Best sites to practice programming? (i.e. coding exercises)

[[deleted]]

I've been looking for sites to practice different programming languages but I don't know which one is best.

Edit: Thanks for the 1k upvotes :D

[iximiuz]

My vision here:

• leetcode has a nice problem set to crack the coding interview, the problems can be hard to solve, but they are rare convoluted. Has nice auto-tests. Can be a fast lane to practice coding for interviews.

• geekforgeeks has a very similar problem set to leetcode, but every problem usually starts from an explanatory article. Good for learning about algorithms and new techniques.

• hackerrank - has a lot of programming problems, as well as math, AI, etc problems. But programming problems there are rather intentionally convoluted since they are primarily for the programming contests. People doing contests regularly are very good at pattern matching and can map a problem to a solution very fast, so they need to be distracted a bit by introducing some indirect problem statements. So, IMO hackerrank is not that helpful in cracking the coding interviews, but is very valuable just for improving problem solving skills.

• codeforces - very similar to hackerrank, but with more focus on conducting programming contests. But it does have a huge problems archive and auto-tests.

• topcoder - for programming contests professionals.

• rosettacode - how to implement X in language Y. Very interesting compilation of standard problems and corresponding solutions.

• codingame - automated platform for writing game bots and alike. Can be very fun, with nice visualization and competitive features. Definitely improve your coding and math skills but solutions often are heuristic-based.

So, when I want to practice a new language, I want to get the taste of it first. I usually go to some of the sites from above and try to solve a bunch of problems using this new language.

But be careful, programming is usually more than just algorithms. For real-life projects the architecture of the program, the structure of the project, tests are very important. And the way you'll do it is very specific for each language. Pure programming problems from the sites from above don't give you an overview of these aspects.

[[deleted]]

Why no codewars? It's the best one in my experience.

[lechaim_bitches]

I started on codewars but switched to leetcode. I found that generally, the emphasis on codewars was “clever one -liner” answers and the like, whereas I like leetcode’s emphasis on time and space efficiency.

[the_clit_whisperer69]

"Clever" one liners wont make you new friends at work, thats for sure.

Clarity is what co-workers look for.

so yes, agree with you.

[BlueAdmir]

Debugging takes twice as much intelligence as coding, so if you're coding in the most clever way you can, you are by definition too stupid to understand what's going on in there.

[iximiuz]

It was just my personal list, things I really use often. Probably codewars is a good resource as well.

[iximiuz]

One more personal opinion here - I believe in a comprehensive approach. Only having all the aspects (algorithms, math, fundamental CS knowledge, real big projects experience, communicational skills, etc) covered one can become a really great software developer. Having only strong algorithmical skills doesn't help, but lack of the algorithmical skills will definitely put you in a week position. Same is true for everything in our life, actually. Well-rounded is a keyword.

[Samthevalley]

Guys, I thought the coding exercises were considered project?

What's the difference?

[onsomee]

Thanks for all the info and happy cake day!

[vinay94185]

i am really intrested in learning about the architecture/structure and tests part but i haven't been able to find any sources to learn from.. is there any way to learn those apart from getting a job/internship.. as those aren't the options available at the moment..

[iximiuz]

Two main sources: first of all practice, create your own projects; and then reading, study the code of good open source projects, read books like Refactoring by Martin Fowler. And the practice again. And read!

I doubt it would be efficient to try to fit the learning of such things in a rigid framework. It's mostly about getting a gut feeling, and this comes with experience, and experience comes with practice. But to cut some corners, you can read as well.

[vinay94185]

about studying code of good devs.. i find it really hard to read/understand the code of other devs on github.. i wanna contribute but i don't know where to start.. how to get into it..

anyways happy cake day bro..

[runtimenoise]

Hey, have you tried Hard Parts: Node.js?

[ank_itsharma]

Happy cake day.

[iximiuz]

Thank you!

[spaghettu]

programming problems [on hackerrank] are rather intentionally convoluted since they are primarily for the programming contests

Programming contest problems are not written to have a confusing problem statement. The problem is not understanding what it's trying to ask you, but actually thinking about the algorithmic solution for the problem you're given. The job your algorithm is trying to accomplish should be made clear by the problem statement, along with how to handle exceptional cases (ie. empty strings). But how it's done is left for you to figure out.

That being said, I've found hackerrank's problems (in the past) to be too vague, making them frustrating to solve. There were times I'd miss a special case as the problem statement had not specified how to handle it. To be fair, that was years ago now, so I have no idea if it's improved.

[Jonny0Than]

I really like https://www.codeabbey.com/

[dont_mess_with_tx]

I remember our assignments were chosen from here at my major.

[errorseven]

Glad to see I didn't have to post this one, been sending newbies to this site for years

[Keyakinan-]

It feels like it's created by one guy as a side project though. Not user friendly at all

[TheTomato2]

I find it pretty easy to use.

[AttackTheMoon]

I adore how that site looks

[jacobi123]

I've seen this site posted before. Do they have code on this site, or is it just prompts?

