Learning to code has never been easier than it is today. Thanks to the rise of open-source culture and online collaboration, there are countless free resources available — ranging from books and courses to interactive tutorials — to help you master programming. Today, we’re excited to introduce one of the best collections of free materials to help you start or advance your coding journey.
The Free Programming Books platform is a collaborative repository hosted on GitHub. It offers an impressive library of over 4,000 free programming books, along with more than 2,000 courses, podcasts, screencasts, and other educational resources.
What makes this platform truly stand out is its inclusivity. With materials available in 43 languages, it caters to a global audience. While English remains the most widely used language, the diversity of resources ensures that language barriers don’t stand in the way of learning. Whether you’re a beginner or an experienced programmer, this platform is an invaluable tool for expanding your skills — without spending a penny.
How to Access Books and Courses
The resources on this platform are neatly organized by programming language and topic, making it easy to find exactly what you need. The Free Programming Books collection also offers a search tool on its official website, allowing you to quickly locate specific books or materials with just a few clicks.
But that’s not all — this repository goes beyond just books and courses. It also includes:
- Cheat Sheets: Handy summaries packed with syntax tips and tricks for various programming languages.
- Interactive Tutorials: Platforms where you can practice coding in real-time, making learning more engaging and practical.
- Online Coding Platforms: Tools that let you write, run, and test code directly in your browser, eliminating the need for complex setups.
With such a wide variety of resources, this platform is designed to meet the needs of learners at every stage of their programming journey.
A Bit of History
The story of this incredible collection of books began on StackOverflow, where users started sharing links to free programming books in a discussion thread. Over time, the list grew so large that developer Victor Felder decided to move it to GitHub to make it easier to maintain and expand through collaboration.
The repository quickly gained popularity within the programming community and went viral. Today, it stands as one of the most beloved resources on GitHub, boasting over 351,000 stars and contributions from 2,990 developers worldwide.
In 2017, the repository found a permanent home under the care of the Free Ebook Foundation, a non-profit organization dedicated to promoting and distributing free digital books. This partnership ensures that the collection remains accessible and continues to grow for the benefit of learners everywhere.
How to Contribute to the Community?
Since this is a collaborative repository on GitHub, anyone can contribute to its growth and improvement. Whether you want to add new books, fix broken links, or help organize resources better, your contributions are welcome! Here’s how you can get started:
- Create a GitHub account (if you don’t already have one).
- Fork the Free Programming Books repository to your own account.
- Make your desired changes, such as adding new books or updating existing resources.
- Submit a pull request to have your changes reviewed and approved by the repository administrators.
If you’re new to GitHub, don’t worry — the foundation provides a beginner’s guide to help you navigate the process. You can find it here.
By contributing, you’re not just improving the repository; you’re also helping countless learners around the world access valuable resources for free.
