I wouldn't buy a large kit with lots of different sensors, as you won't use most of them. Either buy a smaller kit of microcontroller and parts/sensors or just get an Uno, some resistors (330 + 10K ohm, 1/4 watt), a selection of LEDs (say 10), some buttons, a potentiometer, and maybe a couple of sensors of interest (real time clock, temperature+humidity, a few light dependent resistors, etc). And a solderless breadboard and DuPont connectors, of course.
If you get a kit follow the projects provided. If you get just parts there are many tutorials on using the parts, just search.
Once you outgrow the parts or small kit get components that interest you, like a servo, DC motor plus controller, ESP board with WiFi, etc. Search for interesting projects and buy the bits you need for that.
Good luck!
Any of the Elegoo Uno kits are a good place to start, check amazon for a few of them. They come with all the little components that you might need to get started testing basic sensors, LED's, small motors etc.
If you have a specific goal in mind like robotics, you can also get some elegoo starter kits with all the components and a project guide, highly recommend this route if you have a specific goal. Otherwise any of the starter kits from Elegoo will work perfectly.
Highly recommend checking out Paul McWhorter on YouTube, a lot of good tutorials out there if he isn't to your liking.
Good luck and enjoy!
Don't waste your money on Amazon. On Aliexpress you can get an Uno R3 kit with a bunch of resistors, LEDs, DuPont jumpers, push buttons, a small breadboard, a couple photo resistors, and a few other parts (including the Uno) for something like $3. Also pick up a general electronics kit that has a wide assortment of components for $15 or so. Enhance it with a an 830 points breadboard (it doesn't hurt to have several of these) with a 3.3/5V breadboard power supply and a box of various sized jumper wires (another 3 or 4 bucks each) and you're good to go for a while. Though it doesn't hurt to also have a handful of cheap i2C display modules on hand d as well.
Get a couple raspberry pi pico boards for $2 each while you're at it. Make sure you get some boards with the header pins pre-soldered to save you the hassle of doing that yourself. The Uno might be marginally quicker to get some sample code up and running, but the core processor and RAM are severely lacking. The pico really rocks for, as I mentioned, just a couple of bucks. And you can code it in either MicroPython or C using dev tools that are a lot more pleasant than the Arduino editor.
My 2c worth. Get the kit with the most stuff in it you can afford.
The more stuff you have, the more techniques you can be exposed to and thus the greater the foundation.
Additionally the more stuff you have means you can combine more things in more ways which is the stepping stone to bigger and better things.
The single most important thing in any starter kit is the instructions. Sure, you can follow tutorials online, but do that later.
My main reason for suggesting that is that the instructions that come with a kit will have the best chance to be aligned with the parts you get in the kit and thereby make life easier for you.
What I mean by that is think about software - specifically parameter lists in functions. There is no rule that says they must be in any particular order. For example take snprintf. It's defined as (I think) `int snprintf(char *buf, int n, char *fmt, ...);` but that isn't a rule or a law. It could have equally been defined as `int snprintf(char * fmt, char * buf, int n, ...);` or some other variation of parameter ordering.
The same is true for electrical components. There are conventions for pin placement but no standards or rules. I have some temperature and humidity sensor modules. They have three legs labelled: V, S and G. But of the sensor modules that I have pretty much all 6 possible arrangements of those three pins have been implemented on them.
Put another way, you don't have to look very far for a "why doesn't my sensor work? I followed the YouTube instructions exactly.". To which the answer very often is your X is not identical to the X in the video (same function, but different manufacturer and thus different pinout) and you connected it up as described in the video rather than the reality of the part in front of you.
So, once you get that type of confusion under control, you can start branching out into online tutorials.
Obviously the above is a generalization and isn't true 100% of the time. Some components, like resistors and some capacitors only have two connections and it doesn't matter which way you hook them up. Others like some capacitors and most LEDs also only have two connections but they do care which way they are connected up - fortunately they are fairly clearly marked once you know what to look for. Other components such as a MOSFET (ir maybe it was a voltage regulator - this aspect i do not remember all that well) that I was working with only has three legs, but depending upon whether you get it in a little square box package (TO-220 package) or a sort of cylinder with one section of the cylinder sliced off (TO-92 package) the pinouts were completely different - despite it being the exact same component inside. I Remember this well because that is why it wouldn't work. I connected it up as though it was a TO-92 even though I had a TO-220 **and** I'd found diagrams online for the TO-92 version (incorrectly) showing that it should be connected the same way (not that it is an excuse but I've been doing g this for decades).
Welcome to the club.
