Follow This Realistic Programming Path And Start Making 6 Figures

8 min readMar 31, 2022

This post was last updated on March 31, 2022.

You can make money in Programming regardless of who you think you’re or what part of the world you’re from. While it involves hard work, if you’re dedicated enough you can become a programmer and make big money.

The first step, of course, is to start coding. The projects you end up building will pile up and eventually land you a job.

Whether you’re simply looking for a side hustle or want to pursue a full-time career in tech, this comprehensive guide will walk you through actionable steps on how to become a programmer, how to launch a career in tech, and importantly, how to make money.

How to make money coding in 3 steps

Learn how to code
Build a reputation
Become a freelancer or get hired

How much money can you make from programming?

Before we dive into the steps to make money programming, let’s talk about how much you can realistically bring in.

How much money can you make as a junior developer? Earning a full income as a programmer is more realistic than you might think. A US salary blog Glassdoor reports that an entry-level software developer makes around $102,441 in a year on average.

According to Zip Recruiter top freelance programmers earn:

Top earners→ $118,000 per year.
75th percentile→ $85,500 per year.
Average→ $70,714 per year.
25th percentile→ $45,500 per year.

You can also become a part of these statistics and start earning a healthy income.

How to learn to code?

If you’re reading this I’m assuming that at least you know what coding is, right?

But here’s a freecodecamp definition— “Coding is the process of transforming ideas, solutions, and instructions into the language that the computer can understand — that is, binary-machine code”

So, how do you become someone that tells a computer what to do?

1. Teach yourself how to code

Thanks to the internet everyone with a PC and an internet connection can teach themselves the art of coding and become a pretty awesome programmer.

The important thing to remember here is that the tech ecosystem is skill-based. Nobody really cares about your fancy degree(well, maybe some do).

what every employer or client is looking for is your skills, where is your portfolio? what are your capabilities?

This opens up an opportunity for everyone serious and disciplined enough to learn and acquire the skills of a programmer and start building impressive projects.

If you’re good at what you do, good things will happen to you.

Best resources for self-taught programmers

1. Freecodecamp.org

This one right here is my favorite. The fact that they’ve managed to offer top-notch programming courses for free is everything you need to know, seriously.

I mean, the courses are free, well structured, have awesome projects that you can do and add to your portfolio, and on top of that awesomeness add a free certificate that is almost industry-recognized.

freecodecamp.org

2. Udemy.com

Udemy is basically a marketplace for online courses. You can learn numerous skills on this website, from graphic design to software development and everything in between.

What makes Udemy unique is the fact that it sells high-quality courses from amazing instructors at very lower prices.

With only $18.99 you can buy a 300-hour programming course and kickstart your career.

udemy.com

3. Codecademy

Codecademy offers a really wide range of programming languages and tackles different programming topics which is absolutely amazing.

While the course is freely accessible on this website, sadly the certificate and the projects are not for free. You will have to pay $15.99 per month to access the Pro version of Codecademy.

The good thing is that they offer a 30-day free trial of their Pro version— which is enough time to decide whether it’s worth it or not.

Personally, I think the free version is enough.

codecademy.com

4. YouTube

While infamous for cutie cat videos and notorious pranks, YouTube is the biggest free university in the world.

If you’re considering becoming a self-taught programmer then YouTube is a must-have resource in your arsenal. So far my favorite channels on the website from the top of my head teaching programming are:

Traversy Media
Freecodecamp
Coder Coder

Basically, they’re over a gazillion amazing content creators/YouTubers dedicated to teaching you everything you need to know about programming for FREE.

YouTube.com

2. Join a coding Bootcamp

The best way to master programming fast is by joining a coding Bootcamp, whether it’s in real life or online.

A coding Bootcamp provides a well-defined structure to your learning process.

It saves you from drowning in the pits of tutorial hell— which means trying to know everything, watching tutorials for hours and hours but ending up on the same spot. Learning to code is not a walk in the park.

Also, it gets you surrounded by people who genuinely want you to succeed, be it your instructors or your coding buddies.

When the going gets tough you’ll definitely need that someone to be there for you who understands what you’re going through.

