How to Learn C++ in 2024 [An Expert Guide]

C++ is the king of high trading frequency and game development, with no close second. Even after four decades of existence, C++ remains the backbone of operating systems and web browsers and amongst the most popular programming languages. If you are wondering how to learn C++, this article will help you explore the vast resources available.

“C++ is arguably the most powerful language in the world, and if used correctly, it can achieve more with fewer lines of code than most other languages.”- Herb Sutter

In this blog, we explore the vast inventory of C++ learning resources available all across the Internet and strategies to implement to learn C++ quickly.

Looking to learn C++ programming? Book a free lesson for Online C++ Tutoring and get help from Expert C++ Programmers and Software Engineers.

About C++

C++ (also known as Cpp) is a high-level, machine-independent programming language developed by Bjarne Stroustrup. C++ is an extension of the C programming language and the name is derived from the increment operator (++) of C which levels the value by one. 

One of the oldest programming languages, C++ has been revised 6 times since its original release in 1985, with C++23 being the next version scheduled for release. 

C++ is used in modeling Microcomputers. It is the blueprint for Video Games, Operating Systems, Large-Scale Web Services, and Database Management Systems. Learning C++ will help you conquer every programming language. As of 2022, C++ ranked third on the TIOBE index, surpassing Java. 

Features of C++

C++ is the king of high trading frequency with no close second. Some of the features of C++ that make it relevant today despite being one of the oldest programming languages are:

1. Object-Oriented Programming Language: Unlike its predecessor C, a procedural programming language, C++ is an Object-Oriented Programming Language. C++ facilitates code reusability through inheritance and functions. 
2. Speed: C++, an extension of C a low-level language is one of the fastest programming languages. Much faster than Python and Java which are high-level languages.
   Intermediate Programming Language: C++ a middle-level language can be used to create both kernels and Games which means that the language can be used to develop high-level and low-level applications.
3. Closer to Hardware: C++ compiles code directly to Machine code, which the computer’s processor can execute. 
4. Destructor: C++ destructors are used to destroy an object, and release the memory used by the object. 
5. Pointers: Since C++ is platform-dependent, pointers can be used to store the memory address of a variable. Pointers can return multiple values from functions and minimize the code.

Why Learn C++

Along with JavaScript and Python, it is essential to know C++. C++ is the blueprint for Video Games, Operating Systems, Large-Scale Web Services, embedded systems, and Database management systems. Knowing C++ enhances your skill sets to become a good programmer.

C++ developers are paid handsome salaries in reputed organizations like Microsoft, Google, Facebook, Spotify, and Apple. C++ developers play an important role in the engineering teams of these companies.

Here is a list of high-paying jobs that demand fluency in C++:

1. DevOps Engineer
2. Game Developer
3. Robotics Engineer
4. AI/Machine Learning Engineer
5. Software Engineering
6. Quantitative Analyst

Best Ways To Learn C++

The first step to learning C++ is to choose the right learning source. Research what method of teaching aligns with your method of learning. For in-depth knowledge, learners should opt for tutoring to help them grasp the fundamentals easily.

With plenty of resources available, settling on one source can be baffling. Here we have a comprehensive list of all the learning sources:

1. C++ Tutoring Services
2. C++ Courses
3. C++ Web Tutorials
4. C++ Bootcamps
5. C++ Certifications
6. C++ Projects
7. C++Books
8. YouTube Channels
9. LinkedIn Learning

 #1 Tutoring Services to learn C++

If you’re looking to learn C++, online tutoring is the best option. A qualified teacher’s tutoring would help you pick up fundamentals quickly. Here we have the top 3 tutoring services available for learning C++ :

Wiingy 

Wiingy provides a zero-cost free trial with no mandatory subscriptions. You can sign up for 1 lesson and renew at any time. Wiingy provides certified C++ tutors at just $31/hr. Wiingy is a premier source for immediate learning assistance if you have to meet a deadline. Under Wiingy’s Perfect Match Guarantee program, Wiingy will replace the tutor free of charge if you are unsatisfied with the service.

