boxer with AlgoExpert vs LeetCode vs HackerRank

Is LeetCode Worth It? [AlgoExpert vs LeetCode vs HackerRank]

AlgoExpert vs LeetCode was hard enough. But adding HackerRank into the mix? Now we’ve got a lot on our hands.

While they all are loaded with coding problems and unique features, it’s hard to know which is the best for:

๐ŸŸฃ brushing up on your coding skills

๐ŸŸฃ coding as a hobby

๐ŸŸฃ acing a FAANG interview

And we’re going to help you figure that out in today’s post.

We’re comparing AlgoExpert vs LeetCode vs HackerRank based on the following criteria:

  • Programming Languages
  • Coding Problems
  • Code Editor Features
  • Contests
  • Leaderboard
  • Articles
  • Community
  • Certificate
  • Cost

This post contains affiliate links. I may receive compensation if you buy something. Read my disclosure for more details.

๐ŸฅŠ๐Ÿ’ฅ AlgoExpert

Video-Basedโœ…
Programming
Languages
9
Coding
Problems
160+
Code EditorAdvanced
ContestsRare
LeaderboardโŒ
ArticlesโŒ
CommunityโŒ
Certificateโœ…
Cost$99

AlgoExpert was created by Clรฉment Mihailescu, an ex-Google and Facebook engineer. And he created the platform to help aspiring FAANG developers land their dream job.

The AlgoExpert platform currently offers three courses:

๐ŸŸง AlgoExpert – Ace the Coding Interview

๐ŸŸง SystemsExpert – Ace the Systems Design Interview

๐ŸŸง MLExpert – Ace the Machine Learning Interview

But today, we’re just focusing on the AlgoExpert course.

Unlike LeetCode and HackerRank, AlgoExpert relies heavily on video-based solutions and explanations.

And with over 100 hours of video, AlgoExpert is ideal for visual learners.

Plus with its immersive code editor, the student environment is highly customizable.

While the platform has limited features, what it does offer smashes the competition.

โญ PROGRAMMING LANGUAGES

AlgoExpert currently supports 9 programming languages:

JavaScriptPythonSwiftC++Kotlin
TypeScriptJavaC#Go

However, all video solutions are presented in Python because it’s an easier language to read.

โญ CODING PROBLEMS

AlgoExpert has 160+ hand-picked programming questions. And these questions fall into categories including:

Dynamic ProgrammingHeapsRecursion
StringsLinked ListsFamous Algorithms
ArraysSortingGraphs
Binary Search TreesTriesBinary Trees
SearchingStacks

The problems range from Easy, Medium, Hard, Very Hard and Extremely Hard.

sample AlgoExpert problems list of green/easy, blue/medium, red/hard, purple/very hard but missing black/extremely hard
Just some problems from AlgoExpert

โญ CODE EDITOR FEATURES

The AlgoExpert coding environment crushes the LeetCode and HackerRack editors.

4-pane integrated workstation environment in AlgoExpert
AlgoExpert code editor

This interactive code editor has an adjustable 4-pane setup where you choose the programming language, font size, editor key maps, syntax highlighting, and much more.

Within the first pane you can access the prompt, scratchpad, solutions and video explanations. And the other 3 panes display your solutions, tests and output.

CONTESTS

โœ… So far, AlgoExpert has only had one contest. But there may be more in the future.

LEADERBOARD

โŒ AlgoExpert does not have a leaderboard.

ARTICLES

โŒ Articles are not included in AlgoExpert.

COMMUNITY

โŒ There is no community board on AlgoExpert, but there are plenty of other places to meet people and talk about the platform.

CERTIFICATE

โœ… Upon completion you’ll get a Certificate for AlgoExpert.

โญ MISCELLANEOUS

AlgoExpert has a Data Structures Crash Course, mock coding interviews and a section of Interview Tips.

DATA STRUCTURES CRASH COURSE

This crash course covers fundamental data structures concepts:

๐ŸŸฃ Memory

๐ŸŸฃ Complexity analysis

๐ŸŸฃ Big O notation

๐ŸŸฃ Linked Lists

๐ŸŸฃ Binary Trees

And much more.

Mock Coding Interviews

This feature lets you practice your coding interview skills by doing a mock interview with another person. You can either pair up with a friend or another user on the AlgoExpert platform.

INTERVIEW TIPS

Coding interviews are so much more than algorithms and data structures.

As a result, these coding interview tips cover things like coding skills, communication and culture fit.

Some video interview tips on AlgoExpert

CODING INTERVIEW ASSESSMENTS

4 practice assessments mimic a day of coding interviews. So you:

  • spend 4 hours answering 2 questions
  • take a 1-hour break
  • spend 4 hours answering 2 questions

This is one of the more challenging portions of AlgoExpert. So they recommend completing the AlgoExpert questions first.