How much does a Coding Bootcamp cost?

Well, it depends.

According to the data collected by Bestcolleges.com, a Coding Bootcamp will cost you about $13,500 on average.

Don’t fret or feel discouraged if you don’t have that kind of money yet.

They’ve introduced money incentives to make sure that everyone can access these Bootcamps and change their lives.

These incentives are—

1. Money-back guarantee

The deal is that if you don’t get employed after graduating their Bootcamp in a certain time frame, let’s say 6 months, the Bootcamp will pay you back all your money to the last cent.

2. Don’t pay a penny till you get employed(Income Share Agreements)

This is my favorite. Bootcamps like Microverse are willing to teach you absolutely for free— no hidden costs or whatever and the fees will only get settled if you graduate from their Bootcamp and land yourself a job with a salary of over $40,000 a year.

The deal is that they’ll be deducting a certain amount (percentage-wise) from your salary each month for a given period.

I highly recommend you research this one.

3. Take a Computer Science degree from a university

Not long ago this was the only way of becoming a programmer and an employable asset. It is still one of the best ways regardless.

In college, you’ll be taught by the best of the best, always kept on your toes by regular assignments and tests plus the scope covered is very wide and deep.

Do I recommend taking a degree? If you have the means and the chance to go to college then you should go, but if you don’t, don’t sweat it.

It’s the skills that matter, not your paper.

How to build a reputation as a software developer?

A strong reputation will get you a lot of opportunities in the tech world.

No one is going to take you seriously if no one knows who you’re and what you can do. Don’t tell people you can do this and the third, show them.

The best way to build a reputation is by creating a vibrant presence online.

Build an impressive portfolio and make yourself available in all important corners of the internet.

1. Open a LinkedIn account.

This is a must.

You can not get around this. LinkedIn is where professionals gather and if you’re going to be one then joining is a must.

The best thing about LinkedIn is that recruiters also hang around here.

2. Github and contributing to Open source

Definitely the best community and platform for programmers in the world.

Even employers will require you to know a thing or two about Github in order to qualify for a job.

You can also contribute to open-source projects on the platform. It is a nice way of showing potential employers what you’re capable of doing.

3. Join the Twitter tech community

The tech community on Twitter is probably the best social media community in the world.

People are amazingly helpful and caring on the tech side of Twitter and they genuinely offer help and will push you to succeed. There’s no shortage of inspiration.

You can network with all different kinds of people on this platform. Plus if you’re learning to code, people on Twitter will help you be accountable to yourself with hashtags like #100daysofcodechallenge.

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I’ve literally just scratched the surface here. They’re a lot of things you can do and a lot of spaces you can join to boost your reputation.

I mean there’s YouTube, Stackoverflow, Quora, Reddit, Medium, Coding challenge websites, and what have you.

While you don’t have to be active in all of these platforms, you definitely need to maintain a certain degree of presence.

How to make money as a programmer? Freelance and Remote work

Become a talent for hire.

Businesses are always in need of your coding skills and are always willing to pay big money for it.

The cool thing about freelance work is that you work on your terms, you’re your own boss, you set your own rate and you work on your own terms. If freedom is your top priority then being a freelance programmer is a no-brainer.

The gig economy is gaining momentum.

According to a white paper released by Mastercard, the gig economy was worth at least $347 billion in 2021. The average hourly rate for freelancers is about $21. Most senior developers charge at least $100 an hour.

Tech and design are the most popular sectors among freelancers globally, with over 59% market share.

The top earners' bags in an estimated $100,000 per year. This makes up 20% of the freelance workforce, which is about 3.1 million people and happy faces.

The alternative is working for startups and cool companies remotely. Remote work is lucrative, to say the least. The ability to work from wherever in the world is amazing.

As a freelancer, all the responsibility of finding more work and winning more clients to keep a steady income is on you.

On the other hand, if you’re working remotely a regular paycheck is guaranteed at the end of each month.

16 best freelance and remote work websites for developers

Here’s a quick list of top websites to find freelance and remote work for programmers.

Most of these websites put their talent under a rigorous screening process to ensure top quality for their clients.

So, what are you waiting for if you have what it takes?

Good luck.