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Data Engineering Zoomcamp
Data Engineering Zoomcamp offers a free nine-week course that teaches data engineering system development.
About Data Engineering Zoomcamp
Data Engineering Zoomcamp is a nine-week course on data engineering fundamentals. It teaches learners to build an end-to-end data pipeline from scratch, using modular lessons, hands-on workshops, and a final project. The course is described as free. Its materials are hosted in a GitHub repository, with pre-recorded video lectures, a Slack channel, and a course platform for deadlines and homework.
The course covers containerization with Docker and Terraform, workflow orchestration with Kestra, data warehousing with BigQuery, analytics engineering with dbt, a pipeline tool called Bruin, batch processing with Apache Spark, and streaming with Kafka. Learners can follow it as a live cohort or self-paced. The live cohort adds scored homework, a leaderboard, peer review, and a certificate. Self-paced homework is self-checked, and no certificate is offered. The course lists basic coding experience and familiarity with SQL as prerequisites, and Python experience as helpful but not required.
Key features
- Modules on Docker, Docker Compose, PostgreSQL, and Terraform infrastructure setup
- Workflow orchestration module using Kestra and data lake concepts
- BigQuery data warehousing, including partitioning, clustering, and machine learning in BigQuery
- Analytics engineering module using dbt with DuckDB and BigQuery
- Batch processing module covering Apache Spark, DataFrames, and SQL
- Final project with peer review and feedback, plus a streaming module on Kafka
Best for: Developers, analysts, and data scientists who want to learn how to build data pipelines and work with the modern data engineering stack, with no prior data engineering experience required.
Good for
- Listed as free on the homepage, for both the live cohort and self-paced options
- Requires no prior data engineering experience, according to the course description
- Combines structured modules, hands-on workshops, and a final project
Watch out for
- Certificates, leaderboard, peer review, and scored homework apply only to the live cohort
- Self-paced homework is self-checked and not scored
- Prerequisites include basic coding experience and familiarity with SQL
Data Engineering Zoomcamp at a glance
- Category
- Education & Learning › Learn to Code
- Type
- Open-source project
- Pricing
- Not confirmed. Check the site
- Open source
- Not stated
- Language
- English
- Last checked
- Oct 6, 2026 · Online when checked
- Listed
- Oct 5, 2026
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Data Engineering Zoomcamp FAQ
Do I need prior data engineering experience?
No. The course states that no prior data engineering experience is necessary. Basic coding experience and familiarity with SQL are listed as prerequisites, and Python experience is helpful but not required.
What is the difference between the live cohort and self-paced options?
Both options use pre-recorded lectures. The live cohort includes deadlines, scored homework, a leaderboard, peer review, and a certificate. The self-paced option has self-checked homework and does not include a leaderboard, peer review, or certificate.
Who receives a certificate?
Certificates are awarded to learners who complete the final project during a live cohort.
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