What is Hack Club?
Hack Club is a global network of high school coding clubs and hackathons, built by teenagers for teenagers. Unlike traditional CS education, Hack Club is project-based, community-driven, and completely free. It started in 2014 and now spans 400+ clubs in 30+ countries.
Hack Club is best known for organizing massive, unique hackathons like Assemble (1,000+ high schoolers building hardware projects in San Francisco) and hosting online events like Arcade (a summer coding challenge with prizes). If you're in high school or college, Hack Club is the best entry point into hacking culture.
📷 Image Placeholder: Photo of Hack Club Assemble event with students building hardware projects
Hack Club Community Highlight
Why Hack Club is Perfect for Beginners
Hack Club events are radically inclusive. There are no prerequisites, no applications, and no "you must know X to participate" barriers. Their philosophy: everyone can code, and the best way to learn is by building real projects with friends.
The community is also incredibly generous. Hack Club gives away free tools like GitHub Pro, domain names, cloud credits, and even hardware kits. They believe in removing financial barriers so anyone can build, regardless of background.
- Free hackathons with no entry fees, no applications—just show up (or join virtually)
- Beginner workshops that teach web dev, game dev, and hardware hacking from scratch
- Free tools: GitHub Student Pack, Hack Club Bank (fiscal sponsorship for projects), domains
- Slack community with 50K+ members—ask questions, share projects, get feedback 24/7
- Shipyard: build and deploy projects, earn "doubloons," redeem for swag and hardware
- Unique events: Assemble (hardware), Epoch (overnight), Outernet (rural hackathons)
📷 Image Placeholder: Screenshot of Hack Club Slack workspace with active project channels
How to Get Involved with Hack Club
Start by joining the Hack Club Slack at hackclub.com/slack. Introduce yourself in #introductions, share what you're interested in building, and lurk in channels like #ship (where people share daily progress) and #hardware (for Raspberry Pi / Arduino projects).
If you're in high school, consider starting a Hack Club at your school. Hack Club HQ provides free curriculum, stickers, grants for pizza, and a dedicated Slack channel. If you're in college, you can still join events and the community—age is just a number in Hack Club.
- Join hackclub.com/slack and introduce yourself in #introductions
- Browse #ship to see what others are building—get inspired and share your own projects
- Participate in Arcade: a summer event where you code projects and earn prizes
- Check hackathons.hackclub.com for upcoming events (Assemble, Epoch, etc.)
- Start a Hack Club at your school: get free curriculum, funding, and mentorship
- Use Hack Club Bank to accept donations or sponsorships for your projects/events
- Join workshops in Slack—topics range from "Intro to Web Dev" to "Building AI Apps"
📷 Image Placeholder: Screenshot of Hack Club hackathons page showing event calendar and registration
Pro Tips for Hack Club Events
Hack Club hackathons prioritize vibes and creativity over perfection. Don't stress about building the "best" project—focus on building something fun, weird, or useful. Judges love personality and storytelling over polished code.
Take advantage of Hack Club's free resources. Apply for the GitHub Grant (free credits), use Shipyard to deploy projects, and redeem doubloons for hardware like Raspberry Pis or Arduino kits. The more you engage, the more opportunities you unlock.
- Ship daily on #ship in Slack—even small progress counts and builds momentum
- Collaborate across timezones—Hack Club is global, so you can pair-program anytime
- Attend Hack Club meetups (Assemble, Epoch) in person—friendships formed IRL are powerful
- Use Sprig (Hack Club's game engine) to build retro games and win a custom handheld console
- Contribute to OnBoard: design a PCB, get it manufactured for free, share your process
- Ask questions fearlessly—Hack Club's culture is "there are no dumb questions"
📷 Image Placeholder: Photo of Hack Club swag, stickers, and hardware kits (Raspberry Pi, Sprig console)
Hack Club Philosophy: Optimism & Agency
Hack Club believes teenagers are capable of extraordinary things when given the right tools and community. The culture is optimistic, high-energy, and radically transparent. Everything—from financials to event planning—happens in public Slack channels.
If you're someone who wants to build, learn, and connect with like-minded creators, Hack Club is your home. Whether you're coding your first website or launching a startup, the community will cheer you on and help you ship.