JavaScript - The Complete Guide (Beginner + Advanced) (Udemy.com)
Modern JavaScript from the beginning - all the way up to JS expert level! THE must-have JavaScript resource in 2026.
Created by: Academind by Maximilian Schwarzmüller
Last updated January 2026
Our take
Based on the ratings of 33,592 students, a sample of their written reviews and the syllabus, as the course stood in January 2026. No course pays to be reviewed.
Maximilian Schwarzmüller's JavaScript course was published in 2019 and last updated in January 2026. It runs about 52 hours across 616 lectures and 16 sections. It starts with variables and functions, then covers control structures, the DOM, arrays, objects, classes, prototypes and events. There are 36 quizzes and eight assignments along the way. It is pitched at beginners, but also as a deep reference for developers who want the nitty-gritty details of how the language works.
Most of the 33,592 ratings are strong: 21,954 five-star and 8,916 four-star. Reviewers call the teaching methodical and detailed, and one says Max builds up gradually so it is easy to follow. A former desktop developer says it made web work feel far less scary. The complaints are consistent, though. Beginners say the opening calculator project explains basics mid-project, that fast refactoring is hard to track, and that some tasks use code not yet taught. Others find the delivery slow, or the examples too long for simple ideas.
At 52 hours, this is a real commitment. Experienced programmers may find sections repetitive, and one reviewer who codes in another language felt their time was wasted. Total newcomers who get lost easily might want a lighter first course, then return here for the depth. For people who like understanding why JavaScript behaves the way it does, and who will put the hours in, it looks like a solid choice that was updated this year.
Pros
- Covers legacy and modern syntax, so older codebases are less of a shock
- Builds gradually and explains thoroughly, per reviewers who call Max methodical
- Quizzes, assignments and projects on top of 616 lectures give practice
- Last updated January 2026, and the 52 hours work well as a lookup reference
Cons
- Beginners report sudden jumps in difficulty and tasks using code not yet taught
- Some reviewers find the pace slow, and others say refactoring on the fly is hard to follow
- Long: one reviewer says it repeats points and pads sections, which is a lot to sit through
Max is very methodical and build gradually so one can follow along.
Billed as all levels. Beginners can start cold, but reviewers say the difficulty jumps, and basic HTML and CSS help.
What you will learn
- Learn JavaScript from scratch and in great detail - from beginner to advanced
- All core features and concepts you need to know in modern JavaScript development
- Everything you need to become a JavaScript expert and apply for JavaScript jobs
- Project-driven learning with plenty of examples
- All about variables, functions, objects and arrays
- Object-oriented programming
- Deep dives into prototypes, JavaScript engines & how it works behind the scenes
- Manipulating web pages (= the DOM) with JavaScript
- Event handling, asynchronous coding and Http requests
- Meta-programming, performance optimization, memory leak busting
- Testing, security and deployment
- And so much more!
Course content
16 sections · 616 lectures · 53 hours of video 36 quizzes, 11 coding exercises, 8 assignments, 76 articles
- 1Introduction 13 free previews14 lectures · 1 hour
- 2Basics: Variables, Data Types, Operators & Functions39 lectures · 12 quizzes · 3.3 hours
- 3Efficient Development & Debugging19 lectures · 59 min
- 4Working with Control Structures (if Statements, Loops, Error Handling)38 lectures · 10 quizzes · 3.9 hours
- 5Behind the Scenes & The (Weird) Past (ES3, ES5) & Present (ES6+) of JavaScript12 lectures · 1 quiz · 1.6 hours
- 6More on Functions22 lectures · 3 quizzes · 1.7 hours
- 7Working with the DOM (Browser HTML Code) in JavaScript38 lectures · 4 quizzes · 3.6 hours
- 8More on Arrays & Iterables29 lectures · 2 quizzes · 2.1 hours
- 9More on Objects27 lectures · 2 quizzes · 2 hours
- 10Classes & Object-oriented Programming (OOP)26 lectures · 2 quizzes · 2.3 hours
- 11Deep Dive: Constructor Functions & Prototypes13 lectures · 1 quiz · 1.2 hours
- 12Practice: OOP & Classes10 lectures · 56 min
- 13Back to the DOM & More Browser APIs16 lectures · 1.3 hours
- 14Working with Events20 lectures · 1 quiz · 1.6 hours
- 15Advanced Function Concepts12 lectures · 1 quiz · 50 min
- 16More on Numbers & Strings10 lectures · 56 min
Who it is for
The instructor says it suits
- Beginner web development students who have no or only little JavaScript experience
- Also developers who know the basics about JavaScript and want to deepen their knowledge
- Advanced JavaScript developers who want to learn more about the nitty-gritty details and dive into advanced concepts
- Everyone interested in learning JavaScript and all about how it works
What you need before you start
- NO prior JavaScript knowledge is required
- Basic web development knowledge is recommended
- Basic understanding of HTML and CSS helps but is NOT required
How it compares
Against the other 239 rated Udemy courses in JavaScript on CourseDuck:
- Rating4.6 out of 5higher than 70% of them
- Reviews33,592#6 of 240 by number of reviews
- Length52.5 hourslonger than 97% of them
- Last updatedJanuary 2026more recently than 86% of them
Course Description
Join the most comprehensive and in-depth JavaScript course on Udemy and learn JavaScript from the ground up, in great detail with this bestselling course!
