--- source_url: "https://hakia.com/bootcamps/devops/" title: "Best DevOps Bootcamps in 2026: 15 Programs Compared | Hakia" mirrored_at: 2026-08-29T01:04:13.298Z host: hakia.com cited_in_42a: true mirror_canonical: "https://index.42a.ai/hakia.com/bootcamps/devops/index" --- > **Original source:** https://hakia.com/bootcamps/devops/ On this page On this page - [DevOps Bootcamp Overview](#overview) - [15 DevOps Bootcamps Compared](#devops-bootcamps) - [Top 5 Comparison](#top-5-comparison) - [Essential DevOps Skills](#skills) - [DevOps Certifications](#certifications) - [DevOps Certifications Compared](#cert-comparison) - [Career Outcomes & Salaries](#career-outcomes) - [How to Choose a Bootcamp](#how-to-choose) - [FAQ](#faq) ## Key Takeaways - 1.DevOps engineers earn $120,000-$160,000 annually, with senior roles exceeding $180,000 at top tech companies (Glassdoor 2025, Levels.fyi). BLS projects 17% growth for software developers through 2034. - 2.DevOps has strong overlap with cloud engineering, and most bootcamps teach DevOps skills within broader software engineering or cloud computing curricula rather than as standalone programs. KodeKloud ($250/year) is the only purely DevOps-focused training platform in our analysis. - 3.DevOps is a certification-driven field: AWS Certified DevOps Engineer Professional, Azure DevOps Engineer Expert (AZ-400), and Kubernetes certifications (CKA, CKAD) carry significant salary premiums of 15-25% over non-certified peers. - 4.Most DevOps bootcamps teach containerization (Docker, Kubernetes), CI/CD pipelines (Jenkins, GitHub Actions), and Infrastructure as Code (Terraform, Ansible) within software engineering or cloud programs. Expect to supplement bootcamp training with self-study on monitoring tools (Prometheus, Grafana) and scripting (Bash, Python). $13,584 Avg Bootcamp Cost Range: $250/yr–$17,980 14 Weeks Avg Duration Self-paced to 22 weeks 17% Projected Job Growth 2024–2034 (BLS) $120K–$160K DevOps Salary Range Glassdoor / Levels.fyi 2025 ## Top 3 DevOps Bootcamps 2026 ## Best DevOps Bootcamps in 2026 The [Bureau of Labor Statistics](https://www.bls.gov/) projects 17% job growth for software developers through 2034, and DevOps engineers, who bridge development and operations, earn $120,000-$160,000 annually according to Glassdoor and Levels.fyi. DevOps is the practice of combining software development (Dev) with IT operations (Ops) to shorten deployment cycles, increase deployment frequency, and deliver reliable releases through automation, containerization, and Infrastructure as Code. Unlike traditional coding bootcamps, DevOps training focuses on the tools and practices that power modern software delivery: CI/CD pipelines (Jenkins, GitHub Actions), container orchestration (Docker, Kubernetes), cloud platforms (AWS, Azure, GCP), and Infrastructure as Code (Terraform, Ansible). Most bootcamps teach these skills within broader [software engineering](https://hakia.com/bootcamps/software-engineering/) or [cloud engineering](https://hakia.com/bootcamps/cloud-engineering/) curricula, though dedicated DevOps platforms like KodeKloud offer specialized training paths. We compared 15 DevOps bootcamps by cost, duration, curriculum depth, hands-on lab quality, and certification prep. Programs range from $250/year (KodeKloud) to $17,980 (Galvanize/Hack Reactor), with the average bootcamp costing $13,584 (Course Report). Whether you're an IT professional moving into DevOps, a developer adding infrastructure skills, or a career changer targeting cloud roles, this breakdown covers what each program actually delivers. _Disclosure: Some links on this page are affiliate links. If you enroll through our links, Hakia may earn a commission at no additional cost to you. This doesn't influence our rankings, which are based on independent research and the methodology described below._ ## 15 DevOps Bootcamps Compared Rank Program Cost Duration Format Focus Key Feature 1 KodeKloud 250 Self-paced Online DevOps-specific Only pure DevOps platform. Terraform, K8s, Ansible labs 2 Nucamp Cloud Computing 