BEHAVIORAL INTERVIEW PREP

Here’s a set of 15 videos that are separated into two parts:

  • 3 videos give advice for behavioral interviews
  • 12 videos provide theoretical answers to behavioral interview questions

๐Ÿ’ฐ COST

You can get AlgoExpert for $99 per year. Save 10% instantly – just use the code realtoughcandy at checkout.

Sign up for AlgoExpert.

*Coupon is valid for AlgoExpert, SystemsExpert or the 2-course bundle.


๐ŸฅŠ๐Ÿ’ฅ LeetCode

Randomly popping on a platform is probably not the best battle plan. You’ll need to ask yourself some questions:

Video-BasedโŒ
Programming
Languages
15
Coding
Problems
2200+
Code Editor
Features
Standard
ContestsWeekly
Leaderboardโœ…
Articlesโœ…
Communityโœ…
CertificateโŒ
CostFree – $35/month

Will it help you become a better developer?

And what about help you ace that coding interview?

Plus, how does the cost compare?

While LeetCode does have a free tier, the benefits really kick in with the Premium subscription.

And if you want to play with the big boys like AlgoExpert, you’ll want to go with the Premium tier.

Let’s take a quick look:

LeetCode Premium

With LeetCode Premium you’ll get help from algorithm and data structure experts. Rather than the peanut gallery you’ll find on the free tier.

You’ll also get:

๐ŸŸฃ Interview simulations โ€“ you choose the company and they provide a sample question

Create unlimited playgrounds with LeetCode Premium

๐ŸŸฃ Sort questions โ€“ see which questions are more frequently asked at interviews

๐ŸŸฃ Unlimited Playgrounds โ€“ create unlimited playgrounds

๐ŸŸฃ Premium Articles – additional articles available

๐ŸŸฃ Additional Questions – access to 100 more questions

Plus much more.

Now let’s check out the broader specs of LeetCode.

โญ PROGRAMMING LANGUAGES

There are currently 16 programming languages supported on LeetCode:

C++JavaPythonPHP
Python3CC#Scala
JavaScriptTypeScriptRubyKotlin
SwiftGoBashRust

โญ CODING PROBLEMS

There are over 1400 problems on LeetCode. They range in difficulty from Easy to Medium to Hard.

And AlgoExpert has 160+. So with AlgoExpert vs LeetCode, LeetCode wins for more problems. But, many are user submitted. So the quality is not guaranteed.

And they are separated into 4 categories:

๐ŸŸฃ Algorithms

๐ŸŸฃ Database

๐ŸŸฃ Shell

๐ŸŸฃ Concurrency

Some problems on LeetCode

โญ CODING PROBLEM COLLECTIONS

LeetCode contains multiple coding problem collections separated into 4 categories:

Featured – Featured topics include Coding Challenges, Top Interview Questions, Machine Learning and more.

Interview – These challenges are ideal for preparing for your coding interview.

Top Interview Questions course layout on LeetCode

Learn – This set of problems focuses on learning programming languages and concepts.

Challenges – 30 Day LeetCode Challenge, May LeetCode Challenge, June LeetCode Challenge and more.

Note: Some challenges are not up to date.

โญ CODE EDITOR FEATURES

The LeetCode code editor is pretty standard with a white background and simple syntax.

So when comparing AlgoExpert vs LeetCode, AlgoExpert is the clear winner.

WEEKLY CONTESTS

โœ… Winning weekly contests gives you LeetCoin (on-platform currency) which you can apply to Premium membership or branded merch.

LEADERBOARD

โœ… Like a little friendly competition? LeetCode’s Leaderboard lets you compete and rank with other LeetCode users.

ARTICLES

โœ… Topics cover everything from real-world to theoretical.

COMMUNITY

โœ… LeetCode has a community message board to talk about all things code.

CERTIFICATE

โŒ Currently, there is no Certificate of Completion for LeetCode challenges.

โญ MISCELLANEOUS

If you’re like me, you like the little things that make a platform unique. And LeetCode is no exception.

MOCK INTERVIEW QUESTION COLLECTIONS

You can practice mock interviews with real-world questions used at companies like Facebook and Google.

๐Ÿ’ฐ COST

Whereas there is a free tier, you can get LeetCode Premium for about $35 per month. Or you can get an annual subscription for about $159. Check out LeetCode here.


๐ŸฅŠ๐Ÿ’ฅ HackerRank

Video-BasedโŒ
Programming Languages45
Coding Problems?
Code Editor FeaturesMid-level
ContestsRegularly
Leaderboardโœ…
Articlesโœ…
CommunityโŒ
Certificateโœ…
CostFree

HackerRank is used by both coders and employers.

But today, we’re just looking at the programmer side of the platform.

HackerRank is completely free for programmers.

Plus some video blogs are presented by Gayle Laakmann McDowell, author of Cracking the Coding Interview.

