Blockchains, decentralized protocols, smart contracts — if you want to get a foothold in Web3 as a developer, you’ll need to learn a whole host of new skills and concepts. These resources will help you get started.

Web3 is currently one of the hottest areas in software development. While there are still some deep problems in this space so far, that’s not stopping the ecosystem from continuing to gain relevance and traction. For those who want to take a look around, I’ve curated the most important resources to get you started in a listicle.

From a purely technical perspective, Web3 consists of a number of services and apps, various blockchains, and a number of newer decentralized protocols such as IPFS. A central goal of Web3 advocates to decentralize the Web. By using decentralized protocols, blockchains, or peer-to-peer networks, this new Internet should become verifiable, trustless, self-managed, distributed, and robust. Cryptocurrencies serve as incentives for participation.

Ethereum and Solidity

To get started with Web3 development, it is often recommended to focus first on Ethereum and the Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM). Ethereum was the first programmable blockchain. Other programmable blockchains include Solana, Polkadot, and Avalanche. A central concept of Web3 development are so-called smart contracts. Probably the most prominent programming language for writing smart contracts is Solidity, an object-oriented higher programming language that is remotely reminiscent of JavaScript or Python.

Read the docs

To get started with blockchain development using Ethereum and Solidity, it is advisable to read the Ethereum Docs first. The section “Intro to Ethereum” should not be skipped. How far you read beyond that for the beginning is up to you.

To get a feel for what decentralized applications are out there so far, we also recommend taking a look at the Ethereum Dapp showcase.

The Solidity docs are also a good starting point to get a feel for the still very young programming language. To get started, the “Solidity by Example” section is recommended. Here you can find sample code of popular smart contracts for popular use cases such as micro-payments, auctions or voting.

The Remix IDE

The Remix IDE is a browser-based code editor funded by the Ethereum Foundation. It enables the creation of smart contracts directly in the browser and provides the perfect environment to get familiar with the programming language.

Develop a full-stack dapp with Moralis

Those who have become comfortable with Solidity and the Remix IDE can take on a fullstack Web3 app to solidify their newly learned skills. In addition to Solidity, the Web3 stack also includes a local Ethereum environment such as Truffle or Hardhat. Additionally, you may need a wallet such as Metamask and a client-side library such as Web3.js or Ether.js. The Web3 counterpart to common web development platforms such as Firebase or Heroku is called Moralis. Again, it’s worth reading the docs. Developing a full Dapp is probably the best approach to understanding how all these technologies interact in practice.

Web3-University

Tutorials on how to develop such a fullstack Dapp can also be found at Web3-University, in addition to Moralis. If you feel comfortable with the formats there, you can also consider joining the respective Discord servers.

Youtube

Of course, an obvious source should not be missing either: Youtube. Recommended channels are, for example, Dapp-University, Ethereum Foundation, Moralis, Blockgeeks or Eat the Blocks.

Eat the Blocks

Eat the Blocks also offers a whole range of paid tutorials, some of which appear to go deeper than many of the more beginner-friendly resources at Web3-University. They also cover topics such as the Webdev skills needed for Web3 development or security. Pricing for an annual membership is $597 per year, with individual courses available for $197.

Buildspace

Those who shy away from the investment, or who know themselves well enough to know that he or she likes to buy such courses but ultimately doesn’t complete them, may find Buildspace a viable alternative. Buildspace is still very young. In addition, according to the website, it is still unclear to the creators how money will ultimately be earned with the project. However, as is often the case in cryptospace, they have some well-known investors behind them.

Essentially, the platform offers free remote coding bootcamps that are supposed to train you to become a Web3 developer. Those who sign up get access to a Discord server where learners organize themselves. The curriculum is apparently completely project-based, so you’ll probably have one or more projects to show for it after successful participation. Buildspace could also be a valuable place to network with other budding Web3 developers.

Freecodecamp

Freecodecamp also recently launched an open beta Web3 curriculum. This is financed by a donation from a former Freecodecamp user, who apparently wants to give something back to the community by donating one million dollars to the project.

Udemy

Of course, among the platforms that have now jumped on the Web3 bandwagon, there are some other old acquaintances. For example, Udemy has a 2.5-hour course titled “Blockchain dApp Development (Ethereum, Solidity & Web3.js)” — currently available for just €9.99 instead of €19.99.

Linkedin Learning

Web3-curious developers will also find what they are looking for at Linkedin Learning. Here, for example, the course “Blockchain: Learn Solidity” by a developer named Emmanuel Henri offers help in learning the programming language for the blockchain.