Top Hackathons for College Students
Why Hackathons Are Worth Your Time
Hackathons aren't just weekend coding marathons – they're career springboards disguised as fun competitions. In just 24-48 hours, you'll build something from scratch with a team of people who might become lifelong friends or future business partners.
What's in it for you?
Build real skills, not just theory. Forget textbooks for a weekend. Hackathons throw you into the deep end where you'll solve actual problems under pressure – exactly what happens in the real world.
Connect with people who matter. Tech companies don't just sponsor hackathons for fun. They're actively scouting for talent. I've seen students walk away with internship offers simply by impressing the right mentor during a demo.
Create portfolio gold. Nothing says "hire me" like showing an actual working project you built from scratch. That GitHub repo with your hackathon projects speaks volumes about what you can actually do.
Test-drive entrepreneurship. Got a startup idea? Hackathons let you validate it quickly. The time constraint forces you to focus on what really matters – a valuable lesson for any aspiring founder.
Getting started is easier than you think
You don't need to be a coding genius. Teams need designers, idea people, presenters, and problem solvers too. Many hackathons welcome first-timers and offer mentorship throughout the event.
The first step? Just sign up. Pick a hackathon from the list that interests you, find some friends (or make new ones there), and dive in. The worst that can happen is you learn something new and eat free pizza. The best? You might just launch your career.
Global & Major Hackathons
| Name | Location | About |
|---|---|---|
| MLH (Major League Hacking) | Both | World's largest community of student hackathons |
| HackMIT | Offline (Boston, MA) | MIT's annual hackathon focused on innovation |
| TreeHacks | Offline (Stanford, CA) | Stanford University's premier hackathon |
| PennApps | Offline (Philadelphia, PA) | The original college hackathon at UPenn |
| HackGT | Offline (Atlanta, GA) | Georgia Tech's flagship hackathon |
| MHacks | Offline (Ann Arbor, MI) | University of Michigan's premier hackathon |
| CalHacks | Offline (Berkeley, CA) | UC Berkeley's largest hackathon |
| AngelHack | Both | Global hackathon series in 50+ cities |
| HackTX | Offline (Austin, TX) | UT Austin's largest hackathon |
| HackIllinois | Offline (Champaign, IL) | University of Illinois' open source hackathon |
| HackNYU | Offline (New York, NY) | NYU's annual global hackathon |
| Microsoft Imagine Cup | Online (Finals Offline) | Global technology competition for students |
| NASA Space Apps Challenge | Both | Space-related challenges hackathon |
| HackDuke | Offline (Durham, NC) | Duke's "code for good" hackathon |
| HackPrinceton | Offline (Princeton, NJ) | Princeton University's biannual hackathon |
Indian Hackathons
| Name | Location | About |
|---|---|---|
| Smart India Hackathon | Both | India's largest national-level hackathon |
| HackIndia | Offline (Multiple Cities) | One of India's largest student-run hackathons |
| InOut | Offline (Bangalore) | India's premier independent hackathon |
| HackWithInfy | Online | Infosys' flagship coding competition |
| TCS CodeVita | Online | Global coding contest by TCS |
| HackVsit | Offline (Delhi) | VIPS Delhi's premier hackathon |
| HackCBS | Offline (Delhi) | CBS Delhi's annual hackathon |
| Hackmanthan | Offline (Multiple) | GoI cybersecurity hackathon |
| HackNITR | Offline (Rourkela) | NIT Rourkela's largest hackathon |
| Codeshastra (DJSCE) | Offline (Mumbai) | 24-hour coding competition |
| NMIT Hacks | Offline (Bangalore) | 24-hour hackathon by NMIT |
Tech Company Hackathons
| Name | Location | About |
|---|---|---|
| Google Hackathons | Both | Themed hackathons using Google tech |
| Amazon AWS Hackathons | Online | Cloud computing challenges |
| Dell Technologies Hackathon | Online | Enterprise solutions innovations |
| Red Hat Hackathons | Online | Open source development |
| PayPal Hackathons | Online | Fintech innovation challenges |
| Samsung PRISM Hackathon | Online | Electronics and software integration |
| Intel India Hackathon | Both | Hardware and software optimization |
| LinkedIn Hackathons | Online | Professional network innovations |
| Twitter Hackathons | Online | Social media platform challenges |
| Airbnb Hackathons | Online | Travel and hospitality solutions |
| Salesforce Hackathons | Online | CRM and cloud solutions |
| IBM Hackathons | Online | Enterprise tech challenges |
Platform-Based Hackathons
| Name | Location | About |
|---|---|---|
| Devfolio | Online | Platform powering Indian hackathons |
| Devpost Hackathons | Online | Platform hosting global hackathons |
| HackerRank College Competitions | Online | Coding challenges for students |
| GitHub Campus Program | Online | Resources for student developers |
| Kaggle Competitions | Online | Data science and ML challenges |
| Topcoder Hackathons | Online | Competitive programming |
| Unstop (Dare2Compete) | Online | Platform for campus challenges |
| Skillenza Hackathons | Online | Skill-based challenges |
| HackerEarth Challenges | Online | University-focused hackathons |
| DrivenData Challenges | Online | Data science for social impact |
Specialty Hackathons
| Name | Location | About |
|---|---|---|
| Technica | Both | Largest all-women hackathon |
| Global Game Jam | Both | Worldwide game development |
| Blockchain Hackathon | Online | Web3 development |
| AI for Good Hackathon | Online | AI solutions for UN SDGs |
| EthGlobal Hackathons | Online | Ethereum ecosystem development |
| Solana Hackathons | Online | Solana blockchain development |
| OpenAI Hackathons | Online | AI applications development |
Regional & International Hackathons
| Name | Location | About |
|---|---|---|
| HackZurich | Offline (Zurich) | Europe's largest hackathon |
| Junction | Offline (Helsinki) | Europe's leading hackathon |
| HackTheNorth | Offline (Waterloo) | Canada's biggest hackathon |
| LA Hacks | Offline (Los Angeles) | West Coast's premier hackathon |
| Hack the 6ix | Offline (Toronto) | Toronto's largest summer hackathon |
| McHacks | Offline (Montreal) | McGill University's hackathon |
| HackUPC | Offline (Barcelona) | Barcelona's student hackathon |
| DeltaHacks | Offline (Hamilton, ON) | McMaster's hackathon for change |
| HackSussex | Offline (Brighton, UK) | University of Sussex hackathon |
| HackYeah | Offline (Poland) | Central Europe's biggest hackathon |
University Hackathons (US & Global)
| Name | Location | About |
|---|---|---|
| VandyHacks | Offline (Nashville, TN) | Vanderbilt University's hackathon |
| BostonHacks | Offline (Boston, MA) | Boston University's hackathon |
| HackNC | Offline (Chapel Hill, NC) | UNC's annual hackathon |
| HackUCI | Offline (Irvine, CA) | UC Irvine's largest hackathon |
| HackDavis | Offline (Davis, CA) | UC Davis social good hackathon |
| HackUTD | Offline (Dallas, TX) | UT Dallas' largest hackathon |
| HackUMass | Offline (Amherst, MA) | UMass Amherst's annual hackathon |
| HackCU | Offline (Boulder, CO) | University of Colorado's hackathon |
| DandyHacks | Offline (Rochester, NY) | University of Rochester's hackathon |
| HackSC | Offline (Los Angeles, CA) | USC's premiere hackathon |
| HackBeanpot | Offline (Boston, MA) | Boston intercollegiate hackathon |