2724 22 weeks Online Cloud + DevOps Most affordable bootcamp. AWS, Docker, K8s 3 Springboard SE Career Track 16000 9 months Online SE + DevOps Job guarantee, 1-on-1 mentorship, CI/CD modules 4 Simplilearn DevOps Engineer 1449 6 months Online DevOps certifications Certification-focused. AWS, Azure, Docker prep 5 Coding Dojo 14995 14 weeks Online / In-person SE + DevOps 3 full stacks with DevOps deployment training 6 Udacity Cloud DevOps Nanodegree 1600 4 months Online Cloud DevOps Project-based. Real AWS deployments 7 BrainStation 15000 12 weeks Online / In-person SE + DevOps Industry-led instruction, DevOps modules 8 A Cloud Guru (Linux Academy) 379 Self-paced Online Cloud + DevOps DevOps learning paths, hands-on labs 9 General Assembly 14950 12 weeks Online / In-person SE + DevOps fundamentals Global campus network, career services 10 Galvanize (Hack Reactor) 17980 12 weeks Online / In-person SE + DevOps DevOps in full-stack SE curriculum 11 Tech Elevator 15950 14 weeks In-person / Online SE + deployment Deployment pipeline training, employer network 12 Le Wagon 10200 9 weeks Online / In-person SE + deployment Docker/Heroku deployment focus 13 Codecademy DevOps Path 240 Self-paced Online DevOps fundamentals Entry-level, most affordable subscription 14 Pluralsight DevOps Path 299 Self-paced Online Enterprise DevOps Enterprise-focused, skill assessments 15 CloudBees University 0 Self-paced Online CI/CD Corporate CI/CD training, Jenkins-focused ### Top 5 DevOps Programs: Side-by-Side Comparison Feature KodeKloud Nucamp [Springboard](https://www.springboard.com/landing/partner/hakia/?utm_source=hakia&utm_medium=affiliates&utm_campaign=non-ct&utm_term=paid&utm_content=devops) Simplilearn Coding Dojo Cost $250/year $2,724 $16,000 $1,449 $14,995 Duration Self-paced 22 weeks 9 months 6 months 14 weeks Format Online Online Online Online Online / In-person DevOps Depth Dedicated DevOps Cloud + DevOps SE with DevOps modules Certification prep DevOps across 3 stacks Key Tools Terraform, K8s, Ansible, Jenkins AWS, Docker, K8s CI/CD, deployment AWS, Azure, Docker Docker, deployment pipelines Cert Prep CKA, CKAD, Terraform AWS CCP None specific AWS DevOps, Azure None specific Job Guarantee No No Yes No No Best For Pure DevOps skill-building Budget-friendly cloud/DevOps Career changers with job guarantee Certification seekers Full-stack + DevOps immersive Source: Program websites, Course Report 2025 ## Essential DevOps Skills You'll Learn DevOps engineers need a broad toolkit spanning automation, cloud infrastructure, and reliability engineering. The best bootcamps cover six core skill areas that show up in nearly every DevOps job posting. **CI/CD Pipelines**. Continuous Integration and Continuous Deployment is the backbone of DevOps. You'll learn to build automated pipelines using Jenkins, GitHub Actions, GitLab CI, and CircleCI that test, build, and deploy code every time a developer pushes changes. Understanding pipeline stages (lint, test, build, deploy, monitor) and implementing blue-green and canary deployments are essential skills that separate DevOps engineers from traditional sysadmins. **Containers & Orchestration**. Docker and Kubernetes dominate modern application deployment. Bootcamps teach container image creation, multi-container applications with Docker Compose, and Kubernetes cluster management including pods, services, deployments, and ingress controllers. Podman is gaining traction as a rootless alternative. Expect to spend significant time on Kubernetes, it's the most in-demand DevOps skill according to LinkedIn job data. **Cloud Platforms**. AWS, Azure, and GCP are the three major cloud providers, and DevOps engineers need deep expertise in at least one. You'll learn compute services (EC2, ECS, Lambda), networking (VPCs, load balancers), storage (S3, EBS), and managed Kubernetes services (EKS, AKS, GKE). Most bootcamps focus on AWS, which holds approximately 31% market share according to Synergy Research. **Infrastructure as Code (IaC)**. Writing infrastructure configurations as code eliminates