My favorite free courses to learn data structures and algorithms in depth
Data structures and algorithms are some of the most essential topics for programmers, both to get a job and to do well on a job. Good knowledge of data structures and algorithms is the foundation of writing good code.
If you are familiar with essential data structures e.g. array, string, linked list, tree, map, and advanced data structures like tries, and self-balanced trees like AVL trees, etc., you’ll know when to use which data structure and compute the CPU and memory cost of your code.
Even though you don’t need to write your own array, linked list, Binary tree or hash table, given every major programming SDK provides them, like JDK or C++ STL library, you will need to understand them so that you can use them in the right place.
Using the right data structure can drastically improve the performance of an algorithm.
Ideally, we should all learn data structures and algorithms in our schools and colleges, but it’s rarely ever covered. Most of the programmers, including myself, only get introduced to a data structure in our computer science courses, but we didn’t really learn the real-world importance of them, and that’s why we didn’t understand them better.
For us, they are just the algorithms and data structures e.g. some concept, not a tool that you can use to write good programs.
We didn’t know that Facebook would use them to store our details or that Google would use them to store web pages and link to search queries.
Anyway, it’s never too late.
If you think that your data structure knowledge is not up to par or you want to improve your data structure knowledge, then you have come to the right place.
By the way, if you don’t mind spending a few bucks to learn an essential and useful skill like Data Structure and Algorithms, which is very very important for every developer, I highly recommend you to join Data Structures and Algorithms: Deep Dive Using Java course on Udemy. It’s affordable and examples are given in Java which makes it easier for Java developers to learn essential Data Structure concepts.
7 Best Free Courses to Learn Data Structures and Algorithms for Programmers
Earlier, I shared some free books to learn data structures and algorithms, and in this article, you will learn about some of the best data structure and algorithm courses that are available for free online.
Here is my list of some of the best courses to learn data structures and algorithms, which are also free. Many programmers think that free resources are not good, which is not true.
Even though they sometimes don’t match the quality and coverage of paid resources, they are, in fact, the best resources to start with.
You can use these courses to familiarize yourself with the essential data structures and learn some basics.
Some of them are particularly good from an interview point of view so you can use them alongside any book you are using to prepare for your programming job interview.
1. Introduction to Algorithms and Data structures in C++
This is one of the best free data structure and algorithm courses from Udemy for all those people who want to learn data structures from an absolute basic to an advanced level.
This course doesn’t expect you to have any prior knowledge of data structures, but a basic prior knowledge of Java is helpful.
The author is a Software Engineer at Google and a former ACM-ICPC world finalist and has excellent computer programming and problem-solving skills.
Talking about social proof, the course has more than 120K students and an average of 4.2 ratings from 6400 rating which is impressive. In short, it’s a complete guide to learning everything there is to know about data structures.
Here is the link to join this free DSA course — Introduction to Algorithms and Data structures in C++
This is also an ideal course for computer science students and working software professionals who want to learn data structures and algorithms from an interview perspective.
So, if you are looking to get a job with product-based companies like Amazon, Google, Microsoft, or Facebook, you can use this course to kick-start your preparation.
2. Data Structure Concepts in C [Free Udemy Course]
This is another free, online algorithm and data structure training course, which aims to teach basic data structures in computer programming.
The data structures taught in the course include Stack, Queue, and Linked List using the C programming language.
The primary goal of this course is to make students and software engineers visualize how different data structures work. This is not an exhaustive course, but you will learn about Stack, Queue, and Linked List.
In short, it is a great course for programmers new to data structures and those who have just learned a programming language and want to learn the basics of how data structures work.
Here is the link to join this course — Data Structure Concepts in C
3. Algorithms Part 1 - Coursera [Java]
This is the first part of a two-part series of courses covering algorithms and data structures on Coursera by Robert Sedgewick.
In this part, you will learn essential data structures like linked lists, stacks, queues, binary trees, and hash tables, and searching and sorting algorithms like binary search, quicksort, mergesort, insertion sort, etc.
You will also learn about core data structures and algorithms used in everyday applications and understand the trade-offs involved with choosing each data structure along with traversal, retrieval, and update algorithms.
All the features of this course are available for free but it does not offer a certificate upon completion.
Here is the link to join this free Algorithms Course — Algorithms Part 1
4. Algorithms - Part 2
This is the second part of a two-part series of free online Coursera courses covering data structures and algorithms by Robert Sedgewick and Kevin Wayne, both are professors of Computer Science.
Robert Sedgewick is also the author of Algorithms 4th Edition book, one of the most popular books on Algorithms for Java developers.
