The 5 most popular programming languages in 2018

Whether you’re new to software engineering or have years of experience under your belt, knowing what to learn can be difficult. Which programming language should you learn first? Which programming language should you learn next? There are hundreds of programming languages in widespread use. Each one has different features, many even have very different applications. Of course, many do not too - and knowing which one to use can be tough. Making those decisions is as important a part of being a developer as it is writing code.

Just as English is the international language for most businesses and French is the language of love, different programming languages are better suited for different purposes. Let us take a look at what developers have chosen to be the top programming languages for 2018 in this year’s Packt Skill Up Survey.

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Source: Packt Skill Up Survey 2018

Java reigns supreme

Java, the accessible and ever-present programming language continues to be widespread year on year. It is a 22 year old language which if put into human perspective is incredible. You would have been old enough to have finished college, have a celebratory alcoholic drink, gamble in Iowa and get married without parental consent in Mississippi!

With time and age, Java has proven its consistency as a reliable programming language for engineers and developers. Our Skill Up 2018 survey data reveals it’s still the most popular programming language. Perhaps one of the reasons for this is Java’s flexibility and adaptability. Programs can run on several different types of machines; as long as the computer has a Java Runtime Environment (JRE) installed, a Java program can run on it. Most types of computers will be compatible with a JRE. PCs running on Windows, Macs, Unix or Linux computers, even large mainframe computers and mobile phones will be compatible with Java.

Another reason for Java’s popularity is because it is object oriented. Java code is robust because Java objects contain no references to data external to themselves. This is why Java is so widely used across industry. It’s reliable and secure.

When it's time for mobile developers to build Android apps, the first and most popular option is Java. Java is the official language for Android development which means it has great support from Google and most apps on Playstore are built on Java.

If one talks about job opportunities in field of Java, there are plenty such as ‘Java-UI Developers’, ’Android Developers’ and many others. Hence, there are numerous jobs opportunities available in Java, J2EE combining with other new technologies. These technologies are among the highest paid jobs in IT industry today. According to Payscale, an average Java Developer salary in the USA is around $102,000 with salaries for job postings nationwide being 77% higher than average salaries. Some of the widely known domains where Java is used extensively is financial services, banking, stock market, retail and scientific and research communities.

Finally, it’s worth noting that the demand for Java developers is pretty high and given it’s the language required in many engineering roles. It does make sense to start learning it if you don’t yet know it.

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JavaScript retains the runner up spot

JavaScript for years kept featuring in the list of top programming languages and this time it is 2nd after Java. JavaScript has continued to be everywhere from front end web pages to mobile web apps and everything in between.

A web developer can add personality to websites by using JavaScript. It is the native language of the browser. If you want to build single-page web apps, there is really only one language option for building client-side single-page apps, and that is JavaScript.

It is supported by all popular browsers like Microsoft Internet Explorer (beginning with version 3.0), Firefox, Safari, Opera, Google Chrome, etc. JavaScript has been the most versatile and popular among developers because, it is simple to learn, gives extended functionality to web pages, is an inexpensive language. In other words, it does not require any special compilers or text editors to run the script. And it is simple to implement and is relatively fast for end users.

After the release of Node.js in 2009, the "JavaScript everywhere" paradigm has become a reality. This server-side JavaScript framework allows to unify web application development around a single programming language, rather than rely on a different language. npm, Node.js's package manager, is the largest ecosystem of open source libraries in the world. Node.js is also being adopted in IoT projects due to its speed, number of plugins and scalability convenience. Another open-source JavaScript library known as React Native lets you build cross platform mobile applications in order to make a smooth transition from web to mobile.

According to Daxx, JavaScript developers grab some of the highest paid tech salaries with an average of $96,000 in the US. There are plenty more sources that name JavaScript as one of the most sought-after skills in 2017. ITJobsWatch ranked JavaScript as the second most in-demand programming language in the UK, a conclusion based on the number of job ads posted over the last three months.

Read More: 5 JavaScript Machine learning libraries you need to know

Python on the rise

Python is a general-purpose language; often described as utilitarian, a word which makes it sound a little boring. It is in fact anything but that. Why is it considered among the top programming languages? Simple: it is a truly universal language, applicable to a range of problems and areas. If programmers begin working with Python for one job or career, they can easily jump to another, even if it’s in an unrelated industry.

Google uses Python in a number of applications. Additionally it has a developer portal devoted to Python. It features free classes so employees can learn more about the language.

Here are just a few reasons why Python is so popular:

Python comes with plenty of documentation, guides, tutorials and a developer community which is incredibly active for timely help and support.

