January 15, 2026
How to become a web developer: starter pack for frontend developers
July 14, 2023
Learn how to become a front-end development professional. Skills, languages and soft skills needed. Get ready for your future as a developer!
How to become a web developer specializing in the front-end? In the vast world of programming, it can be difficult for those who are just starting out to understand where to begin.
But not tempers, you are in the right place! Let's find out, in this article, what skills to acquire and what path to follow to become a true front-end development professional.
Get ready to dive into the world of programming and unlock your future as a front-end developer!
Index
- Design & interaction: at the heart of Front-End Development
- Beyond coding: soft skills for web developers
- Conclusions
Design & interaction: at the heart of Front-End Development
Speaking of front-end development, there is a tendency to think that it is only about creating the design of apps, websites, and web apps; although it is a very important skill of a front-end developer it is not the only one and sometimes it does not even turn out to be the main one. But let's explain it further.
A front-end developer has to take into account multiple aspects within a project, ranging precisely from design, (which also includes adapting the application to mobile, tablet, and desktop, called responsive), to the semantics of each page, but alsothe interaction and manipulation of data coming in from the back-end. On the other hand, when we have very large applications to develop, strategies will also be implemented to make it more fluid and functional for the user.
But without going into too much detail, let's see where to start, and to be clearer, I would make a division between technical skills(hard skills) and personal skills (soft skills).
Front-end technologies
There are three fundamental programming languages for becoming web developers specializing in the front-end:
- HTML (Hyper Text Markup Language): is a language that allows Dev to layout and format web pages and link them together. The basis of HTML is tags, and each tag corresponds to a certain type of content.
- CSS: in order to take the best care of the aesthetics of a project we need to know this language that gives us the ability to change fonts, colors and position of our content.
- JAVASCRIPT: Last skill but probably the most important is knowing the JS language, with which we allow the user to interact with the content that we have developed through events that can be clicks, mouse over text and buttons, but also create animations and manage forms.
How to improve these front-end skills? There are a flood of free online courses online, such as those from W3Schools or on paid e-learning platforms, such as Udemy!
Style that makes a difference: the power of web developer libraries
In addition to the basic languages, to become a good front-end web developer one must also know the CSS and JS libraries that facilitate and improve development work.
The study of CSS libraries (such as: Bootstrap, Tailwind etc.) gives a sprint to the style of the application and the study of libraries (e.g. React) and/or frameworks (ex Angular) Javascript necessary for programming large applications and therefore useful for breaking into the world of work as a web developer. Let's briefly see what they are and how they make our job easier!
CSS libraries are packages of predefined code that allow us to easily and quickly apply styling to our HTML pages, without having to write everything from scratch.
With CSS libraries we can choose from several ready-made themes, layouts, components and animations, and customize them to our liking. This way we can save time and achieve a professional and consistent result.
Framework and/or Java Script libraries: these aretools that help us write JavaScript code easier and faster, adding functionality and features that the base language does not have. If you want to become a professional front-end developer, you definitely need to learn how to use at least one of these tools. Among the most popular ones for companies are React (library) and Angular (framework).
If you don't know which one to choose, I recommend reading my article where I compare Angular and React. If, on the other hand, you want to keep up to date with the latest news in the world of JS frameworks, I recommend the article "The Future of JavaScript Frameworks" by fellow frontendist Riccardo.
True, learning one of these technologies well will give you a big advantage in terms of productivity, but knowing CSS first is essential to be able to overcome the limitations that some libraries sometimes impose.
Beyond coding: soft skills for web developers
When we talk about soft skills these are not just for front-end developers, but for developers in general.
Soft skills are very much about each person's personal sphere, his or her attitudes, thoughts, and general forma mentis; therefore, it is not certain that everyone has the same skills; but there are some that definitely help in this kind of work. Let's look at some of them together!
Effective communication: the secret weapon
It sounds trivial, but having effective communication is really a key point, and very often misunderstandings are avoided both at work and outside.
The developer plays a key role in a company, and being able to talk to the team, and sometimes the customers, in a clear and convincing way is always a big plus for all parties.
How to have effective communication? The following are some tips.
- Do not interrupt the person who is talking. Listen, and then you can express your idea.
- Speak with conviction. I know it is complex at times, but arguing with conviction will lead others to listen to you more carefully.
- Always try to assume the other person's point of view. Show empathy.
Front-End Development: team up and become a code master!
I know, I know what you are thinking! And the answer is no, the developer is not the one who has the black hood, is always in the dark, eats only fast-food and watches anime. At least in part... xD
Sooner or later you're going to be part of a team, whether it's in smart working or not knowing how to work well with others is really critical both for yourself but also for other team members and your career.
Obviously you will not always agree with others, and maybe you don't even like some individuals all that much (we are human after all), but it is out of this diversity that the best ideas are born. Remember that you are part of a team.
Patience, young Padawan: the path to coding mastery
Programming is a beautiful and mentally challenging and problem solving activity. If you are just starting out you are sure to have difficulties both in writing code but also in explaining to others what you have done, but fear not, firstly because a good developer knows that there is never an end to learning and secondly because once you get over the initial hurdles it all becomes a little easier and more fun.
Curiosity as the key: explore, experiment and surprise
Curiosity and initiative can give you a great advantage in your journey as a developer. Approaching a problem in a curious way means that you can come up with solutions different from the 'standard' ones giving an edge to the project you are working on but also to the team.
Ask and you shall conquer: honesty as a tool for professional growth
Don't be afraid to ask your colleagues for help, especially in the beginning many things you won't understand and that's okay. If after several attempts you cannot solve a task or problem be honest with yourself and ask for support, we are here to learn how to become a web developer!
Conclusions
I hope I have given you an idea of the first steps to take to become a web developer specializing in the front-end and to start a career in the way of web development.
Remember, however, that there is still a lot to learn after acquiring this knowledge. As I mentioned at the beginning of the article you will then need to add to your skill set other technologies to make the front-end interact with the back-end such as Node.js.
Now all you have to do is start step by step learning all that is needed and who knows maybe we will be colleagues in the future!
See you soon...
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