Coding interviews are a dreaded part of the interview process that prevents many from landing their dream jobs in the tech industry. Many candidates did not do well and ended up being rejected.
Though coding interviews are tough, they can be manageable with preparation, especially by taking an online coding interview preparation course.
Thousands of users had taken it as part of their preparation phase before they were convincing enough to be offered an entry-level position at tech giants like Google, Amazon, Facebook, etc.
These coding interview courses will equip you with the knowledge, tips, and techniques you need to ace the interview. They will help turn your nerves into confidence and successfully convince your future employers that you are the right person for the position.
However, a quick google search will tell you that numerous options are available for programming interview preparation. You might be overwhelmed by them and could not choose the right one.
No worries! I have gone through the hassle and found the top 9 best coding interview preparation courses available over the web. You can read this post and effortlessly find one that suits your needs.
Things You Should Know
First of all, there are several “types” of coding interview courses as follows:
General Courses – The instructor will teach the core concepts of data structures and algorithms, prepare students for interview questions, and grant valuable tips and tricks. The content will not be specific to any coding language.
Language-specific – These training courses will focus on data structures and algorithm concepts based on a specific programming language such as JavaScript, Java, or Python.
Hence, they will be suitable for candidates who apply to a particular developer or software engineer role such as Python programmer and the like.
You may want to look at the job description before purchasing courses to determine which one is the most suitable for upcoming interviews and provide the most value to you.
Besides coding interviews, you might want to improve your general job interview skills. The reason is you still need to know how to present yourself convincingly and showcase your experiences and skills in plain English.
Furthermore, you need to know how to handle phone interviews, write a convincing cover letter, or even start networking. Most courses in this post will not help you on those, so I suggest you find another general interview preparation course and take it as well.
Affiliate Disclosure: This post from Victory Tale contains affiliate links. We will receive a small commission from course providers if you purchase coding interview courses through those links.
However, we always prioritize our audience’s interests, so you can rest assured that we present our recommended courses truthfully.
General Coding Interview Courses
Below are the general coding interview courses. You can take these no matter which role you are applying for. You don’t need to take all or even more than two of them. Just select the one that fits your needs.
All the courses in this group are from Udemy. It would be best to buy them when they are on sale since you will get an excellent course at $15 or even cheaper.
Furthermore, you will get lifetime access to the course and a generous 30-day money-back guarantee. If you are not satisfied with the learning experience, you can always ask for a full refund within a month.
1. Master the Coding Interview: Data Structures + Algorithms
This course by Andrew Neagoie, a senior software developer, will teach you an overview of two essential computer science concepts: data structures and algorithms, which interviewers most often ask in tech interviews.
Before taking this course, you should have a basic understanding of one programming language.
Course Content
This course has 259 video lectures with 19.5 hours in total length. Below is a summary of all the content for this interview prep.
- Tips and Tricks to get more programming job interviews (Resume Walkthrough, LinkedIn, Portfolio, Email, job search tips)
- All about Big O Notation
- Techniques to solve coding problems
- Data Structures Concepts: Arrays, Hash Tables, Linked Lists, Stacks + Queues, Trees, Graphs
- Algorithms Concepts: Recursion, Sorting, Searching, BFS, DFS, Dynamic Programming
- Non-technical interviews
- Negotiating your job offer and salary with your future employers
- Tips to gain experience by contributing to open-source projects
- Extra coding interview questions for practice
Score: 4.6/5.0 from 84,000 students
Pros and Cons
Pros
- Cover all essential concepts, tips, and tricks for coding interviews
- Provide tons of coding exercises with solutions to improve your understanding of the content
- The course starts from the beginning. You don’t need any background knowledge in data structures and algorithms.
- Include non-technical interview tips
- Clear and easy-to-understand voice and accent
Cons
- Andrei will explain the concepts in JavaScript. Though he gives extra resources for other languages, those who do not use JavaScript will need to work harder to understand the content thoroughly.
- Some reviewers believe the content is too basic and may not be enough to answer the toughest of coding interview questions.
2. Master the Coding Interview: Big Tech (FAANG) Interviews
This highly-rated course on Udemy is for those applying for positions on top technology companies: Facebook, Amazon, Apple, Netflix, and Google (FAANG). You will learn with Andrew Neagoie and Yihua Zhang, two senior software developers who are industry experts.
Computer science knowledge is not a prerequisite, but you will need a basic understanding of one programming language before taking the course.
Course Content
Unlike the first course by Andrei, most content on this course focuses on frequently-asked interview questions used by big tech companies to evaluate each candidate’s skill and experience.
Andrei and Yihua will explain how to approach and answer each of them correctly. Furthermore, they will also provide coding solutions, which will help you if you get stuck.
All questions will be in groups based on chapters on data structures and algorithms as follows:
- Arrays
- Strings
- Linked Lists
- Stacks
- Queues
- Recursion
- Binary Trees
- 2D Arrays
- Graphs
- Dynamic Programming
- Big O
Still, if you need to refresh your knowledge on both topics, you can watch video lectures in the “appendix” section, which both instructors provide as a reference.
