We have compiled a list of the 12 best online R programming courses. R is a computer language and programming environment for graphical applications and statistical computations.
R is exclusively used by data science professionals as it has many statistical techniques to make inferences from large data.
Completing an R certifications is an important step towards moving into a career in data sciences.
It is one of the best (and user-friendly) tools to analyze big data for better solutions. R is also used for data visualization to show results accurately, which is a part of data understanding.
It was developed in the 1990s by Robert Gentlemen and Ross Ihaka and the name originated from the initials of both the creators.
R programming is very similar to the S programming language as their codes are similar and can be executed without any alterations. R programming is an open-source programming language under GNU General Public License and is supported by many operating systems like Windows, Linux and MacOS.
The R programming language is extensible with various library packages to achieve statistical inference from the data. R has a command-line interface and graphical user interface, such as RStudio which is an integrated development environment (IDE).
It helps data miners to retrieve data from the source, which can be cleaned, filtered and extracted with relational database queries to manipulate the data using SQL for better analysis. Unlike Python, R has better data visualization modelling.
Why Learn R Programming?
R is a unique programming language with many features and libraries supporting data scientist professionals and data miners, making it faster than other statistical tools.
It is a vector language that can handle many calculations at the same time making the analysis easier. It is a language used by statisticians where models on regression, classification techniques, clustering, time series and other statistical tests can be built over.
As data science is becoming more and more important for businesses, programmers who have an R certification are highly sought-after in fields like financial analytics, HR analytics, medical diagnosis or operations analytics. Trending text or social media analytics can also be done with this programming code.
Data visualizations like pie charts, bar graphs and data interface with servers can be done which helps the data scientist with better modeling.
More than any other programming language, it is user-friendly providing an easy way of coding to speak with the data you handle. R is considered the language for data scientists and statisticians to work on complex data and arrive at better business decisions.
Best R Programming Certifications and Courses
1. Learning R – Linkedin Learning
This course is designed and handled by Barton Poulson who is an experienced professor, designer and data analytics expert and also the founder of datalab.cc and data do-googler. This is a certification course for those who want to start their career in R programming at the beginner level.
Barton Poulson begins this course by introducing you to the basics of R. His explanations are quite simple, clear and concise.
You will learn the initial stages of data science and analytics including data understanding and data exploration. This helps the user to have an experience on handling the data right, from how to install R Studio with explanations on the importance of this language and other features that it supports.
The other modules include how to analyze data and indicating the difference on how to analyze categorical and continuous variables.
As the module progresses, the users are trained on how to explore data by plotting charts and graphs. Building the histogram with the distribution of bins, and on how to calculate frequency with descriptive statistics.
The course also involves the relationship among the variables that can be analyzed with the use of scatter plots. The linearity or non-linearity of the model and treating the outliers that can be inferred by the graphs and charts are involved in this beginner level course.
This is a beginner level course that has around 83,919 participants. In this course, around 6 modules are presented with excellent assignments and quizzes spanning over a time period of 2 hours and 25 minutes. It includes one project file and an R certification at the end of the course. It can be accessed using your phone or tablet as well.
Who is this course for?
This course is for you if you are a beginner R programmer with no statistical knowledge. It’s an introductory course to provide you with ideas on how to use R Studio for statistical inferences. This will be a great start to kick off your career in data analytics, helping you learn how to read and understand data before exploring or visualizing it.
Basics of statistics or knowledge on basic statistics would be an added advantage to begin this course with. No prior data science knowledge or any programming language is required.
Highlights of the course
- R Certification on course completion
- Involves quizzes to check your understanding
2. Mastering Software Development in R Specialization
This course is provided by the John Hopkins University and provides a beginner level course on data science tools in R software. The course has 5 modules which take approximately 3 months to complete with 7 hours/week to spend on.
It provides a hands-on project with a flexible time schedule that can be taken according to your convenience. Once each course is completed, you will need to complete the project in order to proceed.
This course exposes you to the R programming environment and helps you learn and practice the basic and few intermediate concepts of data manipulation. You will also learn about functional programming and some object-oriented programming concepts.