Key Specs:

• Format: Learn at your own pace with personalized attention by 1-on-1 tutoring.
• Benefits: Access to a vast source of study guides, videos, real-time assessments, and worksheets.
• Trustpilot rating: 4.6/5

Superprof

The average price of C++ lessons is $11 and 95% of teachers offer their first lessons free. The cost of a tutor depends upon the tutor’s experience, the lesson’s mode, and the lesson’s duration and frequency. The tutors usually provide a free first lesson. This first lesson will allow you to get to know each other and specify your needs for your next lessons.

Key Specs:

• Format: Tutoring is offered at home, online, or in an outside location.
• Benefits: Superprof provides 17,693 C++ tutors with the feasibility for certain tutors to travel a definite distance.
• Trustpilot rating: 4.1/5

Wyzant

Wyzant charges no upfront fees, you can sign up, search, and message with certified C++ tutors for free. You can compare tutors, by their years of experience, ratings, response time, and availability before you enroll. Wyzant provides a 1:1 tutoring service with a Good Fit Guarantee where they ensure that you find the right tutor or they’ll cover the first hour of the lesson.

Key Specs:

• Format: Complete control over your learning approach, tutoring is offered both online and offline
• Benefits: You can collaborate with the tutor in the free Wyzant Learning Studio
• Trustpilot rating: 1.8/5

To learn more about the Best Online C++ Tutoring Services, visit our blog.

#2 Courses to learn C++

Online C++ Courses provide a structured curriculum, transitioning from basic to advanced levels. They provide regular feedback and evaluation which helps learners track their progress. If you are looking for an interactive and flexible learning method, C++ Courses are the way to go. The top 3 C++ courses to enhance your learning are listed below:

[Coursera] Object-Oriented Data Structures in C++

The University of Illinois offers this course as a part of Accelerated Computer Science Fundamentals Specialization. The four-module course stretches from understanding the C++ memory Module and developing C++ Classes to Engineering C++ Software Solutions. Learn at your own pace from industry experts and develop job-relevant skills through hands-on projects.

Key Specs:

• Level: Intermediate level (Some related experience required)
• Instructor: Wade Fagen-Ulmschneider
• Duration: 21 hours (approximately)
• Certificate: Yes

[Codecademy] Learn C++

The 10-module course is a consolidated course for beginners with 14 hands-on projects, an AI Learning Assistant that gives personalized feedback and guidance on your progress, AI-generated hints to help you build projects, and Integrated Docs tooltips that provide quick explanations of terms and concepts without leaving the learning environment. The course handles the core concepts of C++ such as Loops, Vectors, Functions, Classes, and Objects.

Key Specs:

• Level: Beginner
• Duration: 11 hours 
• Certificate: Yes

[Udemy] Beginning C++ Programming – From Beginner to Beyond

The course equips the learner with knowledge of C++14 and C++17.

Spanning from Installation and Setup to Enumeration, the course ensures thorough proficiency in Modern C++ and STL. Don’t just watch. Do. The course provides coding exercises along with hints and explanations for solutions. 

Key Specs:

• Level: Beginner
• Instructor: Dr. Frank Mitropoulosand Tim Buchalka
• Duration: 46 hours 
• Certificate: Yes

To see a comprehensive list of the Best Online C++ Tutoring Services, visit our blog.

#3 Web Tutorials to learn C++

Web Tutorials make learning C++ easy for reading Learners. They provide an in-depth description of fundamental to advanced concepts needed to kickstart your journey.

One of the benefits of studying from web tutorials is their availability. They are readily available at all times for the learners to refer to. Here we have the top 3 C++ web tutorials to enhance your learning:

Wiingy

The Wiingy web tutorial provides a detailed walkthrough of the core basics of C++ using code snippets. The essential concepts of C++ addressed in the tutorial include:

1. Variables and Data Types: Declaration, Initialization, Data Types
2. Input and Output Operations: Standard Input and Output Streams, String Manipulation
3. Control flow structures: Conditional Statements, Looping Statements
4. Arrays and Pointers: Multidimensional Arrays, Introduction to Pointers

[W3Schools] C++ Tutorial

From Installing IDE to Polymorphism, the tutorial provides in-depth explanations with examples and code blocks. W3Schools provides a detailed explanation of the code with ‘Try it Yourself’ examples.

