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Become a Mobile Developer

Mobile development means building the apps people carry everywhere. On iOS you write Swift; on Android you write Kotlin. This path teaches both native tracks so you can ship to billions of devices on either platform. It's for people who want to build things they can hold in their hand and show friends, and both ecosystems have excellent free courses. Reaching a level where you can build and publish a real app takes about 6 to 12 months of part-time study.
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The path at a glance

  1. 01 Programming Foundations
  2. 02 Learn Swift
  3. 03 Build iOS Apps with SwiftUI
  4. 04 Learn Android with Kotlin
  5. 05 Learn Git and Ship Your Work

Yes, you can learn mobile development for free and build real apps for iPhone and Android. iOS apps are written in Swift, Android apps in Kotlin, and both have first-class free courses: Paul Hudson's 100 Days of Swift and SwiftUI for iOS, and Google's official Android Basics with Compose for Kotlin. Start with programming fundamentals, then pick a platform or learn both. Software developer roles, which include mobile developers, are projected to grow 17% through 2033, much faster than average. Expect 6 to 12 months of part-time work before you can build and publish a polished app.

Software developer employment, which includes mobile app developers, is projected to grow 17% from 2023 to 2033, much faster than the average for all occupations, with a median annual wage of $130,160 (source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, https://www.bls.gov/ooh/computer-and-information-technology/software-developers.htm).

Follow in order

Your Step-by-Step Path

  1. 1

    Step 1:Programming Foundations

    Build a solid CS foundation before diving into platform-specific development. Harvard CS50 covers the fundamentals every mobile developer needs.

    beginner
    Harvard CS50
    Certificate

    CS50's Introduction to Computer Science

    100h · Free

  2. 2

    Step 2:Learn Swift

    Apple's modern language for iOS development. 100 Days of Swift takes you from zero to confident in the language itself.

    beginner
    Hacking with Swift

    100 Days of Swift

    100h · Free

  3. 3

    Step 3:Build iOS Apps with SwiftUI

    SwiftUI is Apple's modern UI framework. 100 Days of SwiftUI teaches you to build real, polished iOS apps from scratch.

    beginner
    Hacking with Swift

    100 Days of SwiftUI

    100h · Free

  4. 4

    Step 4:Learn Android with Kotlin

    Google's official Android Basics with Compose course teaches Kotlin and Jetpack Compose, the modern way to build Android apps.

    beginner
    Google for Developers

    Android Basics with Compose

    80h · Free

  5. 5

    Step 5:Learn Git and Ship Your Work

    Every mobile job assumes you can use Git, and platform courses almost always skip it. The Odin Project's Git Basics covers branching, merging, and pushing to GitHub, which is how you back up your app and show it to people. You're done with this step when your first app is in a public repo with a readme and a screenshot.

    beginner
    The Odin Project

    Git Basics (The Odin Project)

    10h · Free

Beyond the path

More Courses to Explore

Hacking with Swift

SwiftBeginner

100 Days of SwiftUI

Paul Hudson's free 100-day course on SwiftUI, the modern way to build iOS apps. Each day is one short lesson plus a hands-on project. Covers Swift fundamentals, SwiftUI, animations, networking, and shipping to the App Store.

Rating 4.9100hDetails →
Hacking with Swift

SwiftBeginner

100 Days of Swift

Paul Hudson's free 100-day course teaching Swift and UIKit. A more classic iOS path covering Auto Layout, Core Data, and shipping UIKit-based apps. Best for learners who'll work on existing UIKit codebases.

Rating 4.8100hDetails →

FAQ

Frequently Asked Questions

Should I learn iOS or Android first?

Pick the platform whose phone you own, so you can test on your own device. iOS (Swift) has famously polished learning materials in 100 Days of Swift; Android (Kotlin) has Google's official free course. Either is a fine starting point.

Can I build apps for both iOS and Android at once?

Natively, you write each platform separately (Swift for iOS, Kotlin for Android). Cross-platform tools like React Native or Flutter let you share code, but learning one native stack first gives you a stronger foundation.

Do I need a Mac to develop iOS apps?

For building and publishing to the App Store, yes. iOS development requires Xcode, which runs only on macOS. You can learn Swift fundamentals on any machine, but shipping an iPhone app needs a Mac.

How long does it take to build a publishable app?

With steady effort, 6 to 12 months. The 100 Days of Swift and SwiftUI courses are structured to get you building real apps within the first few weeks, well before you finish.

Is mobile development a good career in 2026?

Yes. Mobile is where a huge share of software time is spent, and demand for developers who can ship native apps stays strong. It falls under the software developer category, which the BLS projects growing 17% through 2033.

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