The instructor also shows you how to build an R package. This course covers packages like vignettes, testing, building, and use of CRAN. You will learn to create new visualization building blocks and use the ggplot2 framework.
Finally, you have a capstone project that helps in developing your skills by implementing the concepts you learned. In this course, assignments and quizzes at the end of each module strengthens your skills. The course helps you to explore R programming at the next level.
Who is this course for?
This course is right for you if you are starting from scratch with R. In this specialization the instructors take you from a beginner level and gradually moves to more advanced and complex concepts of data science.
Those who are interested in a career change or a novice who has no prior experience in programming can benefit from this course.
Highlights of the course
- Well-structured course with challenging assignments and quizzes.
- You will learn to build your own Visualization blocks and R packages.
3. R Programming A-Z™: R For Data Science With Real Exercises
One of the best sellers in Udemy by Kirill Eremenko. He is a Data Science management consultant with over five years of experience. He designed this course as a step-by-step process so anyone can learn R programming through actual experience. He is an excellent tutor who is passionate about Data Science.
In this course, he combines real-life experiences with Physics and Mathematics to deliver professional step-by-step coaching in the space of Data Science. This course covers the basic key concepts such as vectors, matrices and data frames. Besides that, Kirill explains on advanced visualization.
This course contains the highest number of enrollments which is around 95,026 students. It has a rating of 4.6 out of 5 and is comprised of 80 lectures with a time period of 10 hours and 39 minutes. At the end of this course, you will learn to effectively code in R and have lots of practice in managing data.
Who is this course for?
This course is for complete beginners who want to start programming in R. if you are interested in R programming and have no prior experience this course is the right choice for you.
Highlights of the course
- Solutions are provided to the assignments in the last module.
- You will learn to solve real-life analytical challenges.
4. Learn R – Code Academy
Codecademy offers online interactive courses to improve your skills and is one of the leading platforms in this regard. In this course, you will explore the R programming language. It can be completed in a time period of 20 hours.
The course covers the basic fundamentals in R programming. You will learn essentials of R programming which covers all the key concepts like data frames, data cleaning and data visualization. Besides that, you will also learn the basics of aggregate functions and joining tables in R with dplyr.
You will gain a better understanding of R programming and calculate data accordingly. You will also learn to handle messy data for analysis. The course contains 10 modules with portfolio projects and assignments to familiarize you with the concepts.
Who is this course for?
Despite being extremely powerful, this course is the best for a beginner to pick up and follow through easily. If you are a beginner and ready to learn R from scratch with no prior experience, this course is ideally suited for you and provides hands-on projects with clear explanations.
Highlights of the course
- No prerequisites
- master the R programming concepts and build your own portfolio projects
5. Data Science: R Basics – Edx.org
Another course by one of the top institutions in the world. This course is offered by Harvard University. Rafael Irizarry, Professor of Biostatistics at the Harvard University structured this course content. He has 15+ years of experience in data science and focuses on the analysis of genomics data.
In this course, Rafael explains the basics of R programming and its syntax. He also covers R’s functions, data types, and vectors. You will also learn about an advanced concept called sorting.
This course also provides in-depth explanations on concepts like probability, inference, regression, and machine learning. File organization with UNIX/Linux, version control with git and GitHub, and reproducible document preparation with RStudio are some of the concepts covered in the course.
Through this course, you will learn to handle data and be confident with the R programming concept. This course can be completed within 8 weeks by spending approximately 1 to 2 hours per week. One of the fun things in this course is that you will use real-world datasets about crime in the United States to enhance your R skills.
Who is this course for?
Are you looking for a career in this on-demand data science? If yes, then you are in the right place in order to hone your basics. Strengthening your foundation in R basics is vital and this course ensures that you understand this.
Highlights of the course
- you will learn to wrangle, analyze and visualize data
- You will be able to face real-world data analysis challenges
- No prerequisites
6. R Programming Fundamentals
Abhishek Kumar is a Data Scientist consultant and has a Master’s in Information and Data Science. He is enthusiastic about Machine Learning and deep learning. This is a beginner level course on Pluralsight and has 7 hours of course content.