[GeeksforGeeks] C++ Tutorial | Learn C++ Programming

GeeksforGeeks provides a thorough analysis of C++ using code blocks, output blocks, and diagrams. The tutorials focus areas are Functions, Pointers, and References in C++, Arrays, Strings, Dynamic Memory Management, Function Overloading, STL, Preprocessors, and Interview Questions in C++.

#4 C++ Bootcamps

An accelerated, targeted training would greatly benefit people looking to learn C++. Bootcamps help learn C++ in a sped-up way especially if you are looking to transition from your career background. It is a budget-friendly alternative and the curriculum satisfies the continuous technological advancements in the field. 

[Udacity] C++

The Bootcamp is a 7-course program with a minimum of 4 lessons per course. The nano degree program encapsulates C++ Foundations, Object Oriented Programming, Memory Management, and Concurrency comprehensively. No prior coding experience is required to enroll in the course.

Key Specs:

• Level: Intermediate
• Duration: 3 months
• Certificate: Yes

[Developer Bootcamp] C++ Programming for C Programmers

The self-paced boot camp requires prior programming experience with C for transition to C++. The Bootcamp breaks down complex concepts like Dynamic Memory Management, Controlling Object Creation, Streaming I/O, Operation Overloading, and Standard Template Library. The price of the bootcamp ranges from $2400 to $6000.

Key Specs:

• Level: Intermediate
• Duration: 28 hours
• Certificate: Yes

[Udemy] C++ Programming Bootcamp 

The Boot camp tests the learners for deep-level knowledge of C++. The program is created by Derek Banas who has been in the technology field for 26 years. He has been producing educational content for YouTube for over 10 years. Most tutorials in the course are video versions of cheat sheets. His teaching is backed by numerous problems. 

The course curriculum stretches from Visual Studio Code Installation to the development of C++ Graphical User Interfaces.

Key Specs:

• Level: Beginner to Advanced
• Duration: 22 hours
• Certificate: Yes

For a comprehensive list of the 5 Best C++ Bootcamps, visit our blog at Wiingy!

#5 Certifications for C++

Certifications are bona fide proof of your knowledge of the subject. It is essential, even for an experienced developer, to have certifications to secure a job. Apart from providing official proof, these certifications test your knowledge and make you aware of your strengths and weaknesses.

CPA – C++ Certified Associate Programmer Certification

The certification tests learners on basic coding techniques. It tests learners on points like Flow control, Data Types Functions, dealing with Exceptions, Fundamentals of the Object-oriented approach, Class hierarchy, and Basics of Functions.

Key Specs:

• Exam Name: CPA – C++ Certified Associate Programmer
• Exam Code: CPA-21-02
• Number of questions: 40
• Duration: 65 minutes (exam) 
• Full exam price: USD 295
• Format: Single-choice questions, multiple-choice questions
• Passing score: 70%

CPP – C++ Certified Professional Programmer Certification

The certification tests learners on advanced coding techniques. It tests learners on Sequence Containers, Associative Containers, Algorithms, Non-Modifying Sequence Operations, STL Functional Objects and Utilities, Templates, and Smart Pointers.

Key Specs:

• Exam Name: CPP– C++ Certified Professional Programmer
• Exam Code: CPP-22-02
• Number of questions: 40
• Duration: 65 minutes (exam) 
• Full exam price: USD 295
• Format: Single-choice questions, multiple-choice questions
• Passing score: 70%

PCE C++ Certification

The course encompasses C++ foundational principles, models, modeling, C++ extensions, the Object Oriented Design- Reusability, Polymorphism, and Inheritance. Excluding the time in class, the learner is expected to dedicate about 10-12 hours each week to the coursework. International students are eligible to apply, the only criterion being intermediate proficiency in English.

