Programming requires knowledge of at least one programming language – a set of syntax and rules understood by computers. There are hundreds of programming languages, each unique in its purpose and capabilities. But some languages are easier to learn than others – they are the best place to start, as they are the fastest way to learn the basics of programming.

Listed below are some of the languages considered appropriate for beginners to programming. I recommend that you only learn one language that fits your goals and then learn the others if you have the desire. Don’t be afraid to choose the wrong language. These languages share common concepts, so you can start with one and move on to another if necessary.

HTML AND CSS
Hypertext Markup Language, or HTML, is the backbone of the Internet — it’s used to create the content of Web pages. When you load a Web page, you usually see an HTML document displayed by your browser.

If you’re not sure that programming is your thing, HTML is the easiest language to learn. This is because HTML is not technically a programming language – it does not run scripts, and you cannot create functional programs in it. Nevertheless, HTML is everywhere on the Internet, so if you want to understand the Internet, you first need to understand HTML.

You may be less familiar with CSS. HTML defines what content appears on a web page, but it does not affect how that content appears. This is where Cascading Style Sheets, or CSS, comes to the rescue. The CSS language handles HTML style – it sets characteristics such as colors, size, fonts and even the layout of the entire page.

CSS is also not a programming language. It’s a set of rules applied to HTML. HTML and CSS are almost always used together, so I recommend learning both. Otherwise, web pages will look too primitive.

HTML and CSS are easy to learn mainly because they don’t require the computational logic of programming languages. Learning HTML and CSS may also seem less abstract than other languages because you can quickly see the results of your code-just create a .html file and open it in your browser. Or open an existing Web site and use the developer tool in the browser to look at the source code. This allows you to learn the two languages you use every day in one day.

But if you want your web pages to perform certain actions, you’ll need…

JavaScript
JavaScript is a programming language that turns static web pages into dynamic pages. It allows page elements to move around, respond to user actions such as clicks, and perform any operation beyond just existing on the page.

If you’re interested in web development and are already familiar with HTML and CSS, then JavaScript is the next level. Together, these three languages make up most of the web content you see. Plus, JavaScript code can be easily tested in a browser.

Python
Python is a very popular programming language for beginners because of its easy-to-use syntax and versatility. Much of Python code reads like English, which helps beginners (who understand English, of course) learn fundamental concepts like functions faster.

Python also has many code libraries – groups of ready-made functions that you can plug into your code instead of writing them yourself. You can create many different programs with Python, and many programming courses for beginners are based on learning this language.

C/C++
The C language is another popular choice for beginning to learn programming. It is more complex than Python and often requires beginners to write more code to achieve the same goals. It’s more work, but useful for understanding abstract concepts. By learning C, you will gain skills that can easily be applied to other, more concise languages.

C++ is the successor to C. C++ syntax is similar to C with the addition of objects, a powerful variable type that makes programming complex applications easier. I recommend starting with C because it has fewer concepts and every one of them is in C++.

Java
Java (not to be confused with JavaScript) is a general-purpose object-oriented programming language. Like Python, Java syntax is easy to read and understand by human programmers-often complex problems can be solved with a single command.

Java is widely used in mobile applications for Android and is another great basic language whose principles can be intuitively applied when learning other languages.