In this beginner-friendly course, Abhishek begins with an introduction to R programming. He teaches about variables, operators and data structures. You will also have a clear understanding of how to handle data which will help you in data analysing.
You will learn about a few higher-dimensional data structures, which will be used in your various data analysis projects. The instructor also explains various statistical indicators and how to use them in the framework.
By the end of this course, you will become an efficient R programmer and learn to handle data and to extract key information using various R functions. This course is strongly recommended and has 10 modules with clear explanations and examples.
Who is this course for?
This course is for you if you want to become a productive R programmer and want to learn the fundamentals of R programming as it’s applied to data science. It provides hands-on practice exercises and demos to sharpen your R programming skills.
Highlights of the course
- Explore different R packages and manage them efficiently
- Easy to understand with relevant examples
7. Data Science and Machine Learning Bootcamp with R
One of the best-rated courses taught by Jose Portilla, one of the top instructors at Udemy. Around 41,639 students have enrolled for this course. Jose is a great instructor. He explains each concept easily in simple terms and in case you still don’t understand he is easily accessible.
In this course, you will learn R programming from basics to its advanced features. Jose also shows the workings of R to solve complex tasks. You will learn to manipulate data and use R to handle CSV, Excel, SQL files and web scraping.
The contents of this course are concise and very informative. It will help you to have a solid foundation of R programming, where each concept is well explained with relevant examples. The course consists of 127 lectures spanning over a time period of 17 hours and 45 minutes. By the end of this course, you will be skilled in R programming, ggplot, and machine learning, which is extremely beneficial in your career development.
Who is this course for?
If you are an absolute beginner and looking to code in R programming and move your way to advanced concepts like Machine Learning. This course is perfect for you to begin your learning. Still, anyone who is interested in learning R and Machine Learning, this course is an ideal choice for you if you plan to move into data science.
Highlights of the course
- Prior experience of R programming is not required
- Tons of exercises and projects
- You will learn to create exemplary data visualizations
- Detailed code notebooks for every lecture
8. Introduction to R for Data Science
EdX offers interactive online courses by top institutions and industries. This course is offered by experts from Microsoft, Filip Schouwenaars and Jonathan Sanito.
In this course, you will be introduced to R language fundamentals and its basic syntax. You will discover basic data types and their working. The instructor also explains about vectors, matrices and factors.
You will also learn about data frames and have a deep understanding of what R is and the workings of R. This course also covers how to handle the lists concepts. By the end of this course, you will be familiar with performing data analysis and have knowledge of R data structures.
The instructors make sure you understand each basic computation and be able to analyse Star Wars box office figures for easy understanding. It contains 7 sections which can be completed within 4 weeks.
Who is this course for?
Are you a beginner who wants to kick start your career in Data Science? If yes, this course is the right choice to make yourself comfortable with the basics of R.
This course will solidify your basics which will help you move to more complex concepts in R programming. The course doesn’t require any prerequisites, but it is recommended that you are familiar with basic maths.
Highlights of the course
- Ideal for those entering the field of data science
- Design your own visualizations using R
- Self paced course taught by experts
- Explore lots of R’s packages
- No prior programming experience is needed
9. R Statistics Essential Training
Another highly recommended course by Barton Poulson who is a data analyst expert and an author on LinkedIn learning. He has a strong passion for data analysis and data visualization. This course is well designed and structured for a beginner level programmer.
In this course, Baston shows how to use R to model statistical relationships using graphs, calculations, tests, and other analysis tools. He begins with the installation procedure for R and explains about the packages in R programming. You will also learn to create bar and pie charts for categorical variables. Baston also shows how to calculate frequencies and descriptives.
Apart from that, this course also covers correlations, regressions, bi-variate associations, and statistics for three or more variables. By the end of this course, you will have a fair knowledge of R programming and have a good understanding of the essentials of R.
79,780 students have enrolled for this course which consists of 9 modules and spans over a time period of 5 hours and 59 minutes. This course contains 1 project file and 6 practice quizzes at the end of each module.
Who is this course for?