Score: 4.7/5.0 from 10,000 students
Pros and Cons
Pros
- Detailed, step-by-step coding interview prep
- High-quality and on-point video explanations
- Many interview questions and practices are included in the course.
- Explain strategies, not just programming interview problems
- Excellent appendix section for reviewing concepts
Cons
- No non-technical interview guidance
- Again, the instructors use JavaScript. It may not be perfect for those who use other programming languages.
3. Interview Cake
Interview Cake is a website that exclusively provides preparations for programming interviews.
You can access some materials for free such as practice interview questions for particular companies such as Google or programming languages such as JavaScript or Python.
There are also several coding interview articles that you can read to learn good tips and techniques for free.
In addition to free content, Interview Cake also has a complete course for learners who need extra assistance.
Full Coding Interview Course
Interview Cake offers a text-based course to prepare learners for upcoming interviews. Learners will first complete the readings and later tackle interactive interview questions.
Below is a summary of all the topics covered in the course.
- Algorithmic Thinking
- Array and String Manipulation
- Hashing and Hash Tables
- Greedy Algorithm
- Sorting, Searching and Logarithms
- Trees and Graphs
- Dynamic Programming and Recursion
- Queues and Stacks
- Linked Lists
- System Design
- Coding Interview Tips
In total, you will get more than 50+ hours of readings and practice questions covering all data structure concepts and all problem types you will face in the interview.
The pricing of this course starts at $149 for 3-week access or $249 for full-year access. If you are a student, you can access the course for free for three weeks.
Pros and Cons
Pros
- Text-based, thus excellent for fast and timely interview preparation
- Detailed, easy-to-understand readings
- Thoughtful interactive questions with clear solutions
- 100-day risk-free guarantee
Cons
- Expensive compared to other alternatives
4. Codecademy
Codecademy is a popular platform where students can learn several programming languages and other tech skills such as web development or machine learning through its interactive lessons.
Similarly, the platform also provides training that helps its students handle these tricky interview questions at no extra cost.
Course Content
Though Codecademy teaches more than a dozen programming languages, they provide technical interview practices only in Python, JavaScript, and Java. All will be in the same interactive learning format as the usual Codecademy course.
The course content is quite similar to other coding interview courses. You will learn data structures, Big O, algorithms and apply your skills by completing interview questions and a web navigator project.
Furthermore, Codecademy will also provide helpful tips and tricks to nail the coding interview with ease.
After completing the course, you will be able to break down interview questions, answer them confidently, and land your dream job.
You have to subscribe to Codecademy to access the courses. The pricing starts at $15.99 per month for annual plans, while students will get a 35% off.
Pros and Cons
Pros
- Interactive learning, thus more entertaining to learn than video or text-based courses
- Step-by-step and clear guidance
- Provide interview training in three programming languages
- Learn and code on the platform. You can prepare for the coding interview anytime, anywhere.
Cons
- The content may not be as detailed as video courses
Language-specific Coding Interview Course
Below are the language-specific coding interview courses. It would be best to select the one that utilizes the programming language specific to your dream job (as seen on the job descriptions.)
5. The Coding Interview Bootcamp: Algorithms + Data Structures
This coding interview course at Udemy is for JavaScript developers and others interested in web development careers.
In my opinion, this course is a solid choice for those who want simplicity. You will learn with Stephen Grider, a software engineer who has been mentoring new hires for many companies for years.
I have taken some of his marvelous programming courses, so I have 100% confidence to recommend him to you.
Course Content
The video content of this course is 13 hours long. Each chapter has bite-sized lessons. Thus, it is effortless to progress and complete the entire course before your interview day.
Each lesson will tackle more than thirty interview questions one by one, such as “String Reversal,” “The Classic FizzBuzz!”, “Building a Tree,” or even challenging system design interview problems
Stephen will explain how to solve these problems quickly, practically, and intuitively, preparing you for the most challenging problems in the coding interviews.
The course also provides an overview of data structures and algorithms using JavaScript. I don’t think you will need another course elsewhere.
Score: 4.7/5.0 from 72,000+ students
Pros and Cons
Pros
- Highly knowledgeable instructor. Stephen always shows various methods to solve the problems and provides his expert opinions on which one works best.
- Clear and easy-to-follow explanations with diagrams
- Provide tips, tricks and strategies for cracking the coding interview with ease
- The course is relatively concise so that you can finish it quickly before the interview.
- Easy-to-understand accent
Cons
- No non-technical interview prep
- Some reviewers note that the course is just a good starting point. You should not expect to take this course and get an offer from tech giants right away without practicing more on Leetcode. The reason is interviewers can catch you off guard by asking different questions apart from those you learn from this course.
6. The Complete Data Structures and Algorithms Course in Python
For those who will apply for Python-related careers, this exceptionally detailed course is probably your savior.
You will learn data structures and algorithms in Python and understand how to answer more than 100 interview questions with Elshad Karimov, a software developer with more than a decade of experience in the industry.
Course Content
Elshad will first explain the data structure/algorithm concept and switch to coding interview questions related to it. Thus, you will understand both the theoretical part and its adaptation comprehensively.
