Codewars vs Exercism:Which is more popular?
In September 2026, Codewars had more branded searches than Exercism among coding practice platforms worldwide. Codewars had about 90,500 branded searches, while Exercism had 60,500. Codewars made up 1.8% of all coding practice platform searches we track, and Exercism accounted for 1.2%. When we asked ChatGPT and Google AI Overviews about coding practice platforms, both Codewars and Exercism appeared in all five answers. Exercism was mentioned before Codewars in four out of five answers.
Who do people search for more?
Codewars, about 50% more searches than Exercism
Who does AI mention more?
Both are mentioned in every answer we collected.
Who does AI recommend more?
Exercism, named ahead of Codewars in 4 of 5 answers
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Top coding practice platforms in ChatGPT and Google AI Overviews
In three ChatGPT questions and two Google AI Overviews, both Codewars and Exercism showed up in all five answers. Exercism was listed before Codewars in four of them.
Most recommended by AI
Brands get a higher ranking if they are mentioned earlier in the answers.
LeetCode1st- Exercism2nd
HackerRank3rd- Codewars4th
Frontend Mentor5th
freeCodeCamp6th
Codecademy–
Scratch–
Mentioned by AI
Each dot is one answer, filled in when that answer mentions the brand.
- LeetCode5 of 5Named in 3 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 2 of 2 Google answers
- HackerRank5 of 5Named in 3 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 2 of 2 Google answers
- Codewars5 of 5Named in 3 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 2 of 2 Google answers
- Exercism5 of 5Named in 3 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 2 of 2 Google answers
- Frontend Mentor3 of 5Named in 3 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 0 of 2 Google answers
- freeCodeCamp1 of 5Named in 1 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 0 of 2 Google answers
- Codecademy0 of 5Named in 0 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 0 of 2 Google answers
- Scratch0 of 5Named in 0 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 0 of 2 Google answers
See every answer about coding practice platforms
5 answers
Asked ChatGPT
“Which coding practice platform should I use?”
Asked ChatGPT
“What are the best coding practice platforms?”
Asked ChatGPT
“What's the best coding practice platform for developer skill practice?”
Searched Google, AI Overview
“coding practice platforms”
Searched Google, AI Overview
“coding challenge platform”
Not named in any answer:
Brands are shown in the order each answer named them. The survey took place in the United States on October 19, 2026.
Is Codewars or Exercism more popular in search?
This chart shows how often people search Google for Codewars and Exercism by name. Each line represents a brand's share of searches for all eight coding practice platforms we track, month by month, from English-language searches worldwide.
Share of searches by month for Codewars, Exercism. The figures are in the table below the chart.
View monthly share of searches table
| Month | LeetCode | HackerRank | freeCodeCamp | Codecademy | Scratch | Codewars | Exercism | Frontend Mentor |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oct 2025 | 52.8% | 19.4% | 7.1% | 10.6% | 4.7% | 3.2% | 1.7% | 0.52% |
| Nov 2025 | 55.4% | 16.6% | 7.4% | 11.1% | 4.1% | 3.3% | 1.5% | 0.55% |
| Dec 2025 | 57.9% | 17.4% | 7.8% | 9.5% | 2.8% | 2.8% | 1.3% | 0.47% |
| Jan 2026 | 59.4% | 14.6% | 8% | 9.8% | 3.6% | 2.9% | 1.3% | 0.48% |
| Feb 2026 | 58.3% | 14.3% | 7.8% | 11.7% | 3.5% | 2.3% | 1.6% | 0.47% |
| Mar 2026 | 54.8% | 13.5% | 9% | 11% | 7.4% | 2.2% | 1.8% | 0.44% |
| Apr 2026 | 53.6% | 16.1% | 8.8% | 5.9% | 10.8% | 2.6% | 1.8% | 0.43% |
| May 2026 | 59.8% | 12% | 9.8% | 5.4% | 8% | 2.9% | 1.6% | 0.48% |
| Jun 2026 | 64.5% | 12.9% | 8.7% | 3.9% | 5.8% | 2.1% | 1.7% | 0.35% |
| Jul 2026 | 67% | 16.5% | 7.4% | 3.3% | 2.2% | 1.8% | 1.5% | 0.36% |
| Aug 2026 | 67% | 16.5% | 7.4% | 3.3% | 2.2% | 1.8% | 1.5% | 0.36% |
| Sep 2026 | 66.5% | 16.3% | 7.3% | 3.3% | 3.3% | 1.8% | 1.2% | 0.29% |
How has the Codewars and Exercism comparison changed over the last 12 months?
3 findings
- Codewars was ahead of Exercism in every measured month of the 12 months ending September 2026.
- Across the 12 months ending September 2026, Codewars’ share of searches among coding practice platforms worldwide moved from 3.2% to 1.8%, and its estimated monthly branded searches moved from 135K to 90.5K.
- Across the 12 months ending September 2026, Exercism’s share of searches among coding practice platforms worldwide moved from 1.7% to 1.2%, and its estimated monthly branded searches moved from 74K to 60.5K.
How did search popularity change for coding practice platforms worldwide in September 2026?
2 changes
How are branded searches counted?
2 search terms
Brandwave collects information about searches that people make online using Codewars’ and Exercism’s names. When viewed over time, estimated search volumes for these branded terms can be used to understand whether interest in the brands is growing, holding steady, or fading.
Other head-to-heads among coding practice platforms
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