Ideal course for beginners who want to strengthen their basic knowledge in R and learn essential concepts in R like modifying data. If you are a beginner, this is the right course for you to get started in R programming.
Highlights of the course
- Practice quizzes
- Challenging exercises with step by step solutions
10. Statistics with R Specialization
Coursera is one of the best online platforms for educational courses. This specialization is offered by Duke University. The instructors are from the Department of Statistical Science and it starts with the fundamentals of R programming.
In this course, the instructors provide a step by step guide on installing and using R. The course provides a brief intro of using Python to clean and analyze data. You will gain necessary knowledge in statistics and its implementation in R.
The instructors also show the popular tools for data analysis and explain fundamental concepts to interpret and report results for both categorical and numerical data. This course covers the fundamentals of inference and NHST. You will learn to understand the formal testing process of data analysis.
You will also be exposed to simple and multiple linear regression models as well as distribution functions and Bayesian statistics. Finally, you will build a capstone project where you will test a model for over-fitting and validate on out-of-sample data.
It is a well-designed course and the explanations are very easy to understand. It is exceptionally helpful for beginners due to the perfect combination of theoretical and practical sessions.
Who is this course for?
This course is awesome if you are a beginner who wants to embark your journey in the field of data science. Be it a novice or experienced developer, this course will provide better insights and provide a strong foundation in R programming.
Highlights of the course
- Hands-on project is fun and informative
- Examples provided are vivid and easy to understand
- Offers a good simulation of real-world exercises
11. R Programming: Advanced Analytics In R For Data Science
This is one of the highly rated courses on Udemy with an average rating of 4.7. This excellent course is well documented by one of the top instructors, Kirill Eremenko. He has a passion for Data Science and loves tutoring.
Kirill has really paced this course pretty well where he begins with how you will perform data preparation in R. You will also learn to use new functions and tools in R. The course introduces the essential R functions that can be used for various situations in data analysis.
It will help you understand how to apply functions, lists and factors and is a great way to explore the R programming language. It is highly recommended for learning more advanced techniques in R, as Kirill explains in a way that is easily understandable.
The course includes 51 lectures delivered over 6 hours. 31,826 students have enrolled for this course to take their R programming skills to the next level.
Who is this course for?
If you want to learn more advanced techniques in R, this course is perfect for you. It is required that you are familiar with the basics of R. Before enrolling in this course, make sure you have basic knowledge in GGPlot2, data-frames, vectors and vectorized operations. This course will help you become proficient at Data Science and Analytics with R.
Highlights of the course
- Includes hands-on exercises
- You will work with actual data
12. R programming – Coursera
This specialization is one of the highly rated courses on Coursera offered by the Johns Hopkins University. The instructors from this course provided well-structured easily understandable content.
You will learn the basics of programming in R and how to use R for effective data analysis. This instructor also explains how to collect detailed information using the R profiler and to make use of R loop functions and debugging tools.
This course also provides excellent practice exercises which will help you evaluate yourself. The instructor explains about R language constructs, capabilities and syntax, and dives into advanced topics like lexical scoping.
The course is highly recommended as it has a great overview and explanations. Around 410,601 students have enrolled for it and have given it an average rating of 4.6 out of 5. 34% of the learners enrolled in this program started a new career, 32% benefited from the course and 10% of the professionals got promoted or received a raise in pay.
Who is this course for?
If you work in data science and have some exposure to R and would like to take it to the next level, this is an excellent course. It will guide you to learning things on your own and help you have a strong foundation in R programming.
The course is also excellent for beginners but quite challenging, and you must work extra hard in the assignments. Having prior knowledge in R programming or any other programming language is recommended but not mandatory.
Highlights of the course
- Challenging programming assignments and quizzes are great which will help you get a hang on introductory-level R programming
- You will learn R programming from basic to intermediate
- The interactive learning with swirl library is one of the best things in this course
Conclusion
We have provided you with the best online courses in R programming. Having a career in data analysis and solving problems can be fun and rewarding. The demand for skilled data science professionals continues to increase.
This curated list is taught by experts in order to hone your skills in data science and becoming an efficient R programmer. Being used by many professionals, this vastly growing language will be beneficial in your career development.