C++ interview questions and their correct answers. This is a must-have for anyone looking for an entry-level position in the field.
Cost: Free
Certificate: No
Time to Complete: Two hours
Curriculum: Introductory
User Experience: Good
Quality of Instruction: Good
Pros:
•Ideal for those who learn by reading
•An excellent resource to refer back to again and again
•Great for interviews and exam preparation
Cons:
•No certification offered
Frequently Asked Questions About Free C++ Courses
As you can see, there are many excellent free online C++ courses and resources available to learn the programming language—from tutorials, to more structured classes. Choosing the one for you will depend largely on your current level of experience and your own learning style. We’ve provided options for those who learn best by reading, watching, doing, and more.
In this section, we will narrow down some of the most frequently asked questions about learning C++ online.
Why Should I Learn C++?
C++ still remains one of the most popular programming languages in the world, and it has stood the test of time. Despite the fact that newer languages exist (Java, Python, etc.), C++ is still a favorite among professionals in game development and those who create complex applications.
If you are looking into a career in software, front end, or web app development, C++ is a must, as it can help you in understanding how hardware and software interact with each other. Not to mention that C++ is everywhere. It powers a lot of your favorite software—probably even the browser you are reading this on. The creation of productivity tools, desktop games, and complex programs will require you to interact directly with the hardware on your computer, something you definitely need C++ for.
Learning C++ can be advantageous in mastering other programming languages later on. For example, Java Hotspot and JavaScript V8 are both implemented in C++. And when you know C++ well enough, you will gain better performance overall. Understand C++ is also going to help you to understand the fundamental concepts of computing from a more knowledgeable place.
One often overlooked advantage of learning C++ is that it can help you get ahead of those who have long ago lost patience with it. There is a steep learning curve associated with this programming language, one which requires tenacity and the ability to handle frustration well. Many students give up before they have truly mastered C++, meaning that it’s a skill that only a few are really good at. You could be one of those people.
Who Should Learn C++?
C++ consists of A LOT of code. The language is enormous, and to learn it you will need to grasp several concepts and handle many complex tasks at once. For this reason, if you are considering learning C++ you should have a definite interest in it. This is not something you can force yourself to learn over the long run. If it doesn’t hold your attention now, it definitely won’t be the best learning path for you.
However, for students with a keen interest, C++ may be ideal. You should be a multitasker, able to perform many things at once, and you need to be a quick thinker. Problem solving, patience, and tenacity are vital if you want to learn C++. If you are the type that likes a challenge and is not afraid to fail many times before getting it right, you may do very well as a student of C++.
What Careers Can I Pursue by Mastering C++?
Despite the fact that many other programming languages have overtaken C++ in the past several years, those who are proficient with it have bright career prospects. Almost all IT candidates are expected to be familiar with it, and those who are well equipped can expect to fill positions in:
Junior Programming
Senior Programming
Software Development
Quality Analysis
Game Programming
Software Development Engineering
C++ Analysis
Programming Architecture
UNIX Shell Scripting
Backend Development
Embedded Systems Engineering
Database Development
Bioinformatics
Computational Biology
Who Can Take Free Online Courses to Learn C++?
For the most part, free C++ courses are available on the above platforms to anyone who wants to participate. However, if you want to complete the classes successfully, you should have a strong computer and internet skills as well as some general knowledge (and a strong interest) in coding languages.
How Long Do Free Online Courses in C++ Take?
Depending upon your preference, you can choose C++ courses that take as little as a few hours to as long as a few weeks. Since each of our listed courses can be taken at your own pace, they are flexible enough to work into your own schedule, making it easy to complete them whenever time permits. The start and stop times are only suggestions.
Are Free C++ Courses Worth It?
Free C++ courses are especially helpful for students who are unsure whether or not they want to pursue a full-time education or career in C++ programming. They offer the chance to test the waters before committing, and this is particularly important with C++. If you find the courses exciting and engaging, that’s a good indication that you may do well as a student of C++. On the other hand, if you feel like learning C++ is torturous, you will have learned something about yourself without any financial fallout and little time invested. Free courses offer one of the best ways of exploring more about a topic you wish to pursue.
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