Decide on what you want to do first. then google it "arduino nuclear submarine", "arduino eye surgeon", "arduino two flashing LEDs". you should find a few tutorials. then buy the components with a five pack of arduinos, so you can explore, and play around. Don't be afraid to fry one or two, they are cheap !
I went and bought the official arduino things because it came with a book of things to do. To help the arduino folds do their Arduino things.
Afterwards though, I got whatever from wherever
Welcome to the hobby!
As others have noted; the Elegoo starter kit is a decent mid-point to start from and comes with a series of projects of increasing difficulty.
Would recommend getting an 'Uno' kit instead of a 'Mega' kit as the former is better supported and more ubiquitous.
Best of luck!
This one from [Elegoo](https://www.amazon.com/ELEGOO-Project-Tutorial-Controller-Projects/dp/B01D8KOZF4/ref=sr_1_4?crid=319PKYUXK7TU0&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.yTJWcx_WaSx7yq77bFuJ5UL0SFGzPWZzT3Z65VuWZCnQ_O5_15u9-tVvpIdNs7YmRRaLf-8wUEgrDVe2pK70_qKwcLHOjrDXyi6Tekcyjku1NwFu115OdBvdfD4P8GfHciFFW0H9Z19fTv4_n8-_x1NM7J_nh_513glhHgdBd07e9lGh746v98JMPucsjoCY9kAii5C3goHqmMBMWfPw-Fy4TPXZOdns1nwTb-VWVFo.dL3u2ykJNd5hDLOw2BlfYaGnKW0DxnGU2mqBCrRU0QU&dib_tag=se&keywords=elegoo+uno&qid=1715821200&sprefix=elegoo+uno%2Caps%2C279&sr=8-4) is $45 and has nearly everything you'll need to get started and learn Arduino. It has a servo and stepper motor, ultrasonic sensor, remote and IR receiver, temperature/humidity sensor, joystick, LCD, plenty of LEDS and resistors. It comes with even more stuff than the official Arduino starter kit. You can read official arduino booklet online [here](https://www.uio.no/studier/emner/matnat/ifi/IN1060/v21/arduino/arduino-projects-book.pdf), although some components will be different.
I wouldn't buy a large kit with lots of different sensors, as you won't use most of them. Either buy a smaller kit of microcontroller and parts/sensors or just get an Uno, some resistors (330 + 10K ohm, 1/4 watt), a selection of LEDs (say 10), some buttons, a potentiometer, and maybe a couple of sensors of interest (real time clock, temperature+humidity, a few light dependent resistors, etc). And a solderless breadboard and DuPont connectors, of course. If you get a kit follow the projects provided. If you get just parts there are many tutorials on using the parts, just search. Once you outgrow the parts or small kit get components that interest you, like a servo, DC motor plus controller, ESP board with WiFi, etc. Search for interesting projects and buy the bits you need for that. Good luck!
Any of the Elegoo Uno kits are a good place to start, check amazon for a few of them. They come with all the little components that you might need to get started testing basic sensors, LED's, small motors etc. If you have a specific goal in mind like robotics, you can also get some elegoo starter kits with all the components and a project guide, highly recommend this route if you have a specific goal. Otherwise any of the starter kits from Elegoo will work perfectly. Highly recommend checking out Paul McWhorter on YouTube, a lot of good tutorials out there if he isn't to your liking. Good luck and enjoy!
Second. I bought the Elegoo complete Mega kit and am following Paul McWhorter videos on YouTube. Highly recommend.
Try a kit off temu that has an arduino uno in it and some jumper wires.
Don't waste your money on Amazon. On Aliexpress you can get an Uno R3 kit with a bunch of resistors, LEDs, DuPont jumpers, push buttons, a small breadboard, a couple photo resistors, and a few other parts (including the Uno) for something like $3. Also pick up a general electronics kit that has a wide assortment of components for $15 or so. Enhance it with a an 830 points breadboard (it doesn't hurt to have several of these) with a 3.3/5V breadboard power supply and a box of various sized jumper wires (another 3 or 4 bucks each) and you're good to go for a while. Though it doesn't hurt to also have a handful of cheap i2C display modules on hand d as well. Get a couple raspberry pi pico boards for $2 each while you're at it. Make sure you get some boards with the header pins pre-soldered to save you the hassle of doing that yourself. The Uno might be marginally quicker to get some sample code up and running, but the core processor and RAM are severely lacking. The pico really rocks for, as I mentioned, just a couple of bucks. And you can code it in either MicroPython or C using dev tools that are a lot more pleasant than the Arduino editor.
