Software Alternatives, Accelerators & Startups

Instructables VS DEV.to

Compare Instructables VS DEV.to and see what are their differences

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Instructables logo Instructables

DIY How To Make Instructions

DEV.to logo DEV.to

Where software engineers connect, build their resumes, and grow.
  • Instructables Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-10-09
  • DEV.to Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-05-13

Instructables features and specs

  • Diverse Range of Projects
    Instructables offers a wide variety of projects across multiple categories, including technology, crafts, cooking, and more, catering to diverse interests and skill levels.
  • Community Engagement
    The platform fosters a strong sense of community with user-generated content, allowing individuals to share their projects, comment on others, and collaborate with like-minded hobbyists.
  • Step-by-Step Instructions
    Most projects come with detailed step-by-step guides and pictures, making it easier for users to follow along and successfully complete projects.
  • Educational Resource
    Instructables serves as a valuable educational tool, providing tutorials that can help users learn new skills and gain knowledge in various fields.
  • Free Access
    A significant portion of the content on Instructables is accessible for free, allowing users to explore and create without any financial commitment.

Possible disadvantages of Instructables

  • Quality Variation
    The quality of projects can vary greatly, as the content is user-generated. Some instructions may lack clarity or be incomplete, leading to potential frustration.
  • Ad Distractions
    The free version of the site includes advertisements, which can be distracting and hinder the user experience while browsing or following instructions.
  • Premium Membership
    Access to some of the more advanced features or ad-free browsing requires a premium membership, which can be a downside for users looking for a completely free experience.
  • Overwhelming Choices
    With a vast number of projects available, users might find it overwhelming to locate the most suitable or high-quality instructions for their needs.
  • Inconsistent Updates
    Not all categories or projects are consistently updated, which might lead to outdated information or limited new project inspirations in certain areas.

DEV.to features and specs

  • Community Engagement
    DEV.to offers an active and supportive community of developers where users can share knowledge, seek advice, and collaborate on projects. This fosters a sense of belonging and continuous learning.
  • Ease of Use
    The platform provides a straightforward and user-friendly interface, making it easy for users to publish content, engage with other posts, and navigate through various resources.
  • Content Diversity
    DEV.to features a wide range of topics related to software development, from beginner tutorials to advanced technical articles. This diversity makes it a valuable resource for developers at all skill levels.
  • Open Source and Transparency
    DEV.to is built on open-source software, which promotes transparency and allows users to contribute to the platform’s development. This aligns with the core values of many developers.
  • Cross-Posting Capabilities
    Users can easily cross-post articles from their personal blogs or other platforms, increasing their content’s reach and visibility without significant additional effort.

Possible disadvantages of DEV.to

  • Content Quality Variation
    Given its open nature, the quality of content on DEV.to can be inconsistent. Users may need to sift through a mix of high-quality and less useful posts to find valuable information.
  • Platform-Specific Features
    Some features and optimizations are tailored specifically for the DEV.to platform, which might not translate well if the content is shared elsewhere.
  • Limited Advanced Customization
    While the platform is user-friendly, it offers limited customization options for articles and personal profiles compared to more robust blogging platforms.
  • Visibility Challenges
    With a large user base, it can be challenging for new users or less popular posts to gain traction and visibility unless they are highly engaging or promoted.
  • Distraction Potential
    The platform's social features, such as discussions and notifications, can sometimes be distracting, potentially impacting productivity for users who are easily sidetracked.

Analysis of DEV.to

Overall verdict

  • Yes, DEV.to is considered a good platform for developers looking to connect with peers, stay updated with industry trends, and share their knowledge.

Why this product is good

  • DEV.to is a popular online community for software developers where they can share articles, tutorials, and insights related to programming and technology. It's known for its supportive environment, user-friendly interface, and the diversity of content, making it a good resource for learning and networking.

Recommended for

  • Aspiring software developers seeking learning resources and mentorship.
  • Experienced developers looking to share knowledge and contribute to the community.
  • Individuals interested in keeping up with the latest trends and discussions in technology.

Instructables videos

Instructables Electronics Class: Project Review

DEV.to videos

Ben Halpern founder of Dev.To & The Practical Dev

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to Instructables and DEV.to)
Additive Manufacturing
100 100%
0% 0
CMS
0 0%
100% 100
Online Learning
100 100%
0% 0
Blogging
0 0%
100% 100

User comments

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Reviews

These are some of the external sources and on-site user reviews we've used to compare Instructables and DEV.to

Instructables Reviews

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DEV.to Reviews

  1. It is a nice mini-blog, it's for free and such but

    As a mini-blog, it is a nice alternative for Medium to publish and share information about programming.

    However, the community and the organization are biased toward social justice (and they are open to it). You can read its Code of Conduct, it is so vague and politically leads (I prefer a term of service because it defines fair rules for everybody). So it alienates developers that we don't care about politics in pro of people that want to talk about any other topic such as sexuality, how women are unprivileged, and such. It even mandates to use inclusive language. Good grief.

    My main complaint is the quality of the community. It is not StackOverflow (so we don't want to ask for an answer here), and most of the top topics are clickbait, such as "how to become a rockstar developer in ... days", "100 tips to become a better programmer" (and it doesn't even talk about programming).

