A structured PLC programming course with 20 lessons, 40 auto-graded machine scenarios, and real ladder logic exercises. No install, no credit card, no trial clock.
The first exercise in the course — you write the logic, we run the machine.
A PLC programming course should teach you to read and write the logic that runs industrial controllers: ladder diagrams, Structured Text, and the function blocks defined in IEC 61131-3. It should also make you dangerous with the two brand dialects you will encounter on most plant floors — Allen-Bradley and Siemens.
This course covers exactly that, in a specific sequence. You start with the scan cycle and contacts-and-coils (Module 1), move to timers, counters, comparisons, and Structured Text (Module 2), then work through structured design patterns like state machines and SFC (Module 3). From there you run hands-on machine scenarios — motor starters, conveyor sorters, batch mixers, PID loops (Module 4) — before finishing with debugging methodology, alarms, safety systems, and code organisation (Modules 5 and 6).
What makes this different from most PLC programming classes is the exercise model. Every scenario ships with a test harness: hidden test cases that run your actual ladder logic against a simulated machine and return a pass/fail. You get the same feedback loop a hardware lab gives you — without the hardware budget or the lab booking system.
Written with diagrams — faster to work through than video.
Hands-on machine exercises with auto-graded test cases.
Multiple-choice with hidden marking — no answer-peeking.
The international standard — plus Allen-Bradley and Siemens dialects.
Estimated total to reach interview-ready confidence. [ESTIMATE]
No credit card. No trial clock. Core lessons and two scenarios free.
Work through the modules in order. Each one builds on the last. Resist the urge to jump to the advanced scenarios — the sequencer muscle you build in Module 1 is what makes Module 4 tractable.
The four lessons every PLC programmer must own before writing a single rung. Estimated: 4–8 hours.
What a PLC is, the scan cycle, and how I/O addressing works.
Contacts, coils, XIC/XIO, power flow across a rung.
SET/RESET coils, the seal-in rung, motor start/stop fundamentals.
TON, TOF, TP, CTU, CTD — every beginner trips on timers first.
Comparisons, math, analog I/O, and Structured Text. Estimated: 4–8 hours.
EQU, NEQ, GRT, LES, ADD, SUB — analog thresholds and setpoints.
Advanced timer and counter edge cases; FB instantiation patterns.
4–20 mA loops, raw counts to engineering units, clamping.
ST syntax, CASE statements, and when to use ST over ladder.
State machines, SFC, and shift-register sequencing. Estimated: 4–8 hours.
Eight hands-on exercises that run your logic against a simulated machine. Auto-graded. Estimated: 12–24 hours for this module.
The full scenario library contains 40 exercises across motor control, water/HVAC, packaging, safety, and process verticals.
The lessons most courses skip. Being able to read and fix someone else’s ladder logic is what plants actually pay for. Estimated: 4–6 hours.
Safety systems, PID, code structure, quizzes, and the interview track. Estimated: 6–10 hours.
This course is designed for anyone who needs to program PLCs but does not have consistent access to hardware or a structured learning path. Four groups find it particularly useful.
No programming background needed. The course starts with what a PLC actually is and builds from first principles. You write real ladder logic by lesson two.
Preparing for an internship or controls-engineering interview? The scenario library gives you the practice reps your university lab session could not — without booking lab time.
You already understand the machines. This course bridges the gap from reading ladder logic to writing it — and from recognising a fault to isolating it in code.
Mechanical, electrical, or software engineers moving into automation. The scan-cycle model is unlike web or embedded development; the course explains the mental shift explicitly.
Most PLC programming classes are video-based. Udemy courses range from $20 to $100 and cover theory well, but you watch a completed rung rather than writing one. If you pause and try to replicate it, you are on your own with no feedback. YouTube tutorials are free but fragmented — there is no guaranteed sequence, no grading, and no way to know when you are ready for the next concept.
Paid platforms like RealPars (approximately $600/year) and PLCacademy (approximately $500 for a full course) are solid and genuinely structured. They are still video-based, and neither ships a browser-based simulator with auto-graded test cases. Classroom training from Allen-Bradley or Siemens partners typically starts at $2,000 per week and requires you to be in a specific city on a specific date.
This course is written, not filmed. Reading a lesson is faster than watching it when you already understand the mechanical context. Every scenario has a test harness: your code either makes the machine behave correctly or it does not, and you get specific feedback about which test case failed. That tight loop — write, run, fail, fix, pass — is the mechanism that builds genuine PLC programming competence faster than passive watching. It is also free to start, with no artificial trial deadline pushing you to rush.
If you want to compare in detail, see our PLC training overview page or how the simulator works.
Whichever course you choose, learn the IEC 61131-3 languages first. The five standard languages — Ladder Diagram, Function Block Diagram, Structured Text, Instruction List, and Sequential Function Chart — are vendor-neutral, so the concepts transfer directly from this simulator to Allen-Bradley Studio 5000, Siemens TIA Portal, CODESYS, or any other platform you meet on the job. You can also dive straight into the learn PLC programming hub if you prefer to follow individual topics rather than the full course track.
| Option | Cost | Hands-on exercises | Auto-graded |
|---|---|---|---|
| This course | Free (Pro optional) | 40 scenarios | Yes |
| Udemy video courses | $20–100 | None | No |
| YouTube tutorials | Free | None | No |
| RealPars / PLCacademy | ~$600/yr (RealPars) / varies (PLCacademy) | Limited | No |
| Classroom training | $2,000+/week | Lab time only | No |
Modules 1 and 2 — fundamentals through logic building blocks — take roughly 8–16 hours of focused practice for most learners. By the end you will have written working ladder rungs for timers, counters, seal-in circuits, and Structured Text conditionals. That is the point where you can read someone else’s ladder logic without constantly looking up notation.
Adding the machine scenarios in Modules 3 and 4 brings the total to 20–40 hours. A conveyor sorter, a batch mixer, and a PID temperature loop will each take you two to four hours the first time — longer than they look, because the test harness is precise and your first attempt will miss edge cases you did not think about. That is the point. Missing them in a simulator is free; missing them on a live production line is not.
Completing all six modules and working through the interview prep tracks is a 40–80 hour commitment. Most people doing this in the evenings — one to two hours per night — finish the foundational modules in three to four weeks and reach interview-ready confidence in six to eight weeks. That is a realistic timeline for an entry-level controls-engineering role, not a career change number. [ESTIMATE — based on typical learner progression; individual results vary.]
Explore the full lesson library or go directly to the PLC Fundamentals lesson to start.
The PLC Fundamentals lesson takes about 20 minutes to read. The Motor Start/Stop scenario takes about 45 minutes to pass on your first attempt. Both are free.
Also: motor start/stop scenario · traffic light scenario · pricing · about the simulator