3 hours/week
Build console programs while learning the type system.
Programming language guide
Learn C#
Learn C# through a practical sequence of fundamentals, projects, debugging, and career-ready skills.
Best for
- ASP.NET Core backend and web development
- Enterprise .NET applications
- Desktop, cloud, and game-development foundations
Prerequisites
- Basic programming concepts are useful
- Install a current .NET SDK
- Learn how projects, solutions, and NuGet packages work
Learning sequence
Recommended Learning Order
- 1
Stage 1
Types, variables, control flow, methods, and collections
- 2
Stage 2
Classes, interfaces, records, generics, and exceptions
- 3
Stage 3
LINQ, async/await, files, and dependency management
- 4
Stage 4
Testing, dependency injection, configuration, and data access
- 5
Stage 5
ASP.NET Core web APIs and production practices
Study Timeline
6 hours/week
Add LINQ, async code, testing, and data access.
10 hours/week
Build and deploy an ASP.NET Core API.
Project Progression
Beginner: console expense tracker
Intermediate: async data-processing application with tests
Portfolio: ASP.NET Core API with validation, EF Core-style persistence, and authorization
Common Mistakes
- Blocking asynchronous code instead of awaiting it
- Overusing inheritance instead of interfaces and composition
- Ignoring nullable reference type warnings
- Learning ASP.NET Core middleware without understanding dependency injection and async C#
Job-Ready Skills
- C# type system and OOP
- LINQ
- async/await
- Testing
- .NET tooling
- ASP.NET Core and SQL
Frequently Asked Questions
Should I learn C# before ASP.NET Core?
Yes. Learn methods, classes, interfaces, generics, LINQ, async/await, and exceptions first.
What .NET tooling should I know?
Know the dotnet CLI for creating projects, restoring packages, building, testing, and running applications, even if you also use an IDE.