JavaScript is THE most important programming language you need to learn as a web developer - and with this course, you make sure that you will not miss a single thing you have to know as a JavaScript developer!
This is the most comprehensive and modern course you can find on JavaScript - it's based on all my JavaScript knowledge AND teaching experience. It's both a complete guide, starting with the core basics of the language, as well as an extensive reference of the JavaScript language and environment, ensuring that both newcomers as well as experienced JavaScript developers get a lot out of this course!
It's a huge course packed with important knowledge and helpful content:
From the core basics, over advanced concepts and JavaScript specialties, all the way up to expert topics like performance optimization and testing - this course has it all. My goal was to create your go-to resource for the JavaScript language, which you can not just use for learning it but also as a resource you can come back to and look up important topics.
The course is based on my experience as a long-term JavaScript developer as well as a teacher with more than 2,500,000 students on Udemy as well as on my YouTube channel Academind. It's packed with examples, demos, projects, assignments, quizzes and of course videos - all with the goal of giving you the best possible way of learning JavaScript.
What's in the course?
This course is obviously packed with content - I therefore strongly recommend that you check out the full course curriculum to get a clear idea of all the topics covered in the course. In general, here's what you'll find in the course:
Modern JavaScript from the start: The JavaScript syntax changed over time - in this course, you'll learn the latest syntax from the start (you'll also learn about the old one though, so that you can work in ANY JS project)
ALL the Basics: Variables, constants, functions, how scripts are loaded etc
Arrays & Objects: We'll explore these very important data structures in great detail
Control Structures: Understand how to run code conditionally and in loops
A look behind the Scenes: How JavaScript engines work behind the scenes and what that means for us
Deep dives into Core Concepts: ALL the special things about JavaScript function, different syntaxes
Working with the DOM: How to manipulate web pages dynamically via JavaScript (including deep dives and different use-cases)
Events in JavaScript: Learn how to listen to a broad variety of events (e.g. drag & drop) and execute appropriate code
Classes & Object-oriented Programming: Learn how to work with classes, prototypes, the "this" keyword, constructor functions and much more
Asynchronous and Synchronous Programming: We'll explore callbacks, promises, async/ await and other important tools and language features to execute code correctly
Http Requests: Learn how to send Http requests via JavaScript
Tooling, Optimizations & Browser Support: Code splitting, producing small code and ensuring that scripts work in all browsers - this matters and hence is covered in great detail
Libraries & Frameworks: Learn about libraries like Axios or frameworks like React.js - why they matter and how to use them
Node.js: Whilst focusing on the browser-side for the majority of the course (because the syntax is the same), we'll also have a dedicated section on Node.js to learn all about that JS host environment
Security & Performance Optimizations: Of course security matters, so does performance - no surprise that both is covered in the course!
Automated Testing: Testing manually is hard work and can be unreliable - in this course you'll also get an introduction into automated testing
What are the course prerequisites?
NO JavaScript knowledge is required - you'll learn it from scratch!
You also need NO programming experience other than basic web development knowledge (e.g. how the web works)
Basic HTML and CSS knowledge is recommended but not a must-have
Instructor Details
- 4.6 Rating
33,592 Reviews
Academind by Maximilian Schwarzmüller
Bundling the courses and know how of successful instructors, Academind strives to deliver high quality online education.
