A Guide to Affordable Coding Bootcamps 2024

The demand for bootcamps is soaring as students look for quick and less expensive paths to a job in the burgeoning tech market. Designed to take students from novice to expert coders in a matter of weeks or months, bootcamps can be an enticing alternative to a four-year degree.

Career Karma estimated 58,756 people graduated from a coding bootcamp in 2022. These programs may vary widely in scope, size, and influence, however, making their value and popularity challenging to quantify.

If you are considering applying to a career-focused technology program, take a look at our list of cheap bootcamps below.

Coding bootcamps provide short-term, career-focused educational experiences to train students for a technology-related job. Unlike traditional colleges, bootcamps include only coursework focused on the subject with no liberal arts foundation, minor, or array of electives.

Consequently, coding bootcamps tend to cost less than a four-year degree, but some bootcamps cost thousands, and they rarely qualify for traditional financial aid packages such as federal grants and subsidized loans.

In 2020, we looked at the base upfront tuition cost of 624 bootcamps offered by 131 bootcamp providers in the U.S. to determine what “affordable” means in the bootcamp industry.

According to our analysis, in November 2020:

Prices varied depending on several factors, like discipline, format, and time commitment. There are five popular technical disciplines: web development, software engineering, cybersecurity, data science, and UI/UX design. The two least-expensive technical disciplines were UI/UX design, which cost $12,436 on average, and web development, which cost about $12,617.

Data science bootcamps ranked as the most expensive, with an average tuition of $15,078. Software engineering bootcamps also skewed on the pricier side, with an average price of $15,036. Cybersecurity bootcamps landed in the middle with an average tuition of $14,442.

Online bootcamps cost about $1,000 less than in-person bootcamps, on average. Hybrid bootcamps that combined in-person and online components tended to be the most expensive format — about $800 more than in-person bootcamps, on average. Full-time bootcamps cost $2,000 more, on average, than part-time bootcamps. That said, many bootcamp providers offered full-time and part-time programs for the same price.

The tables below outline the cheapest coding bootcamps from reputable providers. The two tables are divided into full-time programs costing $8,000 or less and part-time programs costing $5,000 or less. The tables list the bootcamps in ascending order by price.

The Council on Integrity in Results Reporting (CIRR) provides a standardized system to measure and report student outcomes. CIRR-verified bootcamps ensure transparent student outcomes data. The data even includes their starting salaries. A bootcamp might provide this information on its website, but the CIRR ensures it’s accurate and verified.

If a bootcamp doesn’t include data such as graduation rates and how many graduates found success, be wary. Bootcamps don’t hold accreditation like colleges do, so the best assurance of getting a quality education is verifiable student outcomes.

Use CIRR outcomes, the bootcamp’s website, and bootcamp graduates’ reviews to evaluate your choices. You can discover how many students graduated on time and how long it took them to find a job in their field.

You don’t have to choose a cheap bootcamp to get where you want to go. Several programs offer financial aid opportunities, including discounts, scholarships, and payment plans. Veterans and military members can also apply their education benefits to many bootcamps.

While some bootcamps may expect you to pay your full tuition before enrolling, most offer arrangements that let you study now and pay later. While many of these plans can help you start your program, they often require paying more than full tuition in the long term.

Let’s take a look at four standard bootcamp payment plans:

Any bootcamp that helps you get from where you are to where you want to be professionally is possibly worth it. However, a cheap bootcamp may offer benefits similar to an expensive one. Be sure to consider a bootcamp’s outcomes, not just its costs, when making your decision.

Yes, you can find free coding bootcamps, although these are not common and generally set strict parameters regarding whom they accept. You may also discover bootcamps that charge nothing until you secure a coding job after graduation. Be sure the bootcamp you choose offers measurable post-graduation benefits along with an affordable sticker price.

The FAFSA is the application form used to access federal student aid such as Pell grants and subsidized student loans. Federal aid does not pay for coding bootcamps. However, your GI Bill or other military-related benefits may help cover your costs. If you qualify, ask your bootcamp’s admissions representative to help you secure veterans or active military benefits.

The total cost of a bootcamp is generally much lower than the price of a college degree. According to data from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), a single academic year at a public university costs $21,337. But some bootcamps can cost $30,000 for the same time period. It all depends on what you want to learn.

When compared credit-by-credit or month-by-month, college tuition could be much cheaper than a bootcamp.

GI Bill® is a registered trademark of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). More information about education benefits offered by VA is available at the official U.S. government website at https://benefits.va.gov/gibill/index.asp.