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When you're just starting out programming, there are so many things to wrap your mind around. If you're not mastering PHP, you're learning Python. If it's not a programming language, it's a new web framework.

You've got to start somewhere, but where? The best way to sharpen your programming skills is to apply your knowledge by building simple programming projects.

Whether you're a beginner or you're getting back into coding, here are the best programming project ideas to boost your confidence and make you a better developer.

Beginner Programming Projects

If you're an absolute beginner, you'll want to know the basics of two web technologies: HTML and CSS. Understanding the basics of HTML code is the first thing you need to know about creating web apps.

If you're comfortable with the basics, you can venture out and try one of many coding projects for beginners that focus on HTML. The best simple coding projects end up being crash courses in coding themselves. They push the boundaries of what you already know and give you a practical exercise in whichever language you choose.

These coding ideas are simple, even if they're not easy at first. You will walk away from these cool code projects with two things: a portfolio piece that you can use to prove your ability as a programmer and a more thorough understanding of the craft.

Some of these programming projects will use different languages like Java or JavaScript, but you can also use any of the popular programming languages. Let's dive in; here's our list of the 10 best beginner projects for new programmers.

1. Make Your Own Chess Game

Building a chess game is a great way to take a classic game you may already know and turn it into a programming project. Chess makes for a fantastic starter piece—pun absolutely intended—if you would like to build the foundation for a career in tech.

You'll start by mapping out your board and your pieces. Then, you'll assign specific movements to each type of piece on the board. You'll be forced to think of chess from a developer's perspective, trying to turn concepts into algorithms that a computer would be able to understand.

Check out the video to begin learning how to create your very own chess program in Java (and how to modify it to create your own version). It isn't exactly a step-by-step tutorial, but it offers great insight into how programmers think when building complex coding projects.

2. Code a Responsive Layout

The best coding projects for beginners emphasize the importance of being able to create interfaces that are mobile-friendly. You don't need anything other than HTML and CSS to create beautiful layouts that can adapt to different screen sizes.

Moreover, the good thing is that basic coding projects like this teach you how to create an interface, not just coding logic. This tutorial shows you how easy it is to make a layout by creating a simple product card.

Overall, it's a great way to practice your design skills. You don't have to copy the code line-by-line, give the project your unique touch and design it to meet your preferences.

3. Build Your Own Calculator

Building your own calculator is one of the best software engineering projects for beginners. Creating a calculator gives you hands-on opportunity to practice designing a layout, reading numbers or symbols from user input, and implementing logic to process the information and generate results.

Small coding projects like these are simple enough for a beginner and challenging enough to make you think critically. JavaScript is a great language to pair with HTML and CSS to build this app. You can use it to handle user interactions, do calculations and display the results on the web page dynamically.

4. Create a To-Do List App

Building a to-do list app is another of our favorite fun programming projects to test out your skills. It involves creating a simple user interface that includes buttons, animation, user interaction, and event handling.

You get to implement CRUD functionality and user interactions like adding tasks, marking them as complete, and removing completed tasks. This will help you learn how to handle user input and how to update the UI accordingly.

You will also learn how to work with data structures like arrays to store and manage the tasks in the to-do list.

This video will walk you through the app using the big three—HTML, CSS, and JavaScript. You can upload the final result to a portfolio if you want to show it off. Once you've built the basic version, go ahead and try putting your own spin on it as you become more comfortable with complex concepts.

5. Develop a Weight Conversion Tool

Simple weight conversion tools are another example of easy coding projects for beginners. Much like the to-do list app, beginner coding projects like this will challenge you to build and style layouts and code JavaScript logic. You will practice how to work with JavaScript functions and mathematical operations. This project also allows you to practice handling user input.

As you're building projects, customize them as you like. Getting creative with these easy coding projects by adding your own features or design elements will help you discover your identity as a developer. Before long, these simple coding project ideas will begin to grow and take on a life of their own.

6. Code a Rock, Paper, Scissors Game

Rock, Paper, Scissors is a classic game that can easily be turned into a computer science project for developers who are just starting out.

It requires taking a player's input and selecting one of the three options (rock, paper, or scissors) randomly and comparing them. With this game, you'll be coding the game and also implementing the logic for the bot the player competes against.

Cool programming projects like this provide beginner coders with an interactive product that can be played immediately. A little instant gratification goes a long way when trying to stay inspired. Since there are various graphic objects to interact with, you can be as creative as you'd like.

7. Build Your Own Tic-Tac-Toe Game

If you're truly at a loss for programming project ideas, consider creating something challenging, such as a Tic-Tac-Toe game. It's a traditional childhood game with straightforward rules making it an excellent starting point for beginners.

Creating the layout is pretty simple, but the logic is where it gets interesting. Programming the code to determine when to end the game offers a chance for beginners who want to expand their problem-solving skills.

Using HTML, CSS, and JavaScript, you can learn how to create an unbeatable Tic-Tac-Toe bot. Who said that programming project ideas for beginners can't bring a bit of hard-won glory to your life? Go get 'em, champ.

8. Web Scraper With Python

Python is famous for its versatility and applicability to just about any coding project. You can use Python, along with a Python library called Beautiful Soup, to extract data from HTML and XML documents.

This example of web scraping exports the data into a CSV file so you can use a program like Excel to create charts, graphs, plots, and more. Python can do more than scrape HTML code—you can also build Twitter, Instagram, or Reddit bots using Python, as well.

Programming practice projects like this will require you to download a Python distribution called Anaconda. It's a large library with all kinds of Python tools built in from the start (just plug-and-Python!).

Learning how to find and download helpful tools is just as critical as finding things to code in general. The best programming projects for beginners teach you this lesson early.

9. Build a Basic HTML5 Website

Few projects for beginner programmers will teach you as much as building a full HTML and CSS website from scratch.

Creating a simple website combines design principles, file linking, web hosting, and coding logic. This is another of those fun coding projects to include in your portfolio, especially if you're on your way to becoming a web developer.

The complexity of your website will grow as you learn more. When you're ready to add a backend, you can use other programming languages such as JavaScript or Python to flex your programming skills.

10. Build a Simple JavaScript Slideshow

Building a JavaScript slideshow is a fun programming project that doesn't require a lot of work. Coding project ideas for beginners like this are recommended because they teach you the basics of interacting with the Document Object Model (DOM) in a browser and how to make your website dynamic.

Easy programming projects like this are valuable because you can reuse them used over and over again on other websites. You might only need to change the design, but the underlying logic will remain the same.

The Best Programming Projects for Beginners: Start Small, Think Big

Good programming projects have a way of inspiring beginners, making them excited about taking on the next challenge.

After building several cool coding projects that use HTML and CSS, you'll soon find yourself diving into more complex JavaScript and Python projects. This consistent flow of cool coding projects can really boost your programming skills and keep your enthusiasm for code high.

Fun programming projects for beginners are likely all around you. What part of your life would you like to improve next? You'll likely find a programming project there.