manual provisioning errors and enables version-controlled, reproducible environments. Terraform (cloud-agnostic) and CloudFormation (AWS-specific) are the most common IaC tools. Ansible handles configuration management for servers, while Pulumi offers IaC using general-purpose programming languages like Python and TypeScript. **Monitoring & Observability**. Production systems require continuous monitoring. You'll learn Prometheus for metrics collection, Grafana for visualization dashboards, the ELK Stack (Elasticsearch, Logstash, Kibana) for log aggregation, and Datadog or New Relic for application performance monitoring. Understanding the three pillars of observability, metrics, logs, and traces, is critical for on-call reliability. **Scripting & Automation**. Bash scripting for system administration, Python for automation and tooling, and increasingly Go for building internal DevOps tools. Writing automation scripts that replace manual processes is a daily activity for DevOps engineers. Version control with Git is foundational, you'll work with branching strategies, pull requests, and merge conflict resolution across every bootcamp. ## DevOps Certifications Worth Pursuing DevOps is a certification-driven field. Unlike web development where portfolios speak loudest, DevOps hiring managers specifically look for cloud and tooling certifications that validate infrastructure expertise. Certified DevOps professionals earn 15-25% more than non-certified peers (Global Knowledge IT Skills and Salary Report). 1. **AWS Certified DevOps Engineer Professional** ($300 exam). The benchmark for AWS-focused DevOps roles. Covers CI/CD, monitoring, logging, security controls, and incident response on AWS. Requires hands-on experience with AWS services. Average salary premium: $15,000-$20,000 above non-certified peers. 2. **Azure DevOps Engineer Expert (AZ-400)** ($165 exam). Microsoft's top DevOps certification covering Azure Pipelines, repos, artifacts, and test plans. Prerequisite: AZ-104 or AZ-204. Increasingly valuable as enterprises adopt Azure. Most affordable exam among top-tier certifications. 3. **Certified Kubernetes Administrator (CKA)** ($395 exam). Performance-based exam testing real Kubernetes cluster operations. Covers installation, networking, storage, security, and troubleshooting. The CKA is the most requested Kubernetes certification in job postings. 4. **Certified Kubernetes Application Developer (CKAD)** ($395 exam). Focuses on designing, building, and deploying cloud-native applications on Kubernetes. Complementary to CKA for DevOps engineers who also write application code. 5. **HashiCorp Terraform Associate** ($70.50 exam). Validates Infrastructure as Code skills using Terraform. Covers HCL syntax, state management, modules, and cloud provider integration. The most affordable certification on this list and an excellent entry point. Recommended progression: start with the HashiCorp Terraform Associate ($70.50) to establish IaC credentials, then pursue CKA ($395) for Kubernetes validation. Add AWS DevOps Engineer Professional ($300) or AZ-400 ($165) based on your employer's cloud platform. Budget $800-$1,500 for certification costs in your first year. ### DevOps Certifications Compared Feature AWS DevOps Pro Azure AZ-400 CKA CKAD Terraform Associate Provider Amazon Web Services Microsoft CNCF / Linux Foundation CNCF / Linux Foundation HashiCorp Exam Cost $300 $165 $395 $395 $70.50 Difficulty Advanced Advanced Intermediate-Advanced Intermediate Entry-Intermediate Format Multiple choice Multiple choice Performance-based (live cluster) Performance-based (live cluster) Multiple choice Salary Impact +$15K-$20K +$12K-$18K +$15K-$22K +$10K-$15K +$8K-$12K Source: Global Knowledge IT Skills and Salary Report 2024, certification vendor websites $95,000 Starting Salary $130,000 Mid-Career +17% Job Growth 136,000 Annual Openings Median DevOps Engineer Salary $130,000 DevOps Engineers earn a median of $130,000, 15% above the software developer median of $113,000 (Glassdoor 2025, BLS 2024). The premium comes from specialized infrastructure and automation skills. Senior DevOps engineers at FAANG companies hit $200,000-$300,000+ in total compensation. Source: Glassdoor 2025, BLS OEWS May 2024 ## How to Choose a DevOps Bootcamp Your choice depends on your current skill level, budget, and career goals. Most DevOps training lives inside broader software engineering or cloud curricula rather than standing alone. Here's how to narrow it down: 1. **Assess your starting point.