To earn the certificate the learner is required to complete 3 courses:

Quarter 1: C++ Programming: Introduction

Quarter 2: C++ Programming: Intermediate

Quarter 3: C++ Programming: Advanced

Key Specs:

• Exam Name: Certificate In C++ Programming
• Full exam price: $4,497
• Eligibility Criteria: One year of work experience in any high-level programming language.
• Passing score: 70%

For a comprehensive list of the  Best C++ Certifications, visit our blog at Wiingy!

#6 C++ Projects

Once you are thorough with the fundamentals starting a project will help you gain a deeper insight into the language. While making a project you’d encounter multiple queries. In resolving these, you’ll learn new debugging methods and get clarity on the concepts.

To be proficient you need hands-on experience in C++ and the most efficient way to do so is to create projects and apply all the C++ skills you have learned. Below are the best suitable projects for beginners, intermediate, and advanced levels:

C++ project for Beginners: Rock Paper Scissor

The user has to choose one of the three options to beat the opponent or the computer. The three options are:

1. ‘r’ for rocks
2. ‘p’ for paper
3. ‘s’ for scissors

The user choice and the computer choice are compared and then the decision is made based on the following criteria:

1. Rock beats scissors
2. Paper wraps rocks
3. Scissor cuts papers

The project can be designed using the fundamentals of C++ like functions, looping statements, and conditional statements using basic syntax.

C++ project for Intermediate: Snake Game

The snake can be moved in any direction with the help of the keyboard, the score increases every time the snake eats food, increasing the length of the snake’s body.

The program can have basic conditional statements for controlling the game. For instance:

1. Control Keys to manage the movement of the snake
2. P to pause the game
3. R to resume the game 
4. E to exit the game

The project can be designed using graphics functions, loping statements, and conditional statements.

C++ project for Experts: Chess Game

The game of Chess is made virtually using C++ programming. The user should be able to move pieces on the board while attempting to checkmate the king of the opposition.  The game can be played against a user or the system.

The project can be designed using Artificial Intelligence, Data Structures, Algorithms, and the concept of classes from object-oriented programming.

For a comprehensive list of the Best C++ Projects, visit our blog!

#7 C++ Books

C++ Books provide comprehensive knowledge about the programming language. The topics are structured in a way, that helps in a smooth transition from basics to advanced topics. Books can be used for reference whenever needed, and allow self-paced learning.

C++ Primer By: Stanley B. Lippman, Josée Lajoie, Barbara E. Moo

The book helps you master high-level programming techniques and write your abstractions. The book is a proven tutorial for beginners and a valuable resource for experienced programmers. Why does C++ work as it does? It assists the learners with concepts of C++11.

Absolute C++, Global Edition: By Walter Savitch, Kenrick Mock

The book will help master C++ completely. It is helpful for all – beginners and advanced programmers. It covers everything from the very basics to advanced topics and requires a basic understanding of the C++ syntax.

Tips, Self-test Exercises, codes, and Programming Projects back the explanations. The book also provides answers to the self-test exercises. 

The C++ Programming Language By: Bjarne Stroustrup

This book is your go-to if you have already mastered the basics!

The authors describe every language feature and standard library component that a professional programmer is likely to need. 

For each component, he provides particulars like:

• Definition and Performance
• What kinds of problems is it designed to help solve
• Limitations of the fundamental topic
• How can it be used well by itself and in combination with other features

#8 C++ YouTube Channels

Learning C++ is streamlined by YouTubers. YouTube channels help learners save money, time, and energy which helps them employ their resources more efficiently. YouTube is the best source to learn C++ for free of cost.

Some of the famous YouTube channels that have helped learners all over the world learn essential C++ coding skills are listed below:

CopperSpice

The YouTuber covers C++, C++17 and C++20. They provide time stamps for every video so the learner can easily skip to the concept they want to learn. The teacher speaks slowly enough for a novice to understand clearly, which is rare in technical tutorials. 

