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Scratch vs Python for kids: which language should your child learn first?

By Kawthar Bouachrine · 13 November 2026

For most children aged 7 to 10, Scratch is the right place to start; Python makes sense once your child types comfortably, often around 9 or 10, and a teenager can go straight to it. The real question is not Scratch or Python, but when to move from one to the other.

Scratch vs Python: what is the difference for a child?

Scratch is a visual language. Your child snaps together colored blocks like puzzle pieces: "move 10 steps", "repeat 10 times", "if the cat touches the wall". Typos are impossible, because there is almost nothing to type. It was created by the Lifelong Kindergarten group at the MIT Media Lab, it is free, and it is available in more than 40 languages.

Python is a text-based language. Every instruction is typed on a keyboard, and one missing bracket is enough to stop the program. In return, Python goes far beyond school projects: websites, scientific computing, games, software. It is also free and open source.

Underneath, both teach the same thing: breaking a problem into small steps and giving a machine exact instructions. What changes is how hard the writing part is.

Which should my child learn first, by age?

Ages 7 to 9: Scratch

At this age, many children still type one letter at a time. Asking them to write Python tests their keyboard speed more than their logic. With Scratch, they see their character move straight away, and that visible result is what makes them want to keep going.

Ages 10 to 12: Scratch, then Python

This is the transition age. The Raspberry Pi Foundation places the move to text-based languages at around 9 or 10, when a child's typing is good enough. An 11-year-old who has never coded still benefits from a few months of Scratch: they learn loops and conditions without wrestling with syntax.

13 and up: straight to Python, if they want

A teenager who is just starting can go straight to Python. They type fast, they cope better with hunting for a bug for ten minutes, and they often want to "code like real developers". Scratch can feel childish to them at that point, even though it is not.

These are averages, not rules. For the wider question of when to start, see our age-by-age guide to coding, from 7 to 18.

Isn't Scratch just for little kids?

No. Scratch is enough to build complete games, with scores, levels and variables. The concepts are the same as in Python; only the way you write them changes.

A child who really understands a loop in Scratch will recognise it in Python within minutes. A child who starts with Python without those foundations spends their energy on typos, and that is often where they give up.

How do I know my child is ready for Python?

Age matters less than what your child can already do. A few simple signs:

• they can type a sentence without hunting for each letter;
• they build a Scratch project with variables and conditions on their own;
• they hit the limits of Scratch, or ask how "real programmers" work;
• an error no longer makes them quit: they reread their code and look for the problem.

If two or three of these are true, the move to Python will go smoothly. If not, a few more months of Scratch are not wasted time.

Should kids learn Scratch and Python at the same time?

Our view: no. Two ways of writing the same program, learned side by side, muddle a beginner. One language at a time, properly understood, then the next. So the real question is not "Scratch or Python" but "Scratch, then Python, and when to switch".

Does my child need a computer to start?

For Scratch, a computer or an Android tablet is enough: it runs in the browser at scratch.mit.edu, or as an offline app on Windows, macOS, ChromeOS and Android. ScratchJr, for ages 5 to 7, is available on iPad and Android tablets. For Python, a real keyboard quickly becomes a must: writing code on a touchscreen would put anyone off.

How does Koding Kids take children from Scratch to Python?

At Koding Kids, children go from Scratch to Python, one level per year, in live online classes in small groups, taught in English or French. Classes are organised by age: Mini Koders for ages 7 to 9, Junior Koders for ages 10 to 12, Teen Techies for 13 and up. Where a child starts depends on their age and what they can already do, not on a one-size-fits-all programme.

Sources: "About Scratch", MIT Media Lab, accessed 13 November 2026. "Tools", Scratch Foundation, accessed 13 November 2026. "About Python", Python Software Foundation, accessed 13 November 2026. Marc Scott, "At what age can a child start coding?", Raspberry Pi Foundation, 8 November 2022. "Scratch vs. Python? What's the difference between the two?", iD Tech, 11 September 2026.

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