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Top 9 free coding websites and apps for kids (2026)

Checked October 2026For Teachers, Homeschool and parentsGrades Kindergarten to 8th gradeKind Free websitesNo affiliate links, no paid placement. How we chose

Quick answer

Scratch is our number one pick: a free block-based coding site from a nonprofit that works for ages 8 and up and has teacher accounts. This list is for teachers and homeschool parents who want coding that costs nothing and needs no coding background. ScratchJr covers the youngest children, and Experience CS gives a free classroom curriculum for grades 3 to 8.

Top 9 free coding websites and apps for kids (2026): comparison
#NameBest forPrice
1ScratchBest for a first real coding project, ages 8 and upFree
2Code.org (now CodeAI)Best for a whole-class computer science courseFree
3Experience CSBest for teaching coding inside math or scienceFree
4Blockly GamesBest for no-account, no-install block puzzlesFree
5ScratchJrBest for kindergarten to 2nd grade on tabletsFree
6CS UnpluggedBest for coding ideas with no devicesFree
7MIT App InventorBest for middle schoolers who want to build an appFree
8Hour of AI (the successor to Hour of Code)Best for a one-class-period tasterFree
9Microsoft MakeCodeBest for games and micro:bit projectsFree

1. Scratch

Scratch Foundation

  • Best for a first real coding project, ages 8 and up
  • Free

A block-based coding platform and online community where children make stories, games and animations. The Scratch Foundation, an independent nonprofit since 2019, states that Scratch is free for everyone. It lists an age range of 8 to 13 and up, has a Learning Library of video tutorials and printable guides, and offers Teacher Accounts that let educators create student accounts. An offline app is also available.

The Scratch Foundation says Scratch is free and supported by donations.

Watch for It is an online community where children share projects, so a teacher should set up Teacher Accounts and read the community rules before a class uses it.

Visit Scratch ↗  Facts read on the maker’s page.

2. Code.org (now CodeAI)

CodeAI (formerly Code.org)

  • Best for a whole-class computer science course
  • Free

The site's own pages say Code.org has become CodeAI, a nonprofit offering free, research-backed courses in computer science, AI science and data science. Curriculum is organized by grade band (K-5, 6-8, 9-12) and by courses, units, lessons and activities, so you can teach a semester or a single lesson. A student area offers videos, tutorials and activities, with a K-5 path described as for ages 5 to 11.

The curriculum page describes the courses as free.

Watch for The site has been renamed and now leads with AI and data science, so bookmarks and course names from before may have changed.

Visit Code.org (now CodeAI) ↗  Facts read on the maker’s page.

3. Experience CS

Raspberry Pi Foundation

  • Best for teaching coding inside math or science
  • Free

A free curriculum for elementary and middle school teachers that weaves computer science into math, science, languages and the arts. The site lists 18 units, three per grade for grades 3 to 8, with Scratch projects set up for school use. A Google help page says it replaces Google's CS First, which was turned down on June 30, 2025.

The site calls it a free curriculum.

Watch for A free account is needed to unlock the full set of teacher resources and curriculum materials, and it covers grades 3 to 8 only.

Visit Experience CS ↗

4. Blockly Games

  • Best for no-account, no-install block puzzles
  • Free

A series of educational games that teach programming, made for children with no prior coding experience. The games build from block puzzles toward real JavaScript, and Pond lets learners program a duck with blocks or JavaScript. It is self-paced, can be downloaded for offline use, and the code is open source.

The About page says the code is open source and free to use.

Watch for It is a set of games rather than a course, and the pages we read show no lesson plans or class management, so you build the lesson around it.

Visit Blockly Games ↗  Facts read on the maker’s page.

5. ScratchJr

Scratch Foundation

  • Best for kindergarten to 2nd grade on tablets
  • Free

An early coding app for ages 5 to 7 where children snap together picture blocks to make characters move, jump, dance and sing, and to build stories and games. It uses icon-based blocks, so pre-readers can use it. It runs on iOS, Android and Amazon tablets.

The App Store listing shows it as free and asks for donations to the Scratch Foundation.

Watch for It is a tablet app, not a website, so a class needs iPads, Android or Amazon tablets.

