Top 5 Web Developer Youtube Channels

I watch a lot of web development related Youtube channels. So I figured, why not share my favorite ones and explain why. Keep in mind this is obviously an opinionated list. However, I intend to provide as adequate justification for my picks as I can.

I ranked these channels based on the value I think they provide to me as a developer. Each one provides different types of content and a different point of view. The preference is towards unique content creators, who have a personality and opinions all of their own. Either that or the content they churn out has to be high quality and informative.

Traversy Media

I would not be the developer I am today, without discovering Brad Traversy's channel. I am a big fan of his videos, so much so that I actually became one of his patrons on Patreon. I've spent hundreds of hours watching his videos, learning, experimenting, and building based off what I learned from them.

I own all of his Udemy courses and have finished three of them. For those that I haven't finished, I still reference them all time to learn specific things.

Brad comes across as a humble developer, who loves sharing what he's learned. Never once does he claim to be the best or even to have all the right answers or methods. That doesn't matter, as he's here to help everyone develop a baseline understanding of various web technologies. Brad is down to earth, enjoying teaching and exploring new concepts. His devotion and curiosity helps to inspire my own, getting me excited and leading me to experiment.

There's a variety of different types of courses that he releases. Most are crash courses, focusing on introducing frameworks, libraries, and programming languages. I've learned the basics of all the Javascript frontend frameworks, a few CSS frameworks, Node.js, and Python from him. Also, on occasion he will drop an advice video that gives the right amount of realistic commentary and helpful motivation.

Junior Developer Central

I found this channel yesterday and already it's shot up to the number two spot for me. The discovery is what inspired me to make this blog post, as in my amazement, I wanted to get the word out. I think Junior Developer Central deserves hundreds of thousand of more subscribers. The value this channel offers to anyone learning web development is equal to buying a half dozen top notch Udemy courses.

You pay nothing for a wealth of useful tutorials, it's all there--for free. And the best part is they give in depth explanations not only on what to do, by also on why you do things.

If you don't look at any of the other people on this list, at least check this channel out and subscribe. I doubt you will regret it.

The Javascript How-Tos playlist will give someone just learning frontend development a lot of useful tricks and tips that often take time to learn or figure out.

I watched a few videos out of their Node.js Essentials playlist, and it cleared up some questions that had been plaguing me. I plan on going through the Command Line Tutorials playlist next, as it's never a bad idea to touch up on tool that is vital to my role.

Chris Hawkes

Chris is a feisty dude who often rambles about the web development industry. Normally this sort of content wouldn't attract me, a person looking for knowledge. His raw experience and honesty drew me in, enthralled me and I watched a slew of his videos afterward. Now I find myself excited whenever he releases a new video, eager to hear what he has to say next.

Chris has been a web developer for over 10 years. He's built apps that have made money for very real companies. He isn't just a Youtuber, and still works in the industry as developer with a day job. This makes him very relatable.

Yes Chris seems tired at times, perhaps a little jaded. But, we all are--as that's part of life in any career. Still, his passion comes across in spades. I would never question Chris's love for programming and web development. I find his fervor reinvigorates my own.

I may not always agree with everything he says, but I respect him for saying things--hard things, truthful things. Your mileage may vary, but give him a chance and really listen to the things he's saying. They often make more sense than many people are willing to admit.

I should note that Chris has some excellent tutorials too. Recently he released a ASP.NET Core tutorial that I went through and it was excellent.

Frederick Christenson

"Who is this guy in his bathtub?"

That was my actual first thought when I stumbled onto one of Frederick's videos. Curiosity drew me in to see more. A wealth of illuminating lectures is what keeps me coming back to his content.

Frederick mostly answers software development related questions from viewers. He tends to pick the most thoughtful and nuanced topics to touch on, approaching them from a careful and deliberate thought-space. This is all done from the perspective of a Senior Developer.

The value for me is in Frederick's wisdom, as he's been in this space for a long time. He understands different requirements, from both a business standpoint and also an engineering one.

Being someone who aspires to be a wise Senior Developer someday, I feel that learning from Frederick via osmosis will only accelerate that process for me.

Coding Tech

Dropping new videos multiple times a day, Coding Tech is the place I love to go to watch new developer talks from all sorts of different conferences and events.

There's not much more to say about this channel other than that. The videos always have excellent audio and video quality, a feat if you ask me. Most of the talks are live and on stage at the time of recording. I've never been to a tech conference, but hope to attend one in the near future. For now, I can experience a myriad of talks and follow the trends of the ever evolving industry we work in via this channel.