Online Education, Real-Life Success - that's what Academind stands for. Learn topics like web development, data analyses and more in a fun and engaging way.
We've taught more than 3,000,000 students on a broad variety of topics. We'd love to teach you as well! :)
Keep learning!
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Reviews
By Selene Magali Lozano Huitzil on 9/11/2026
Un gran curso, completo y claro, con un gran contenido de lo más básico a conceptos más complejos.
By Isaac Maina Kihara on 4/4/2026
This is the course I should have started with when I started teaching myself web development. I jumped through so many tutorials without the basics first. It is a good one.
By Paulo Márcio Botelho Fraga Santos de And on 2/27/2026
The course was very good! I was a desktop software developer who didn't know how to handle web development, especially when I needed to handle JS. But now, after taking this course, I'm confident that JS is much simpler and smoother than I thought. Finally, web development is no longer a barrier and I'm sure if you take the course, you'll feel the same way I do! Thank you Max and Academind for all your support.
By Hans Prove on 2/21/2026
I really liked the content. The beginning (if/then, loops) was a little slow (since I have done SW for many years) but overall a really good course. One thing I would do to improve the course is to have less repetition of items shown in earlier parts of the course. I would assume the person taking the course either starts from the beginning or skips those parts already known. The repetition is a bit annoying and just makes the course longer than needed.
By Bartal H Hestoy on 1/13/2026
For a new beginner the first/second part of the course started fine with functions etc. But all of the sudden a lot of new code that was difficult to follow along. Was still struggling to understand functions and why some were empty brackets and how/when to use parameters. Then the next moment there were functions within functions, console log, eventlisteners etc. And some of the tasks were to use code that i dont think we had heard about - f.x. I believe it was array were the "push" had to be used. Otherwise happy.Still trucking along and "trusting the process" and hope that I will pick it up.
By Anonymized User on 1/3/2026
This React course is excellent and very well structured. The instructor explains concepts clearly, starting from the basics and gradually moving to more advanced topics. The examples are practical and easy to follow, which made learning React much less overwhelming. I especially liked how hooks, state management, and component structure were explained with real-world use cases. The course helped me gain confidence in building React applications, and I now understand why things work, not just how to write the code. Highly recommended for beginners as well as anyone who wants to strengthen their React fundamentals.
By Rebecca Werthine on 1/1/2026
It was and still is an amazing match for me because the explanations are great and detailed. The resources are informative and well chosen. And the support in the Q&A area is very good and helpful to fully understand the material you just learned per lecture. Very great team.
By Mike Loux on 12/2/2025
I learned a crapton and now I need to go back and re-start the Node, React, and TypeScript courses so that they make a wee bit more sense now. I did run into a couple of lectures where the material was a little out of date, and while I know it is impossible to keep up with JS and all of the supporting tools, especially when it comes to backward compatibility (looking at you, webpack), it would be great if those could be brought up to date as time allows. But other than that, the material was great, Max is easy to follow and very engaging, and overall I would not hesitate to recommend this to anyone who has the real desire (and time to devote).
By juan david barrera on 11/27/2025
This course helped me understand how JavaScript works behind the scenes, and the way the topics were explained was very clear.
By Stefan Krsmanovic on 11/7/2025
As a more intermediate developer I found this course really useful. A lot of good information and best practices all around, would definitely recommend picking this up. I had no issues in any of the sections, was watching at a higher speed as well; Max explains things clearly and I am glad we discussed topics of modules, building and deploying code.
By Makhmud Dzhalalov on 4 months ago
Extensive, enjoyable and simply great course! Assignments and quiz questions make learning even more fun. Thank you, Maximilian! Definitely gonna look into some of your other courses!
By Kyle Buttress on 6 months ago
I've learned so much after completing this course. Max truly shows you the possibilities of Javascript, and empowers you to improve on concepts and functionalities that Javascript has to offer, whilst employing best practices. The modular Javascript section was particularly well-crafted and very interesting.
Quality Score
No CourseDuck member has rated this course yet. Taken it? Give each part a thumbs up or down.
Overall Score : 92 / 100