The Youtuber covers topics from intermediate to advanced.

About the channel:

• Joined: 75 videos
• Views: 311,913 views
• Subscribers Count: 8.22K subscribers
• No. of Videos: Jun 8, 2017
• Average Duration of Videos: 15 mins
• Based In: United States

The Cherno

The Cherno makes super informative and straightforward videos for beginners. The topics covered range from explaining variables in C++ to making desktop applications in C++. The tutorials explain what is happening in the low levels of the computer when you’re writing the code which is rare for a YouTuber to explain.

About the channel:

• Joined: Feb 23, 2012
• Views:  73,717,126 views
• Subscribers Count: 639K subscribers
• No. of Videos: 843 videos
• Average Duration of Videos: 20 minutes
• Based In: Australia

Caleb Curry

Caleb Curry has high-quality tutorials that are fun, educational, and easy to follow.  

Caleb Curry is known for making complex material easy to understand. His videos impart in-depth knowledge of C++ with live coding sessions.

About the channel:

• Joined: Aug 19, 2009
• Views: 46,772,089 views 
• Subscribers Count: 585K subscribers 
• No. of Videos: 1,706 videos 
• Average Duration of Videos: 10 minutes 
• Based In: United States

#9 C++ LinkedIn Learning

LinkedIn Learning is an impactful way of learning C++ and making your resume competent at the same time. 

The courses can be accessed on phones or tablets and the certification can be showcased on your LinkedIn profile under the “License and Certificates” section. This adds credibility to your skills and improves the prospects of your profile being noticed.

Some of the popular LinkedIn courses for C++ are:

C++ Essential Training

The course dives into the basics of C++. Starting with the C++ toolchain the instructor explains concepts like flow control, loops, functions, classes, and objects. It also covers STL (Standard Template Library).  

Course Outline:

• Duration: 3h 53m
• Level: Beginner
• Rating: 4.7 out of 5
• Certificate: Yes

Getting Started with C++

The course has 7 modules that help the learner go from basic concepts like C++ fundamentals to advanced concepts like Web Servers and APIs. 

The expert-led tutorials explore solutions to common C++ coding challenges. The modules deal with creating development environments, applications, templates, and training learners for C++ interviews.

Course Outline:

• Duration: 12h 47m
• Level: Beginner
• Certificate: Yes

How to Improve C++ Skills?

You can improve your C++ skills through hands-on projects, consistently keeping up with the changing trends in C++, and participating in competitions to improve your problem-solving skills. Competition motivates you to master your craft and challenge yourself.

“In learning you will teach, and in teaching you will learn.” — Phil Collins

Join online communities where developers learn, share, and expose you to cutting-edge opportunities in C++. Attend conferences, and workshops to expand your network which would help you keep up with the developments in C++.

Here are a few tips to improve your C++ skills:

1. Technical Fluency: Master the basic algorithms of C++, memorize the syntax, and understand the logic using flowcharts that break down complex coding sections into smaller segments.
2. Consistency: Practice coding regularly on websites like leetcode, Codewars, and HackerRank. These websites prepare you for technical interviews, and let you test, debug, and write your projects online.
3. Debugging: “Developers debug the codes more than running”. You should practice debugging to trace and fix errors. Finding bugs in the logic assists in a better understanding of the program structure. Debugging facilitates a clearer perception of the program architecture. 
4. Community Engagement: Stack Overflow and Reddit are great places to join communities, and interact with experienced C++ learners. On these platforms, you can pick techniques from some of the most skilled developers from all over the world. 
5. Continuous Learning: Regularly work on personal or collaborative projects as it would help you learn through trial and error. Keep yourself up-to-date with the latest advancements in C++. You can constantly incorporate emerging technologies in your projects to drive growth.

Useful C++ Resources

Best Resources to Learn C++ in 2024
Best C++ Bootcamps in 2024
Best C++ Certifications in 2024
Best C++ Projects