Some years ago, when I wanted to learn to code without any HTML experience whatsoever, I made some mistakes. Today I will tell you the best ways to learn HTML so you can avoid my struggles when starting out.
You can learn HTML on your own from the comfort of your home. All you need is a computer and an internet connection. But not all free resources on the internet are equal. A good HTML course needs to engage you, teach you good fundamentals, and at the same time push you over the comfort line.
You must know what a good resource is, and I will show you how to find one. I will, of course, also give you links to what I believe are great resources if you want to learn HTML
You don’t need to join any classes to learn HTML, everything you need is listed below, and best of all, it is all free.
How to learn HTML for free?
You can learn HTML on your own. No need to join online classes or paid courses for this. Just follow these 3 steps:
- Find an excellent free HTML course on the internet
- Create something simple on your own
- Find simple or advanced HTML challenges on the internet
1. Find an excellent free HTML course on the internet
It is enough to follow a good free Youtube course or a free HTML course on Udemy.
Later, when it comes to learning JavaScript or your first framework and some advanced concepts, it might be better to join a bootcamp or similar classes. Still, until then, it is fully okay if you don’t spend a single dollar. After you go through your first course, I strongly advise you to do it once again. You would be surprised at how many concepts you might have missed.
Here is a perfect free HTML course on Udemy: Complete guide to HTML
Here is a great free Youtube HTML course:
Both will guide you from the first steps. No HTML knowledge is needed beforehand.
2. Try creating some projects in HTML yourself
Then try creating something on your own. Here is a list of suggestions – of course, without any styling, we are talking about only HTML here :):
- Create a form for an insurance company
- Create 3 pages. One is the main page, and 2 are subpages. The main page should link to both subpages, and each of the subpages should link to the main page plus to the other subpage.
- Create an HTML text game. Now you can see how these can get harder reasonably fast. One way to solve this is to create a simple HTML page with text and several links, each link going to a new page with text based on the selected option. You will end up with many pages like this, but you created your first very rudimental HTML game.
3. Free HTML challenges
It is time for a more significant challenge when you have done that. I can’t emphasize this enough. It is okay if you get stuck or something is not clear. I have gone through the very same struggles. You type into Google or Youtube: simple HTML-only mini-challenges.
Remember, the goal is to keep practicing after you understand the fundamentals. At the start, you will keep checking if your HTML tags are closed correctly, you will wonder what you have missed, and it might anger you here and there. It is all part of the learning process. I wish somebody would tell me that when I was starting. Writing the HTML code will become like eating or using your mobile phone with time. It becomes automatic, and you don’t even think about what part of the HTML code comes after. With regular practice, it just becomes a routine eventually. Once you notice that writing HTML doesn’t cause you any problems, you have really learned it.
You need to be careful about a few things when choosing the right HTML resource.
I made a mistake and bought an HTML-only course for $30 or $40 when I started out. Sadly it wasn’t what I hoped for, and I didn’t manage more than 30 minutes watching it.
Read more below on the best way to learn HTML on your own without any classes below.

How to learn HTML on your own without joining classes?
There are plenty of free resources on Youtube alone, with which you can learn HTML on your own. But for you to really learn the HTML, the resource material should have the following:
1. Easy to follow instructions where fundamental concepts are explained visually.
When just starting out, everything will be unknown to you. Therefore the course must clearly explain the very basics. These concepts should then be reused several times so you can remember them quicker.
2. HTML course needs to be engaging
It needs to be written or told engagingly. There is nothing worse than starting a course to find the author incredibly boring in explaining concepts.
3. To learn HTML, you need to struggle.
You need to be challenged to learn. This forces your brain to really think like a future developer. A good course should do only after you have some idea of basic concepts. Preferably with a solution in the end. A simple example of this would be telling you to build a table with 5 columns and 4 rows after learning how to create a table in HTML.
4. Repetition is a key to learning HTML concepts faster.
After you first hear of basic HTML rules and a bit of learning to remember them, the best way to never forget and understand them is to repeat them in an example. For example, HTML forms have many different HTML elements. The best way to remember them is to create a few forms independently. With such process, you can move fairly fast through any coding concept, not just HTML. I know this approach works really well, as I have followed it myself in my full-stack web developer career. I went from not knowing a single thing about HTML to a CTO position in a startup in less than 5 years.
How many hours will it take to learn HTML?
Lastly, you might want to know long learning HTML takes. If you follow the path that I outlined to you above, then in around 50 hours, you will get a pretty decent idea of HTML. You should learn enough to move on to learning CSS and, after that, learn JavaScript.
Of course, this will not mean that you will remember everything about HTML after a week of dedicated learning. After initial 50 hours, it is time for you to keep creating and using HTML daily. Even if it is just 20 minutes, it will help your brain repeat the HTML concepts and the syntax.
After these first 50 hours, your goal should be to move to learn CSS for another 100 or so hours. While you are learning CSS, you will need to use HTML anyway because, after all, CSS is used to style HTML elements. And once you have a good understanding of CSS and HTML you will be ready to dive into JavaScript. There you will at first spend a week or two learning JavaScript only and then slowly start combining all three HTML, CSS and JavaScript together. And then, you will understand how vital HTML (and CSS and JavaScript ) fundamentals are to your overall progress as a Web Developer.
Is HTML easy to learn?
Html is easy to learn compared to other Web developer skills. It is the one that you will understand the fastest. Still, at the same time, good fundamentals in HTML are mandatory to be a Web Developer.
The good thing is that anyone can learn HTML, even for free. If you follow the steps above, I have no doubt that you will find HTML easy to learn if you put the hours into practice.
I have given you an excellent procedure to follow to start your Web Developer career. It will get tough at times, but you will see that it was well worth it if you don’t quit. Programming is comfy office work. And jobs often come with many bonuses.
Let me just give you one last tip: Use Google whenever you get stuck. Googling for a solution to a coding problem is what every experienced developer does. It is a great way to learn. Not just a solution to a problem, but also learning what precisely to Google.