5 Best Software Engineering Blogs in 2015

Software engineering is perhaps the most rapidly growing field in the world, with a seemingly continuous stream of hot new languages, revolutionary frameworks, and lifesaving tools being launched on a near-daily basis. The tech industry’s bias towards open sourcing innovations and blazing fast iteration cycles can mean that even the most forward-thinking programmers risk seeing their skills become outdated if they don’t take care to stay on the cutting-edge.

To stay ahead of the game, the vast majority of software developers turn to their favorite programming blogs, tech news aggregators, and niche coding publications. The landscape of popular software engineering blogs is highly varied, constantly evolving, and often taste-dependent, a prospect that can be difficult to navigate for new programmers and seasoned developers alike. To help you expand or refine your hold on the tech industry’s pulse, or simply just to get your programming career started off on the right foot, we’ve collected the top sites for programmers of all levels of experience to stay abreast of the best the industry has to offer today.

Here are the best software engineering blogs in 2015.

1. The Toptal Engineering Blog

A global perspective on the latest trends in software, authors on the Toptal Engineering Blog are among the very best software engineers in the world, as they must pass Toptal’s rigorous screening process before even being invited to publish on the blog. Although it is a general software blog, the quality is so high that articles here are frequently syndicated by weekly tech niche aggregators.

Posts feature high-level tutorials on cutting-edge languages and programming tricks, common mistakes for even the most seasoned developers to avoid (and work-arounds), technology announcements, plenty of code snippets, and much more. While the blog is relatively new compared to some other publications discussed here, their thought-leading articles have consistently set the standard in the field. The Toptal Engineering Blog should be the first stop on any software engineer’s list of blogs to explore.

toptal engineering blog
Toptal Engineering Blog

2. A List Apart

What originally began as a mailing list in 1997, A List Apart has grown into an enormous wealth of knowledge and insight for all things web, including posts on web development, design, best practices and much more. With hundreds of talented authors and content-styles that include long-form articles, perspectives from seasoned tech columnists, easy-to-read blog posts, this site carries essential knowledge for anyone who has ever tried to build something meaningful on the web.

A List Apart crowdsources its content from authors with an extremely wide range of expertise and publishes only the best entries, so a visit here will be sure to leave anyone interested in web with a whole host of new insights to consider.

a list apart
A List Apart

3. Coding Horror

Created by Jeff Atwood, a co-founder of Stack Overflow, Coding Horror is full of insightful, well-written, and often hilarious posts. If you’re a software developer with even a bit of experience, chances are you’ve come across Coding Horror already.

In addition to excellent insight on the latest happenings in the tech world, Atwood also focuses on the human aspect of programming and includes an outstanding page on recommended reads for programmers that explore his mantra: “computers change, but people don’t.”

coding horror
Coding Horror

4. CodeBetter

CodeBetter was created in 2005 to fill the need for a blogging community that produced highly technical content, and over the past decade, it has succeeded in doing just that. The site is primarily focused on Microsoft technologies, and posts here are filled with extensive code snippets and in-depth discussions on common programming issues that are sure to enlighten even the most experienced programmers.

Authors are typically industry-leading software developers who moonlight as bloggers, posting useful insights on best practices, great tools, and more. With a bevvy of established methodologies used by seasoned industry veterans, CodeBetter is the place to go for developers seeking technical guidance from like-minded pros.

code better
Code Better

5. Joel on Software

This extremely popular coding and tech business blog is a product of the dedication and brilliance of Joel Spolsky, the other co-founder of Stack Overflow and current CEO of Stack Exchange. While other blogs mentioned here may have a more technical focus, Joel on Software features insight on the business side of software companies, including excellent commentary on everything from conceiving of new software ideas to selling customer-ready software.

Although this site won’t be much help if you’re looking for the latest software innovations because Joel has scaled back his publishing over the last few years, no list of software engineering blogs would be complete without reference to his pioneering site.

joel on software
Joel on Software

The web is littered with dozens of software engineering blogs of all shapes and sizes, so establishing a rotation of tech news aggregators, reliable blogs, and weekly publications is an absolute must for motivated developers looking to stay on top of their fields.

From college students eager to break into the industry to old pros who simply enjoy reading about the latest and greatest frameworks and tools, there are programming blogs out there for nearly every type of reader. Subscribe to the blogs on this list today to stay up-to-date on the best software engineering blogs on the web!

Mina Fabulous follows the news, especially what is going on in the US State Department. Mina turns State Department waffle into plain English. Mina Fabulous is the pen name of Carmen Avalino, the NewsBlaze production editor. When she isn’t preparing stories for NewsBlaze writers, she writes stories, but to separate her editing and writing identities, she uses the name given by her family and friends.