โญ Programming Languages

You can solve problems on HackerRank using a massive 45+ programming languages.

You read that right.

And here are just a few:

Clojure, C++, C#, Erlang, Go, Haskill, Java 8, JavaScript, Kotlin, LOLCODE, Lua, Objective-C, Perl, PHP, Pypy 3, Python 3, Ruby, Scala, Swift

โญ CODING PROBLEMS

Many of the problems on HackerRank are user-submitted.

And unfortunately we don’t have an accurate count on the number of problems. We know it’s more than 100, but we can’t find the number on HackerRank.

So with problem count, AlgoExpert vs LeetCode are both wins over HackerRank.

But with that said, some skills you can practice are:

๐ŸŸฃ Algorithms

๐ŸŸฃData Structures

๐ŸŸฃMathematics

๐ŸŸฃProgramming Languages

๐ŸŸฃ Artificial Intelligence

๐ŸŸฃ Databases

And beyond.

Sample problem on HackerRank

โญ CODE EDITOR FEATURES

While the code editor is pretty standard, HackerRank just introduced their dark mode theme. Which is always a plus in my book.

HackerRank code editor

โญ CONTESTS

Contest on HackerRank

HackerRank is the clear winner in an AlgoExpert vs LeetCode vs HackerRank standoff when it comes to contests.

Their contests are frequent and cover everything from artificial intelligence to algorithms, data structures to mathematics, and databases to distributed systems.

Plus, a lot of them give out cash prizes.

LEADERBOARD

โœ… HackerRank lets you compete with other members for a chance to land on the leaderboard.

ARTICLES

โœ… There are extensive articles on HackerRank’s blog.

COMMUNITY

โŒ There is not a community hub on HackerRank.

CERTIFICATE

โœ… You can get certificate of completion with the HackerRank.

They have certificates for Problem Solving, React, JavaScript, Python and Java.

โญ MISCELLANEOUS

INTERVIEW PREPARATION KIT

HackerRank’s new Interview Preparation Kit covers 15 topics to prepare you for your coding interview:

Warm-Up ChallengesArraysTips & Guidelines
Dictionaries & HashmapsSortingString Manipulation
Greedy AlgorithmsSearchDynamic Programming
Stacks & QueuesGraphsLinked Lists
Recursion & BacktrackingTreesMiscellaneous

TUTORIALS

If tutorials are your thing, HackerRank has you covered. They currently offer 4:

  • Interview Preparation Kit – curated challenges and tips based on insight from 1000+ companies to help you prepare
  • Learn to Code in 30 Days – learn if-else statements, recursion, data structures, OOP and more
  • 10 Days of Statistics – learn probability, distribution, regression and more
  • 10 Days of JavaScript – learn and improve Javascript fundamentals

JOB BOARD

HackerRank has a job board where you can search by role and location. And jobs are listed from around the world by major companies.

In the AlgoExpert vs LeetCode vs HackerRank showdown, HackerRank wins this category.

๐Ÿ’ฐ COST

HackerRank is completely free for developers. Check out HackerRank here.

AlgoExpert vs LeetCode vs HackerRank: Conclusion

So in the big faceoff of AlgoExpert vs LeetCode vs HackerRank, who comes out on top?

It all depends on what you need:

If you’re ready to ace the FAANG coding interview, AlgoExpert is just right. With 150+ questions curated by an ex-Google and ex-Facebook engineer, it’s highly likely you’ll come across some of these questions at a FAANG interview.

If you want to brush up on your coding skills we recommend HackerRank. With all the available options, it’s difficult to stay focused on one path. HackerRank is ideal for practicing your skills and experimenting with new concepts.

If coding is a big time hobby of yours, LeetCode may be the platform for you. And with over 1400 coding questions, it can become an endless source of challenging yourself with coding problems.


Readers of AlgoExpert vs LeetCode vs HackerRank are also reading:


  1. AlgoExpert vs LeetCode vs HackerRank: which is the best?

    If you’re ready to ace the FAANG coding interview, AlgoExpert is just right. With 150+ questions curated by an ex-Google and ex-Facebook engineer, it’s highly likely you’ll come across some of these questions at a FAANG interview. If you want to brush up on your coding skills we recommend HackerRank. With all the available options, it’s difficult to stay focused on one path. HackerRank is ideal for practicing your skills and experimenting with new concepts. If coding is a big time hobby of yours, LeetCode may be the platform for you. And with over 1400 coding questions, it can become an endless source of challenging yourself with coding problems.

  2. How do I know if AlgoExpert, LeetCode or HackerRank are right for me?

    When deciding if a coding platform is right for you, there’s a lot to consider. Whether you want to brush up on your coding skills, code as a hobby, or interview at a FAANG company, you’ll want to consider: 1. what programming languages they offer 2. the code editor features 3. what available resources they offer 4. if there’s a community 5. how much the platform will cost.