Sources influencing skill development — Community data 2026 | Stack Overflow Developer Survey

Developer Survey 2026

Question

Which sources most influence what technical, AI, or professional skills you decide to learn next? Select up to 3.

multi select
Optional
v2026.1

Data

	Respondents	Percent
Coworkers, classmates, or peers	6,695	43.9%
Manager or workplace expectations	4,986	32.7%
YouTube or video creators	3,931	25.8%
Online communities or forums	3,519	23.1%
Job postings or labor market signals	2,971	19.5%
Documentation	2,687	17.6%
Newsletters or blogs	2,062	13.5%
AI tools or chatbots	2,032	13.3%
I am not currently deciding what to learn next	1,673	11.0%
Conferences or events	1,434	9.4%
Social media	1,384	9.1%
Courses or certifications	1,077	7.1%
Stack Overflow / Stack Exchange	1,012	6.6%
Podcasts	843	5.5%

Use this data

Citation

Response data is released under the ODbL 1.0, which asks that you attribute it.

Stack Exchange Inc. (2026). “Sources influencing skill development”. Stack Overflow Developer Survey 2026. Licensed under ODbL 1.0. https://survey.stackoverflow.co/2026/community/data/community-skills

JSON

Structured for code, with the question, the year and the source url alongside the numbers.

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  "asked": "Which sources most influence what technical, AI, or professional skills you decide to learn next? Select up to 3.",
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  "url": "https://survey.stackoverflow.co/2026/community/data/community-skills",
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  "data": [
    {
      "response": "Coworkers, classmates, or peers",
      "count": 6695,
      "pct": 0.439
    },
    {
      "response": "Manager or workplace expectations",
      "count": 4986,
      "pct": 0.327
    },
    {
      "response": "YouTube or video creators",
      "count": 3931,
      "pct": 0.258
    },
    {
      "response": "Online communities or forums",
      "count": 3519,
      "pct": 0.231
    },
    {
      "response": "Job postings or labor market signals",
      "count": 2971,
      "pct": 0.195
    },
    {
      "response": "Documentation",
      "count": 2687,
      "pct": 0.176
    },
    {
      "response": "Newsletters or blogs",
      "count": 2062,
      "pct": 0.135
    },
    {
      "response": "AI tools or chatbots",
      "count": 2032,
      "pct": 0.133
    },
    {
      "response": "I am not currently deciding what to learn next",
      "count": 1673,
      "pct": 0.11
    },
    {
      "response": "Conferences or events",
      "count": 1434,
      "pct": 0.094
    },
    {
      "response": "Social media",
      "count": 1384,
      "pct": 0.091
    },
    {
      "response": "Courses or certifications",
      "count": 1077,
      "pct": 0.071
    },
    {
      "response": "Stack Overflow / Stack Exchange",
      "count": 1012,
      "pct": 0.066
    },
    {
      "response": "Podcasts",
      "count": 843,
      "pct": 0.055
    }
  ]
}

Markdown

A formatted table, ready to paste into a document, an issue or a prompt.

|  | Respondents | Percent |
| --- | ---: | ---: |
| Coworkers, classmates, or peers | 6,695 | 43.9% |
| Manager or workplace expectations | 4,986 | 32.7% |
| YouTube or video creators | 3,931 | 25.8% |
| Online communities or forums | 3,519 | 23.1% |
| Job postings or labor market signals | 2,971 | 19.5% |
| Documentation | 2,687 | 17.6% |
| Newsletters or blogs | 2,062 | 13.5% |
| AI tools or chatbots | 2,032 | 13.3% |
| I am not currently deciding what to learn next | 1,673 | 11.0% |
| Conferences or events | 1,434 | 9.4% |
| Social media | 1,384 | 9.1% |
| Courses or certifications | 1,077 | 7.1% |
| Stack Overflow / Stack Exchange | 1,012 | 6.6% |
| Podcasts | 843 | 5.5% |

Spreadsheet

.csv is a plain text format which most spreadsheet software can open.