Visit ScratchJr ↗  Facts read on the maker’s page.

6. CS Unplugged

  • Best for coding ideas with no devices
  • Free

A collection of free teaching material that teaches computer science through games and puzzles using cards, string and crayons, with no computer needed. It has topics, printables and adapted lessons for teaching online. The content is open source and shared under a Creative Commons license.

The site calls it free teaching material.

Watch for Children do not write code in these activities, so it works best alongside a coding tool like Scratch.

Visit CS Unplugged ↗

7. MIT App Inventor

MIT

  • Best for middle schoolers who want to build an app
  • Free

A block-based tool for building phone apps. The site says it is free and runs in a browser on a Mac, Windows computer or Chromebook with nothing to install. It has beginner tutorials that need no experience, a For Teachers section, and an optional companion app to run your app on a phone.

The site says App Inventor is free.

Watch for The site gives no general age range, and its Sign In link is not explained, so try a tutorial yourself before a class does.

Visit MIT App Inventor ↗

8. Hour of AI (the successor to Hour of Code)

CodeAI

  • Best for a one-class-period taster
  • Free

The Hour of Code web address now redirects to Hour of AI, which the site describes as building on the Hour of Code. It offers free one-hour activities that need no AI or coding experience, from hundreds of organizations, for any device or none. Activities can be browsed by grade and topic.

The site describes the activities as free.

Watch for The activities come from many organizations and focus on AI, not only coding, so check each activity's own terms and fit for your class.

Visit Hour of AI (the successor to Hour of Code) ↗  Facts read on the maker’s page.

9. Microsoft MakeCode

Microsoft

  • Best for games and micro:bit projects
  • Free

Microsoft calls MakeCode a free online learn-to-code platform for building games, coding devices and, with Minecraft Education, modding Minecraft. It moves from block coding to JavaScript and Python. The micro:bit foundation uses it as its official block editor, with a built-in simulator, projects and lessons.

Microsoft describes MakeCode as free.

Watch for The Minecraft modding feature requires Minecraft Education, and the hardware options need devices such as micro:bit boards.

Visit Microsoft MakeCode ↗  Facts read on the maker’s page.

Also good

  • Tynker: K-12 coding platform with a Start for Free option and a school page that lists free courses; family plans are paid.
  • CodeMonkey: Game-based coding for ages 5 to 14; the page offers a free trial rather than a permanent free tier.
  • CodeCombat: Coding games for learning Python and JavaScript; check the maker's site for current free and paid terms.

How we chose

We weighed these, most important first. The order is our judgement against them, not a score or a vote, and a different teacher could reasonably order it differently.

  1. Free without a card. The core of it is free for a teacher or parent, with no credit card needed to start.
  2. Ease for a teacher who does not code. Ready-made lessons, tutorials or curriculum, so you do not need to design the course.
  3. Student privacy and accounts. We say where an account, an online community or a sign-in is part of the product.
  4. Fit for K-8. Suited to the ages in the elementary and middle school range.
  5. Maker and quality. Run by a nonprofit, university or established education group, and still current.

We took no money, free products or affiliate commissions for any place on this list, and no link here carries a tracking code. Every fact was read on the maker’s own page on October 27, 2026; prices carry that date because they change. See how we choose and the ad-free promise.

Questions

What is the best free coding website for kids?
For ages 8 and up, Scratch is the one we would start with. For ages 5 to 7, ScratchJr is the matching app, and for a ready-made classroom curriculum, look at CodeAI (formerly Code.org) or Experience CS.
Can I teach coding with no devices?
Yes. CS Unplugged teaches computer science ideas through games and puzzles with cards, string and crayons, and the Hour of AI site says its activities work on any device or none.
Did Code.org and the Hour of Code change?
Yes. Code.org's own About page says Code.org has become CodeAI and the Hour of Code has become the Hour of AI. The hourofcode.com address now goes to hourofai.org.
Is Google CS First still available?
No. Google's help page says CS First was turned down on June 30, 2025, and points teachers to Experience CS from the Raspberry Pi Foundation.

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Last checked October 27, 2026. Something out of date or missing? Tell us and we will fix it; makers can send corrections, never money.