** If you're already a developer, focus on infrastructure-specific training like KodeKloud ($250/year) or Udacity Cloud DevOps ($1,600). If you're a career changer with no coding experience, choose a full software engineering bootcamp like [Springboard](https://www.springboard.com/landing/partner/hakia/?utm_source=hakia&utm_medium=affiliates&utm_campaign=non-ct&utm_term=paid&utm_content=devops) or Coding Dojo that teaches DevOps within a broader programming context. 2. **Prioritize hands-on labs over lectures.** DevOps is a hands-on discipline, you need to build real CI/CD pipelines, deploy to actual cloud environments, and troubleshoot live Kubernetes clusters. Programs with interactive lab environments (KodeKloud, A Cloud Guru) are more effective than video-only courses. 3. **Check certification alignment.** If your target employer values specific certifications (AWS DevOps Pro, CKA, AZ-400), choose a program that includes dedicated certification preparation. Simplilearn ($1,449) and KodeKloud ($250/year) are certification-focused. 4. **Evaluate total cost of ownership.** Factor in certification exam fees ($70-$395 each), cloud platform costs for personal practice (budget $50-$100/month for AWS), and opportunity cost of lost income during full-time programs. A $250/year subscription plus $800 in cert exams may deliver better ROI than a $15,000 bootcamp. 5. **Consider job guarantees carefully.** Springboard's job guarantee is valuable insurance, if you don't land a qualifying role after completing all requirements, you may be eligible for a full tuition refund. But understand the terms: most guarantees require applying to a minimum number of jobs and participating in career coaching. 6. **Look for employer partnerships.** Programs like Tech Elevator and General Assembly have established employer hiring networks. Ask bootcamps for specific employer names and how many graduates those employers have hired in the last 12 months. For most professionals, the best path combines a structured bootcamp for foundational skills with self-directed certification study. Start with a program that covers containerization and CI/CD, earn your first certification within 3 months of completing the bootcamp, and build a public portfolio of infrastructure projects on GitHub. ## Data Sources [Bureau of Labor Statistics](https://www.bls.gov/ooh/computer-and-information-technology/software-developers.htm) Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) May 2024, median salaries, employment counts, and projected growth for Software Developers (SOC 15-1252), Software QA Analysts (SOC 15-1253), and Network/Systems Administrators (SOC 15-1244). [Glassdoor](https://www.glassdoor.com/Salaries/devops-engineer-salary-SRCH_KO0,15.htm) 2025 salary data for DevOps Engineer, Site Reliability Engineer, and Platform Engineer roles across the United States. Median, 25th, and 75th percentile compensation figures. [Course Report](https://www.coursereport.com/reports/coding-bootcamp-market-size-research) 2025 bootcamp market report, average costs, program durations, student demographics, and outcomes data across coding and DevOps bootcamps. [Program Websites](https://kodekloud.com/) Direct pricing, curriculum, and program details verified from KodeKloud, Nucamp, Springboard, Simplilearn, Coding Dojo, Udacity, BrainStation, A Cloud Guru, General Assembly, Galvanize, Tech Elevator, Le Wagon, Codecademy, Pluralsight, and CloudBees University. ## Explore More DevOps & Cloud Resources ## DevOps Bootcamp FAQs How much does a DevOps bootcamp cost? DevOps bootcamp costs range from $240/year (Codecademy) to $17,980 (Galvanize/Hack Reactor), with the average full bootcamp costing $13,584 (Course Report 2025). Dedicated DevOps training platforms like KodeKloud ($250/year) and A Cloud Guru ($379/year) offer significantly lower costs than immersive bootcamps. Structured programs like Nucamp ($2,724) and Simplilearn ($1,449) offer a middle ground. Factor in certification exam costs ($70-$395 each) when comparing total investment. Are DevOps bootcamps worth it? For professionals with some technical background, yes. DevOps engineers earn $120,000-$160,000 annually (Glassdoor 2025), and the BLS projects 17% job growth for software developers through 2034. Even a $16,000 bootcamp investment pays back within 2-3 months at that salary range. However, DevOps requires strong fundamentals in Linux, networking, and at least one programming language, complete beginners may need prerequisite training before a DevOps-focused program delivers value. Can I become a DevOps engineer without a degree? Yes. DevOps is one of the most certification-friendly tech fields. Employers prioritize demonstrable skills with Docker, Kubernetes, Terraform, and CI/CD tools over formal degrees. Building a portfolio of infrastructure projects on GitHub, earning certifications (AWS DevOps Pro, CKA, Terraform Associate), and contributing to open-source DevOps tools can substitute for a degree. Many DevOps engineers transition from system administration, IT support, or software development roles without a CS degree. What certifications should I get after a DevOps bootcamp? Start with the HashiCorp Terraform Associate ($70.50), it's affordable and validates the IaC skills every DevOps role requires. Next, pursue the CKA ($395) to certify your Kubernetes expertise. Then add a cloud-specific certification: AWS Certified DevOps Engineer Professional ($300) if your target employer uses AWS, or Azure DevOps Engineer Expert AZ-400 ($165) for Microsoft shops. Budget $800-$1,500 for certification costs in your first year. How long does it take to become a DevOps engineer? For someone with existing development or IT experience, 3-6 months of focused DevOps training plus certification study is sufficient to land an entry-level DevOps role. Career changers with no technical background should expect 9-12 months: first learning programming fundamentals and Linux, then specializing in DevOps tools and practices. Self-paced platforms like KodeKloud allow you to learn alongside your current job. What's the difference between DevOps and cloud engineering? DevOps focuses on software delivery automation. CI/CD pipelines, deployment strategies, and the cultural practices that enable rapid, reliable releases. Cloud engineering focuses on designing and managing cloud infrastructure, networking, compute, storage, and security on AWS, Azure, or GCP. In practice, there's significant overlap: DevOps engineers need cloud skills, and cloud engineers need automation skills. Many bootcamps teach both disciplines together. Do I need to know coding for DevOps? Yes, but you don't need to be a full-stack developer. DevOps engineers need proficiency in at least one scripting language (Bash and Python are the most common), basic knowledge of a compiled language (Go is increasingly popular in the DevOps ecosystem), and the ability to read and modify application code for debugging. You'll also write extensive YAML for Kubernetes manifests, Terraform HCL for infrastructure, and Jenkinsfiles or GitHub Actions workflows for CI/CD pipelines. What's the salary for a DevOps engineer? DevOps engineers earn $120,000-$160,000 annually at the median, according to Glassdoor and Levels.fyi 2025 data. Entry-level roles start around $90,000-$110,000, while senior DevOps engineers earn $150,000-$190,000. At FAANG companies (Meta, Amazon, Apple, Netflix, Google), total compensation for senior DevOps/SRE roles can reach $200,000-$350,000 including stock grants. The BLS reports a $146,869 median for software developers broadly, and DevOps specialists earn a 15-20% premium above general developers.