    Technically this "mini blog" site allows us to use markdown, and it is okay. However, the whole experience is really basic. Even the template is ugly.

    Competitors: Medium
    Pros:    Free
    Cons:    Social justice|Basic features|Quality of content

Best Forums for Developers to Join in 2025
The 'dev.to' forum is a great place for developers to find answers, share their knowledge, and learn from others. It's a place for people to talk about their projects, ask questions, and get feedback.
Source: www.notchup.com
Top 10 Developer Communities You Should Explore
One of Dev.to’s unique features is its focus on the human side of coding. Developers often share their personal stories, career journeys, and lessons learned, creating a sense of camaraderie within the community. The platform also encourages content creators by providing a clean and user-friendly interface for writing and sharing articles.
Source: www.qodo.ai

Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, DEV.to seems to be a lot more popular than Instructables. While we know about 674 links to DEV.to, we've tracked only 37 mentions of Instructables. We are tracking product recommendations and mentions on various public social media platforms and blogs. They can help you identify which product is more popular and what people think of it.

Instructables mentions (37)

  • Broken Samsung charger
    Note that I could not find much documentation on references written on these components and that I am pretty new to electronics but it's something I'm interested in and I love to experiment (I have already went through hackster.io and instructables.com tutorials). Source: over 3 years ago
  • A compilation of bragging about how much money Beggy claims she has taken (read: scammed) her followers for. All of these have been posted in the past 3 DAYS. Her smug desperation is positively RANCID. Poor little Audrey-Prop is just dangling there.
    This person would have better luck participating in contests run by Instructables. Write a tutorial, submit it to one of the contests that are run every 6 weeks(themes and subjects vary from cooking, computer themed, design) for a chance to win an Amazon gift card worth $100-500 depending on the contest. Source: over 3 years ago
  • Over 11 hrs since she posted this and not a single 🔥 in the comments - I really do love that for her. She's now offering to help you figure out what you are passionate about/want to sell courses on 🙄
    Want to know how to make a tutorial? Go to Instructables. Source: over 3 years ago
  • Help me validate my idea for StrideDoc - an all-in-one solution for creating interactive demos, step-by-step tutorials, and product documentation!
    From your comment, I would say that we will work in a completely different niche than the one instructables.com tried to work. Source: over 3 years ago
  • looking for good free plans to build a shed/barn
    Instructables.com is a good place to start. Source: over 3 years ago
View more

DEV.to mentions (674)

  • Fixing Delicate Cache Mismatches in a Brownfield SPA: A Pragmatic Solution
    On DEV (powered by the open-source Forem codebase), we have a hybrid architecture that blends Rails server rendering, Fastly edge caching, and lightweight client-side navigation (via InstantClick). This setup delivers sub-100ms page transitions, but partial page swaps combined with aggressive edge caching create delicate deployment challenges. - Source: dev.to / 1 day ago
  • Building the flagship (3): a packaged UI library, i18n, and one-command Docker
    Parts 4 and 5 showed the flagship's auth and its live grid. This one is about reuse: the app is built almost entirely from packaged components, and this is how you'd build yours. - Source: dev.to / 4 days ago
  • Claude Code Attempted 752 /proc/*/environ Reads. 256 Succeeded. Codex: 0.
    Per-syscall interception is the layer that closes this gap. Grith sits between the agent process and the kernel, scoring every operation before it executes - not what the agent claims to be doing, but what it actually does. The process census, the credential file opens, the MCP initialisation, the network connections: all of it is visible, all of it is scored, and any of it can be blocked by policy without... - Source: dev.to / 4 days ago
  • Three model calls, and none of them reads a price
    Plinkie is built by Business Data Solutions, a Dutch consulting and training firm that helps organisations put their data to work. This system was built by one person in ten days, runs in two fully separate Google Cloud projects, and costs under $2 per night to operate. The infrastructure is OpenTofu, the services are Python 3.13, and the site is Next.js. - Source: dev.to / 5 days ago
  • Baklava: Generate API Documentation and Type-Safe Clients from Scala Routing Tests
    Path("/users/{userId}")( supports( GET, pathParameters = pLong, summary = "Get user by ID" )( onRequest(pathParameters = 1L) .respondsWithUser .assert { ctx => ctx.performRequest(routes).body.id shouldBe 1L }, onRequest(pathParameters = 999L) .respondsWithErrorResponse .assert { ctx => ctx.performRequest(routes)... - Source: dev.to / 8 days ago
View more

What are some alternatives?

When comparing Instructables and DEV.to, you can also consider the following products

Treehouse - Treehouse is an award-winning online platform that teaches people how to code.

WordPress - WordPress is web software you can use to create a beautiful website or blog. We like to say that WordPress is both free and priceless at the same time.

edX - Best Courses. Top Institutions. Learn anytime, anywhere.

Medium - Welcome to Medium, a place to read, write, and interact with the stories that matter most to you.

Coursera - Build skills with courses, certificates, and degrees online from world-class universities and companies

Hashnode - A friendly and inclusive Q&A network for coders