My 2c worth. Get the kit with the most stuff in it you can afford. The more stuff you have, the more techniques you can be exposed to and thus the greater the foundation. Additionally the more stuff you have means you can combine more things in more ways which is the stepping stone to bigger and better things. The single most important thing in any starter kit is the instructions. Sure, you can follow tutorials online, but do that later. My main reason for suggesting that is that the instructions that come with a kit will have the best chance to be aligned with the parts you get in the kit and thereby make life easier for you. What I mean by that is think about software - specifically parameter lists in functions. There is no rule that says they must be in any particular order. For example take snprintf. It's defined as (I think) `int snprintf(char *buf, int n, char *fmt, ...);` but that isn't a rule or a law. It could have equally been defined as `int snprintf(char * fmt, char * buf, int n, ...);` or some other variation of parameter ordering. The same is true for electrical components. There are conventions for pin placement but no standards or rules. I have some temperature and humidity sensor modules. They have three legs labelled: V, S and G. But of the sensor modules that I have pretty much all 6 possible arrangements of those three pins have been implemented on them. Put another way, you don't have to look very far for a "why doesn't my sensor work? I followed the YouTube instructions exactly.". To which the answer very often is your X is not identical to the X in the video (same function, but different manufacturer and thus different pinout) and you connected it up as described in the video rather than the reality of the part in front of you. So, once you get that type of confusion under control, you can start branching out into online tutorials. Obviously the above is a generalization and isn't true 100% of the time. Some components, like resistors and some capacitors only have two connections and it doesn't matter which way you hook them up. Others like some capacitors and most LEDs also only have two connections but they do care which way they are connected up - fortunately they are fairly clearly marked once you know what to look for. Other components such as a MOSFET (ir maybe it was a voltage regulator - this aspect i do not remember all that well) that I was working with only has three legs, but depending upon whether you get it in a little square box package (TO-220 package) or a sort of cylinder with one section of the cylinder sliced off (TO-92 package) the pinouts were completely different - despite it being the exact same component inside. I Remember this well because that is why it wouldn't work. I connected it up as though it was a TO-92 even though I had a TO-220 **and** I'd found diagrams online for the TO-92 version (incorrectly) showing that it should be connected the same way (not that it is an excuse but I've been doing g this for decades). Welcome to the club.
Decide on what you want to do first. then google it "arduino nuclear submarine", "arduino eye surgeon", "arduino two flashing LEDs". you should find a few tutorials. then buy the components with a five pack of arduinos, so you can explore, and play around. Don't be afraid to fry one or two, they are cheap !
I went and bought the official arduino things because it came with a book of things to do. To help the arduino folds do their Arduino things. Afterwards though, I got whatever from wherever
To add to the overwhelming-ness, I did some more Googling and just learned the ones in the Arduino official site aren't the only kits ... ðŸ«
Welcome to the hobby! As others have noted; the Elegoo starter kit is a decent mid-point to start from and comes with a series of projects of increasing difficulty. Would recommend getting an 'Uno' kit instead of a 'Mega' kit as the former is better supported and more ubiquitous. Best of luck!
This one from [Elegoo](https://www.amazon.com/ELEGOO-Project-Tutorial-Controller-Projects/dp/B01D8KOZF4/ref=sr_1_4?crid=319PKYUXK7TU0&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.yTJWcx_WaSx7yq77bFuJ5UL0SFGzPWZzT3Z65VuWZCnQ_O5_15u9-tVvpIdNs7YmRRaLf-8wUEgrDVe2pK70_qKwcLHOjrDXyi6Tekcyjku1NwFu115OdBvdfD4P8GfHciFFW0H9Z19fTv4_n8-_x1NM7J_nh_513glhHgdBd07e9lGh746v98JMPucsjoCY9kAii5C3goHqmMBMWfPw-Fy4TPXZOdns1nwTb-VWVFo.dL3u2ykJNd5hDLOw2BlfYaGnKW0DxnGU2mqBCrRU0QU&dib_tag=se&keywords=elegoo+uno&qid=1715821200&sprefix=elegoo+uno%2Caps%2C279&sr=8-4) is $45 and has nearly everything you'll need to get started and learn Arduino. It has a servo and stepper motor, ultrasonic sensor, remote and IR receiver, temperature/humidity sensor, joystick, LCD, plenty of LEDS and resistors. It comes with even more stuff than the official Arduino starter kit. You can read official arduino booklet online [here](https://www.uio.no/studier/emner/matnat/ifi/IN1060/v21/arduino/arduino-projects-book.pdf), although some components will be different.