The most popular programming languages in 2024 are those that meet the expectations of large IT corporations. Deciding to start programming, but don't know what is the best language to code in? To simplify this task, the TechDoor IT platform team has prepared a list of the 10 most popular programming languages to stay on trend in the Internet technology market.
Our rating of programming languages is based on professional observation and analyses of different companies engaged in niche monitoring for a long period of time. In our analyses we focused on the well-known TIOBE rating. The analyses of the results of the TIOBE "Most Popular Programming Language" rating are based on data from 25 popular search engines: Google, Bing, Ebay, Wikipedia, YouTube, Yahoo!
Table of Contents
Top list of current programming languages
JavaScript is still the most in-demand in 2024. TypeScript is the best in terms of growth rate. TypeScript continues to conquer web developers - for the first time this language has entered the top three and is almost equal to JavaScript. Python - in third place, appearing in every possible niche. Rust - a favorite of many developers, but still not widely used.
Let's take a closer look at the Top 10 ranking of the most common programming languages for commercial use
No. 1 JavaScript
JavaScript rightfully tops the ranking of TOP popular programming languages. Modern JavaScript is a "safe" programming language. It does not provide low-level access to memory or CPU, as it was created for browsers that do not need it.
The capabilities of JavaScript depend significantly on the environment in which the script is executed. For example, Node.js supports functions that allow JavaScript to read/write arbitrary files, make network requests, etc.
The JavaScript built into the browser can do everything related to web page management, user interaction and web server interaction:
- Add new HTML code to a page, modify existing content, change styles.
- Respond to user actions, work out mouse clicks, pointer movement, keyboard key presses.
- Send network requests to remote servers, download and send files (so-called AJAX and COMET technologies).
- Receive and send cookies, ask visitors questions, show messages.
- Store client-side data (local storage) that will be available in upcoming sessions on this web site.
No. 2 TypeScript
TypeScript is one of the most favorite programming languages among developers. It has the highest rate of popularity growth and is the leader of preferences (18% developers would choose this language if they were starting a commercial project). About 40% frontenders, 5% backenders and 16% fullstack developers use it. It looks like developers have finally figured out the main advantages and started using the best programming language for its intended purpose.
The main value of TypeScript is the ability to write stable and scalable projects. Developers who come to the project later will find it easier to understand the idea of those who created it.
Advantages of TypeScript:
- Allows developers to use classes, interfaces more efficiently. As a result, the code becomes structured and coherent.
- Allows you to write modular code that is reusable.
- It is easier to work in a team and maintain the code, to understand what logic the previous developer laid down.
- Thanks to the IDE editor, it is possible to identify and fix bugs while still in development, rather than at the test stage or even worse after release.
- Support across all platforms - web, mobile and desktop applications.
- Integration with different JavaScript libraries and frameworks.
No 3. Python
The popularity of Python programming languages comes from the fact that it is one of the best languages for test automation. It is easy to learn, concise to write, and powerful to scale.
Google, Facebook, Yahoo, NASA, Red Hat, IBM, Instagram, Pinterest, Quora, Microsoft, and Dropbox, where Python founder Guido van Rossum works, code in this language. It is chosen by infrastructure engineers, test automators, and data analysts.
No. 4 Java
Java is a general-purpose programming language created by Sun Microsystems in 1995. It is used to develop software, web services, games and applications. It is one of the most popular programming languages in the world due to its uncomplicated syntax, flexibility, security, portability and scalability.
Java is suitable for beginners because there is a significant amount of training material, a large community, and the language continues to evolve. In addition, it will not lose relevance for a long time, as many applications are not only written in Java, but are also tied to the Java Virtual Machine (JVM) runtime platform and the Java Development Kit (JDK).
Advantages of Java:
- popular in the labour market;
- has a large community;
- developed ecosystem;
- object-oriented and strictly typed language, and therefore not difficult to learn;
- time-tested.
NO. 5 C#
Ranked among the top programming languages in Microsoft's C# technology stack, used to create websites, applications, games.
Sharp's open source C#, which is in demand in small web teams and mid-level companies, will seem familiar to those programmers who have encountered a classic language such as Java in their work, so it is useful in terms of skill development.
Here are a few reasons to start writing on C#:
- It is considered to be a simple language. Its compact code is easy to read, which is very useful for optimizing team software development.
- Runs on the .NET platform, which is robust and well designed.
- Saves time by making it easier to develop powerful tools based on it.
- The C# language is scalable and easy to maintain.
No. 6 PHP
It's not clear here, PHP is either back again or never and never left the top of the programming language list.
With PHP, you can do everything that CGI programs can do. For example, generating dynamic page content, sending and receiving cookies, etc.
But PHP has much broader capabilities:
1. Development of scripts on a web server. It is necessary to run a web server with PHP language installed on it. Through the web server you can pass a page with PHP code and view the result of its work through a web browser. All this can be done even on a home computer. Although it is possible to try out PHP code using an online service.
2. Command line script development. This type of code creation is ideal for scripts that are regularly run via cron (on *nix or Linux) or Task Scheduler (on Windows).
3. Creating applications with a graphical interface. Although RNR is not very suitable for this.
One of the most significant features of PHP is support for all kinds of databases: Adabas D, dBase, Direct MS-SQL, Empress, FilePro (read-only), FrontBase, Hyperwave, IBM DB2, Informix, Ingres, InterBase, mSQL, MySQL , ODBC, Oracle (OCI7 and OCI8), Ovrimos, PostgreSQL, Solid, Sybase, Unix dbm.
No 7 Kotlin
Kotlin emerged in 2011 as a development product from JetBrains. It was a dark time for Java, when Java 7 had just been released with minimal changes, and the entire engineering team was more involved in the transition under Oracle's wing than in the actual development. Two consecutive versions of Java with no major improvements (6 and 7) and long development iterations (3-4 years) made many javistas think about moving to other languages.
Kotlin additions were compiled into Java bytecode and run on the JVM, so it cannot be called a "Java killer", but rather a "natural evolution of Java". Many features that developers have been asking for years to be included in Java appeared in the first versions of Kotlin. However, Kotlin did become a "Java killer" to some extent. In 2017 (after the release of 1.0), Google added its support for Android development, and in 2019 officially preferred Java to it. Since then, the statistics of the popularity of Kotlin programming languages have been steadily increasing.
Today, Kotlin has outgrown the cramped trousers of the JVM: you can compile it as JavaScript (for front-end applications) or Kotlin Native (native code that doesn't require a virtual machine). But most importantly for Java developers, you can combine Java/Kotlin code in the same project by calling Kotlin functions from Java code, and vice versa.
No 8 Ruby
It is an interpreted language with clear dynamic typing. It has good efficiency for web-based program development and combines the best of Java, Python and others. Some virtues are taken from Lisp, Dylan and CLU.
Why Ruby is ranked among the top most popular programming languages:
- super speed of web development due to simple syntax and a large selection of ready-made solutions;
- understandable programming standards that have been used by the community for many years;
- allows you to write clear and flexible code that can be easily modified in the future;
- is based on TDD (test-driven development) methodology for writing quality code.
No 9 C++
The C++ programming language was developed by Bjarne Straustrup at AT&T's Bell Laboratories division in 1979. Today it is used to create operating systems, various applications, device drivers, games, etc.
Among the most popular software written in C++ (or using it) are the popular MySQL DBMS, the Mozilla Firefox Internet browser, and most of the software from Microsoft. Windows operating systems, Visual Studio IDE, Internet Explorer, Microsoft Office and, of course, Adobe Photoshop, Adobe Illustrator and Adobe Premiere Pro are entirely written in C++. C++ is also the basis of the Unity game engine.
No 10 Swift
It's a new programming language for iOS, macOS, watchOS and tvOS apps, based on the best of C and Objective-C, with no compatibility restrictions. Swift has absorbed secure programming patterns and added modern features to make programming simpler, more flexible, and most importantly, more fun. Swift's impeccable reputation, backed by the massively used Cocoa and Cocoa Touch frameworks, is redefining what web software development should look like.
So, our top ranking of which programming languages are in demand is as follows:
- JavaScript
- TypeScript
- Python
- Java
- C#
- PHP
- Kotlin
- Ruby
- C++
- Swift
From our post we learnt what programming languages are relevant in 2024. But we should especially mention JavaScript, which remains the unchanged leader of the IT market. It accounts for almost 1/3 of all employer vacancies.
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