In this part, you will learn about the graph- and string-processing algorithms.
You will also learn some advanced data structures and algorithms used in application development. Talking about social proof, both Algorithms Part 1 and Algorithms Part 2 are highly recommended courses and have impressive reviews and ratings.
Here is the link to join this course — Algorithms — Part 2
Apart from this, there is also a Python Data Structures course which you can join for FREE to learn Data Structure and Algorithms in Python. This course is also part of Python for Everybody specialization, one of the most popular Python course on Coursera.
By the way, if you find Coursera courses useful, which they are because they are created by reputed companies and universities around the world, I suggest you join the Coursera Plus, a subscription plan from Coursera which gives you unlimited access to their most popular courses, specialization, professional certificate, and guided projects. It cost around $399/year but it's complete worth of your money as you get unlimited certificates.
5. Data Structure in Java [FREE]
This is an introductory online course on data structures, algorithms, and complexity analyses. It will teach you design, implementation, and analyses of basic data structures using the Java language.
The best part of this course is the number of practical examples and the that it focuses on intuition rather than formulas and mathematical proofs.
The course provides a good introduction for “complexity analysis,” which makes it possible to spot a poorly (and a great) performing program, even without the need for executing it.
Here is the link to join this free DSA course — Data Structure in Java
6. Python Data Structures [Free Coursera Course]
This is another great free online course to learn Data Structures and Algorithms but more suitable for Python developers because it covers Python data structures and examples are given in Python programming language.
This course is part of Python for Everybody Specialization on Coursera which covers Python 3 and you will learn all the core data structures of the Python programming language.
You will move past the basics of procedural programming and explore how we can use the Python built-in data structures such as lists, dictionaries, and tuples to perform increasingly complex data analysis.
Here is the link to join this free Python DSA course — Python Data Structures
This course also cover Chapters 6–10 of the textbook “Python for Everybody”, one of the best book to learn Python
That’s all about some of the best free data structure and algorithm courses available online. You can use these courses to learn data structures and algorithms at your own pace. I have shared best free Data Structures and Algorithms courses from sites like Udemy and Coursera which you can use to learn Data structures and algorithms in C, C++, Java, and Python.
They may not all be comprehensive, but they do provide a good introduction. Once you go through these courses, you can pick a good book like Introduction to Algorithms 4th Edition to further supplement your knowledge. Yes, much awaited 4th edition of this book is now available.
7. A Visual Introduction to Algorithms [Free Interactive Course]
If you are looking for a free, interactive, text-based course to learn Algorithms then this Educative.io course is for you. “Interactive Course: A Visual Introduction to Algorithms.” is tailored for beginners, this course comprises 61 lessons spanning 14 hours, offering a comprehensive exploration of introductory computer science algorithms.
In this course, you will delve into essential topics such as searching, sorting, recursion, and graph theory through a blend of articles, visualizations, quizzes, and coding challenges.
The free DSA course also caters to diverse programming languages, allowing you to implement challenges in Java, Python, C++, or Javascript. Each lesson is crafted to provide hands-on experience, employing live coding environments within your browser for effective practice.
With the course’s text-based approach, learning becomes 2x faster than traditional videos, and you can begin immediately without the hassle of setting up SDKs and IDEs.
Progress is also quantifiable through built-in assessments, and successful completion is recognized with a Certificate of Completion, showcasing your newfound skills.
If you want to learn Data structure and algorithms then I highly recommend you to enroll into this interactive and visually engaging educational experience offered by Educative.io
Here is the link to join this course — A Visual Introduction to Algorithms
And, if you find Educative platform then consider getting Educative Subscription which provides access to their 1000+ courses, cloud labs and coding interview courses in just $14.9 per month. It’s very cost-effective and great for preparing for coding interviews.
Further Learning
- Data Structures and Algorithms: Deep Dive Using Java
- Data Structure and Algorithms — Part 1 and 2
- 10 Books to Prepare Technical Programming/Coding Job Interviews
- 10 Algorithm Books Every Programmer Should Read
- Top 5 Data Structure and Algorithm Books for Java Developers
- From 0 to 1: Data Structures & Algorithms in Java
- Data Structure and Algorithms Analysis - Job Interview
Closing Notes
Thanks. You made it to the end of the article. Good luck with your programming journey! It’s certainly not going to be easy, but by following these courses, you are one step closer to mastering data structure and algorithms than others.
If you like this article, then please share with your friends and colleagues, and don’t forget to follow javinpaul on Twitter!
Other Articles you may like:
