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Mobile development is one of the largest fields in software development, with millions of users accessing mobile apps on their smartphone and tablets every day. Regardless of whether you are a new mobile developer or a veteran developer that wants to add another tool to your toolkit, both Udemy and Coursera offer a large selection of online courses to help you learn the art of mobile app programming for both Android and iOS platforms. In this programming tutorial, we highlight the best Udemy and Coursera classes for Android and iOS development ranging from beginner to advanced offerings.
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I Want to Create An App But Don’t Know Where to Start from Udemy
The first course on our list targets students that want to create a mobile application but that have no clue where to begin. Appropriately titled, “I Want to Create An App But Don’t Know Where to Start”, this online course consists of 11 lectures and takes a little under an hour to complete, making it a great option for coders (and non-coders) that are stretched for time.
The course begins with a discussion on mobile app development for non-coders, where it zeroes in on the topic of low-code, no-code, and zero code tools that let you create software without having to be a programmer. From there, the real “meat” of the course begins, as the curriculum shifts to app development for those that do know how to code. Here, students will learn:
- JavaScript engines for mobile app development
- Open source mobile development tools
- Commercial tools available to create mobile applications
- How to build apps for business and corporations
- How to outsource your mobile app
- How to purchase an existing game or app and reskin it
Once you complete this course, you should have a firm understanding of the different tools you can use to create a mobile app and what your next steps are – whether that be coding it yourself, buying an existing property, or hiring someone to code it for you.
You can learn more by visiting the course’s listing on Udemy: I Want to Create An App But Don’t Know Where to Start.
Mobile Development Architecture from Udemy
A nice follow-up to our first listing is the Mobile Development Architecture course, also from Udemy. Weighing in at 16 lectures and taking almost three hours to complete, this group of classes discusses the different types of mobile software and their architecture. It also discusses some of the tools you will use to create each of the different types of mobile apps and their use cases.
Some of the lectures and topics covered in this mobile development course include:
- What are Native Apps?
- A demo of Xcode and Android Studio
- What are Web Apps?
- What are Progressive Web Apps (PWA)?
- What are Hybrid Apps?
- What are Web Native Apps?
- A look at React Native and Nativescript
- What are Cross-Compiled Apps?
- A demo of Flutter
By the end of this course, you will understand the different architectures used in mobile app development and the tools used to create them. You can learn more by visiting the courses listing on Udemy: Mobile App Development Architecture.
Mobile App Development with Flutter and Dart from Udemy
For our third highlight, we move into the actual creation of mobile apps with another Udemy course, “Mobile App Development with Flutter and Dart.” Consisting of 190 lectures and taking almost 28 hours to complete, this online course teaches students the Dart programming language so that they can create games and applications for both Android and iOS devices. By the end of the course you will have created several useful apps that you can include in your portfolio and continue to expand upon to add new features.
Apps created in this course will include software that uses animations, embedded audio players, real-time location, map functionality, and machine learning (ML) features. Some of the topics covered in the curriculum include:
- Introduction to the Dart language and basic to advanced coding
- Overview of Flutter and Android Studio, as well as an installation guide
- Walk-through of the structure of the Flutter App and widget catalog
- Working with layouts and user experience
- How to display images
- How to include navigation in your mobile apps
By the end of the course pupils will have created a meditation app, a Black Jack game, and a mobile resume app. You can learn even more about this mobile app course by visiting its listing: Mobile App Development with Flutter and Dart from Udemy.
Android App Development Specialization from Coursera
Switching gears a little, the Android App Development Specialization 5-course series from Coursera is made up of five separate courses compiled into one bootcamp-style curriculum. In total, the offering is quite extensive, weighing in at a total of 77 hours worth of content. Upon finishing, students will receive a certificate of completion. Despite the extensive nature of this course, it is still recommended for both beginning Java and mobile app developers, as well as more experienced coders.
The main focus in this series is Java mobile app development, and the following topics are covered in great detail throughout the many classes:
- Java basics , including loops and iterators, structured data, and the Java Collections Framework
- Overview of core Android app components, including intents, activities, and broadcast receivers
- Concurrency frameworks, started and bound services, and content providers
- How to engineer maintainable Android apps
- How to create a full-fledge Android application in Java
By the end of the series of courses, students will create a fully-functional and customized Android app, which they can use in their portfolios or to expand upon to launch to the marketplace.
You can learn about this online mobile development bootcamp by visiting its Coursera listing: Android App Development Specialization.
We also have a great list of some of the Best Tools for Java Mobile Development if you are looking for alternative software to create Java mobile apps.
iOS Development for Creative Entrepreneurs Specialization from Coursera
Since we covered a course dedicated specifically to Android developers that wanted to learn Java, it only seems fitting to feature a course for those wanting to code apps for iOS systems as well. The iOS Development for Creative Entrepreneurs Specialization course from Coursera is just such an offering. It, too, is more of a bootcamp, consisting of a combined six courses that take an estimated 92 hours to complete. Once finished, students will receive a certification of completion (shareable on LinkedIn), and will have created their own mobile app for iOS.
In addition to learning about iOS app development, students will learn, and become fluent in, Objective-C, Swift, and the UIKit and SpriteKit user interfaces. Below are some additional topics covered throughout the series:
- Basic to intermediate Object-C programming and app development
- Networking and security concepts for iOS development
- User interface design and best practices for user experience
- How to create interactive experiences for games on the iPhone and iPad, including how to draw 2D graphics, integrate sound and music, and work with the iOS physics engine
- Basic to intermediate Swift programming syntax and concepts
By the end of the course, students will create a network-enabled game that utilizes phone sensors and lets players interact with other online players. The game can be showcased in portfolios, during interviews, or even launched on the iTunes store.
To learn more about this iOS app development bootcamp, visit its page on Coursera: iOS Development for Creative Entrepreneurs Specialization.
Final Thoughts on Online Courses for Mobile Development
In this mobile app development tutorial, we looked at some of the best online courses from
Udemy and Coursera for developers looking to learn how to create Android and iOS applications. Courses and bootcamps highlighted in this guide covered the gamut from basic app development to advanced and are applicable to both beginning programmers, non-programmers, and advanced developers alike.
As for which courses on this list to choose – it depends upon your personal preference and skill level, as well as what type of apps you wish to create. In addition, both Coursera and Udemy feature many other online courses that can help you learn even more about creating mobile apps, so if any of the listings on this page fail to garner your interest, be sure to check out the other courses each site has to offer.