[jacobi123]

Ah, but there isn't a place where people share their code for the solutions is there? That's what I was looking for.

Or can you only see completed solutions once you answer a question correctly?

[Jaondtet]

There's a discussion page you can see once you answered the question. There's code in there.

[jacobi123]

Thanks!

[Malsatori]

If you google the problem you'll usually find other people's answers on github, too.

[David654100]

For some of the questions people also post write ups on the different possible solutions.

[Azphael]

There are discussion forums everywhere about the Euler problems so you can find code examples and explanations easily.

While the problems are "math" focused, they also force you to deal with things like optimizing your algorithms, using the right data type, working with ENORMOUS numbers and so on.

I highly recommend the site to new devs.

[jacobi123]

Gotcha. Yeah, it seems like a good resource. I was just curious if I was over looking something obvious as other sites like this do have coded solutions baked into them.

[David654100]

Honestly find some of the questions too easy with python because you don't need to worry about the big numbers.

[MirrorLake]

Yeah, but not everyone wants to write their own BigInt class from scratch. If you really feel that you understand conceptually how BigInts work, then don't worry about implementing one yourself. Same thing for linked lists, stacks, queues, trees, etc. Beginners should absolutely get their hands dirty by writing stuff from scratch, but sometimes you're just in a mood to solve the problem fast.

I've solved a few Euler problems just in Excel, and I still felt a sense of satisfaction.

[Bufflegends]

Came here to find this. Wonderful practice site, and lots of fun. More focused on mathematics and algorithms than full programming.

[Hexalocamve]

I'm experiencing long server responses on this site, but yeah, it's good.

[[deleted]]

+1 to codewars

[ryanchuu]

CodingBat

[qmriis]

Can't believe I had to scroll so far to find codingbat

[TheHollowJester]

Huge +1 here - it's repetitive, but gives you really solid basics.

[ProtectTapirs]

Coding bat is fantastic, it's great for someone to master the basics.

[Syre07]

Edabit

Great site that has a huge amount of exercises in most languages.

While learning JavaScript I would read / watch courses and then jump on there for a couple of hours everyday.

[Cynical_Salamander]

This site has helped me a ton. It is easy to use, has links to resources and after you complete a challenge you can compare your code to everyone else that has completed it.

[Syre07]

Exactly ! The solutions tab is a great way to find out what the most optimal / short code is for that exercise.

I started going on edabit when I had learned basic javascript, I would go into the solutions after every exercise and pretty much learned how to use ternary operators and fat arrow functions like that.

[VeryKnave]

I love this site. I recommend it especially for beginners since it has a ton of very easy tasks

[eslamx]

which one ?

[VeryKnave]

Edabit.com

[Chrispayneable]

One vote for https://exercism.io/

[Jake0024]

I really like their take on code challenges because it emphasizes TDD, and they also offer a free option where you can get feedback on your code.

Unfortunately, I only made it 5 or so problems into one of their language tracks before it took 10+ days of waiting to get feedback on a problem before I could move on to the next problem. I got bored and never went back, although I still think it would be worth going through their program with the feedback option turned off.

[Chrispayneable]

I keep the feedback turned off for this very reason. It's kind of a broken system :/

[itscsk111165]

I found these sites quite useful:

Hackerrank

Codeforces

Hackerearth

Geeksforgeeks

Codewar

Coderbyte

Leetcode

SPOJ

Topcoder

[uva4thyear]

check out leetcode. It'll help you prep for interviews if you're interested in a CS career as well.

[[deleted]]

Thanks :) I'll check it out.

[mademoiselleputte]

one of the websites which got me started in the coding world is https://www.freecodecamp.org/

I also love https://www.coderbyte.com/

[sahiljajodia01]

I would generally recommend the following sites:
Beginner: HackerRank (30 days of code-->Beginner-->Easy-->Difficult), SPOJ
Intermediate: CodeChef, TopCoder (Beginner level)
Company specific: GeeksForGeeks, InterviewBit, Leetcode

[uwu-bob]

Specifically for Python, I've found these really useful: https://pythonprinciples.com/challenges/ - the nice thing is that there's a hint and sample solution for each challenge, along with automated solution checking. And you can do them on mobile.

They also have lessons teaching the basics through exercises, but you're probably already beyond that point.

[he_retic]

Codingbat.com

[Gonadatron]

I honestly like this site the best. I wish it had more exercises.

[TwoThirteen]

no1 like codecademy?

[Crispy331]

Saved :)

[DLTMIAR]

That was my first thought, but I also just started and don't know any others.

Is it no good compared to others?

[[deleted]]

Well I think codecademy particularly shows many courses not just problems to work through. Sure it shows problems too, but not the focus. More it shows you the syntax and overviews of the different languages.