Below is a summary of all topics in the course.
- Recursion
- Big O Notation
- Arrays and Lists
- Dictionaries and Tuples
- Linked Lists
- Stack and Queue
- Tree (Binary, Binary Search, AVL)
- Many types of algorithms (Sort, Search, Graph, Greedy, Divide and Conquer)
- Dynamic Programming
- Problem-solving tips
Score: 4.6/5.0 from 12,500+ students
Pros and Cons
Pros
- Well-structured and highly-detailed coding interview course
- Concise and on-point explanations
- Includes as many as 100+ interview questions
- Fast-paced
- Hundreds of downloadable resources
Cons
- His accent could be slightly difficult to understand.
- The course is lengthy, so it may not be suitable for those who will have an interview within days.
7. Object-Oriented Java Programming: Data Structures and Beyond Specialization
This course on Coursera is a specialization from UC San Diego. You will learn about object-oriented design, data structures in Java, and many more from top experts.
You will need to understand essential Java and software development or have a background in computer science before taking this specialization.
Course Content
The specialization comprises five courses as follows.
- Object-Oriented Programming in Java – This course will deep dive into object-oriented programming, which allows you to design a sophisticated Java program, build graphical user interfaces, and empower your program by utilizing Java libraries.
- Data Structure and Performance – You will use and analyze data structures such as linked lists, trees, and hashtables to understand how they help create efficient and flexible Java programs.
- Advanced Data Structure in Java – This course will discuss graphs and other data structures essential for handling real-world data. Furthermore, you will have a chance to develop algorithms to help you create a route planning application.
- Mastering the Software Engineer Interview – Experts from the university will help you prepare for software engineering interviews based on Java. You will learn tips, tricks, and techniques such as algorithmic thinking to assist you in interviews.
- Capstone Project – You will analyze social network data and answer different questions, which will help you gain experience and practical skills.
Though some bloggers recommend taking only the fourth course, I suggest you take the entire specialization in order if possible.
The reason is the fourth course will only provide tips and techniques for technical interviews, but not the concepts you need to answer coding problems. You will learn those in the second and third courses.
However, I don’t think this specialization will help you much if you are out of time. I suggest taking one of Udemy courses instead.
You can audit the courses for free. However, a complete experience will cost $49 per month.
Pros and Cons
Pros
- Learn from faculty members from a leading university
- Comprehensive and in-depth
- Non-technical interview training is included in the fourth course.
- Audit the entire specialization for free
Cons
- Time-consuming. The university suggests spending seven months on specialization, hence not the best if you have an interview next week.
- The part on solving coding interview questions is too concise.
Extra Courses
These are extra courses specific to each role, such as a software engineer. Those applying for these positions might find them helpful.
8. Grokking the System Design Interview
This prep course is on the Educative platform, which aims to assist students in mastering tech skills in no time. You will learn to crack system design interviews (SDI), an essential part of every software engineering interview.
Course Content
Unlike taking Udemy courses, you will learn mostly by reading texts on Educative. Experts will teach you how to handle every system design topic and all frequently-asked questions during the interviews.
Below are some system design problems you will learn to solve in this course.
- Designing Pastebin, Instagram, Dropbox, Facebook Messenger, Twitter
- Designing Twitter search, web crawler, Facebook’s Newsfeed
- Designing ticket master
You will also learn system design basics such as distributed systems, indexes, proxies, and essential problem-solving processes. This helps many receive offers from tech companies.
Optimally, you will spend 20 hours completing the entire course. The pricing of this course is $39 per year.
However, if you subscribe to Educative Limited, you will pay $16.66 monthly (for annual plans) and gain access to all courses on the platform.
Pros and Cons
Pros
- Fast-paced training for system design interviews
- Hands-on coding environments
- No need to install IDEs
- Thoughtful and clear explanations
Cons
- Learning from texts might not be the best learning style for many.
9. Data Science Career Guide – Interview Preparation
Those applying for data science roles will find this Udemy course beneficial. Jose Portilla, the head of data science at Pierian Data Inc., will provide many tips and tricks to land you a job offer from top companies.
As usual, you will need R or Python programming skills and knowledge of machine learning algorithms before taking the course.
Course Content
The course structure is quite simple. Jose will provide learners with many frequently asked questions and later explain each interview question in detail.
Below is what you will get from the course.
- Data Science Career Overview
- Data Science Interview Process (Resume, Landing Interviews, Negotiating an offer)
- A deep dive on interview questions (Probability & Statistics, Product Analysis & Business metrics, Core Data Science, Machine Learning, Design of Experiments)
- Coding Problem explained
The course length is approximately 4 hours, concise enough for last-minute preparation.
Score: 4.7/5.0 from 14,500+ students
Pros and Cons
Pros
- Clear and well-structured walkthrough for tackling frequently asked interview questions
- Provide tips and tricks for the entire interview process
- Concise enough for last-minute preparation
Cons
- Some learners think that Jose oversimplifies some solutions, so they need to find more resources elsewhere to assist their learning.