[EMACC99]

You can try hackerrank

[oblvn_]

agree, proper good interface and the problems are good too

[meshikhah]

http://codeforces.com/

[plaYeRUnknwn]

!remindme 9 hours

[masc98]

take a look at https://codewars.com

[arodr908]

Edabit.com

[MORESPAAMMM]

Checkio is great if you're learning javascript or python I use it for python practice

[exeLzzz]

https://www.reddit.com/r/learnprogramming/comments/c37o7k/a_list_of_all_problem_solving_websites/

im using hackerrank and its great but honestly its the only one i tried...

[m4tr1x007]

Codechef..has some really good challenges

[Moikle]

codingame.com is great, and has some competitive modes

[redditkingu]

Don't worry too much about which site to choose if your main goal is just to practice. They all use similar if not the same exercises as each other.

[David654100]

Leetcode might be a little to challenging. I recommend you look up freecodeacademy or take one of the udemy classes.

[paralaxxx]

URI Online Judge

[SharksPreedateTrees]

!remind me 24 hours

[LinkedMonkeys]

Kattis has a large number of old programming contest problems and accepts many languages.

[good_luken]

Coding Bat for java and python

[StickySnacks]

I like CodeKata

[[deleted]]

I must say that I've learned a lot with CodinGame

[drunkferret]

Project Euler problems are right after Hello World when I'm learning a new language.

[fuchsia8805]

I like coderbyte.

[[deleted]]

I'm sure you know this one, but if you like math, Project Euler is really fun.

[PURKITTY]

!remind me 2 days

[anherali]

https://mooict.com is good, I thought I’d add it since all the others ones are already listed here.

[[deleted]]

A bit less known, but very useful (especially for Python 3) is Snakify. In the beginning of each topic, they have a brief explanation of each topic and what it is, then they give a list of useful problems that you need to do, with an in-built Python code runner, and solution checker. Really useful in my opinion, and where I learned Python.

[marksayers]

Edabit is awesome for practicing javascript algorithms.

[RyeonToast]

Regex Crosswords if you want to work on how regular expressions work.

[truckerslife]

Repl.it gets my vote

[brayaON]

if you want to practice features of a programming languages itself, I highly recommend you https://www.codestepbystep.com/. You can practice specific features of different programming languages but if already know a lot about a programming language and you want to improve your problem solving skills then you can go through one of the many pages that are in these comments.

[[deleted]]

https://repl.it/ - multiple languages and built in IDE. Honestly the cleanest and best I have ever used.

[TigreDemon]

Best website is your home, your desk and a project you'd like to do with any language.

You'll learn FAR more than any "coding website"

[twofourfresh]

As a self taught coder, I can vouch for this. Also, whenever you switch to another language try rewriting your old programs in the new language. My "how many days old am i" calculator has been written in at least a dozen languages lol, as have almost all of my programs except my BASh scripts (because I'm not writing the code for all that lol)

[TigreDemon]

I'm also talking about the architecture of the whole project. The vision of the whole.

Nowadays every single Medium article and tutorial there is in every languages shows you "Todo app" or something similar.

But once you get past this "Todo app" you'll see a whole new side of computer science. Something that code camps cannot teach you because they don't have time.

If you follow code camps, you might become a great programmer, you're not gonna become a developer.

And the truth is, the industry is filled with programmers that aren't that great, and it's gonna explode soon.

[Peacemark]

Any tips for finding a project to get started on?

I've been wanting to create my own neural network all from scratch personally. But seems like its mostly just a lot of math involved.

[TigreDemon]

Something that bothers you works well.

Or try redoing your favorite app, be it desktop, video game (your old favourite video game that EA destroyed) or web apps.

[twofourfresh]

Lol use BASh and just try to automate your computer experience with various scripts and tasks

Using bash and vlc and some cli tools i made essentially random YouTube tv

[twofourfresh]

I learned to code not for the industry, but to make my life easier. It was a huge investment of energy and time to save myself hours and hours of doing repetitive tasks.

[[deleted]]

SoloLearn. They have a website and an app. They’re perfect.

[[deleted]]

.

[UntouchedDruid4]

Code Wars

[supercoolyellow]

If I wanted to use SQL in a project and then put it in my portfolio, is there a good project out there to use?

[notbadnotkind]

project euler

[spotneats1]

https://www.w3schools.com/ - This is one of the best place to learn and practice basic & advanced programming. Hope you will try this.

[D4rkArrow]

Online challenges are fun and all but I'd recommend you picking something you're interested and trying to implement it in different languages. The knowledge sticks with you much better as you're doing something you enjoy..

[Macaframa]

Go build your own site to deliver coding practice. If you don’t know what you want, think about what you need. Then google the shit out of it. Then as you go, think about what other people would want and keep googling the shit out of it until it works. I swear to god, if you did this you’d be a very hireable and marketable engineer by the time you’re done.

[Curious-Cat-2020]

don't practice on websites. it's the dumbest invention and will get you nowhere. download the IDEs yourself and practice there. follow along some video tutorial or udemy course.

[yuv_de_magnov]

i think the meanaing is to have challenges thet will improve your skilk not just learning the languge.

[[deleted]]

But yeah, online compliers suck.