Python has Google as one of its corporate sponsors. Google contributes to the growing list of documentation and support tools, and effectively acts as a high profile evangelist for Python.

Python is one of the most popular languages for data science. It’s used to build machine learning and AI systems.

It comes with excellent sets of task specific libraries from Numpy and Scipy for scientific computing to Django for web development.

Ask any Python developer and they have to agree Python is speedy, reliable and efficient. You can deploy Python applications on any environment and there is little to no performance loss no matter which platform.

Python is easy to learn probably because it lets you think like programmer, as it is easily readable and almost looks like everyday English. The learning curve is very gradual than all other programming languages which tend to be quite steep.

Python contains everything from data structures, tools, support, Python community, the Python Software Foundation and everything combined makes it a favorite among the developers.

According to Gooroo, a platform that provides tech skill and salary analytics, Python is one of the highest-paying programming languages in the USA. In fact, at $103,492 per year, Python developers are on an average the second best-paid in the country. The language is used for system operations, web development, server and administrative tools, deployment, scientific modeling, and now in building AI and machine learning systems among others.

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C# is not left behind

Since the introduction of C# in 2002 by Microsoft, C#’s popularity has remained relatively high. It is a general-purpose language designed for developing apps on the Microsoft platform.

C# can be used to create almost anything but it’s particularly strong at building Windows desktop applications and games. It can also be used to develop web applications and has become increasingly popular for mobile development too. Cross-platform tools such as Xamarin allow apps written in C# to be used on almost any mobile device.

C# is widely used to create games using the Unity game engine, which is the most popular game engine today. Although C#’s syntax is more logical and consistent than C++, it is a complex language. Mastering it may take more time than languages like Python.

The average pay for a C# Developer according to Payscale is $69,006 per year. With C# you have solid prospects as big finance corporations are using C# as their choice of language.

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SQL remains strong

The acronym SQL stands for Structured Query Language. This essentially means “a programming language that is used to communicate with database in a structured way”. Much like how Javascript is necessary for making websites exciting and more than just a static page, SQL is one of the only two languages widely used to communicate with databases.

SQL is one of the very few languages where you describe what you want, not how to get it. That means the database can be much more intelligent about how it decides to build its response, and is robust to changes in the computing environment it runs on. It is about a set theory which forces you to think very clearly about what it is you want, and express that in a precise way. More importantly, it gives you a vocabulary and set of tools for thinking about the problem you’re trying to solve without reference to the specific idioms of your application.

SQL is a critical skill for many data-related roles. Data scientists and analysts will need to know SQL, for example. But as data reaches different parts of modern business, such as marketing and product management, it’s becoming a useful language for non-developers as well to learn.

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Source: Packt Skill Up Survey 2018

By far MySQL is still the most commonly used databases for web based applications in 2018, according to the report. It’s freeware, but it is frequently updated with features and security improvements. It offers a lot of functionality even for a free database engine. There are a variety of user interfaces that can be implemented. It can be made to work with other databases, including DB2 and Oracle. Organizations that need a robust database management tool but are on a budget, MySQL will be a perfect choice for them.

The average salary for a Senior SQL Developer according to Glassdoor is $100,271 in the US. Unlike other areas in IT industry, job options and growth criteria for SQL developer is completely different. You may work as a database administrator, system manager, SQL professionals etc it completely depends on the functional knowledge and experience you have gained.

Read More: 12 most common MySQL errors you should be aware of

C++ also among favorites

C++, the general purpose language for systems programming, was designed in 1979 by Bjarne Stroustrup. Despite competition from other powerful languages such as Java, Python, and SQL, it is still prevalent among developers. People have been predicting its demise for more than 20 years, but it's still growing. Basically, nothing that can handle complexity runs as fast as C++.

C++ is designed for fairly hardcore applications, and it's generally used together with some scripting language or other. It is for building systems that need high performance, high reliability, small footprint, low energy consumption, all of these good things. That’s why you see telecom and financial applications built on C++.

C++ is also considered to be one of the best solutions for creating applications that process music and film. There is even an extensive list of websites and tools created based on C++. Financial analysts predict that earnings in this specialization will reach at least $102,000 per year.

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Other programming languages like C, PHP, Swift, Go etc were also on the developer’s choice list. The creation of supporting technologies in the last few years has given rise to speculation that programming languages are converging in terms of their capabilities. For example, Node.js enables Javascript developers to create back-end functionalities - relinquishing the need to learn PHP or even hiring a separate back-end developer altogether. As of now, we can only speculate on future tech trends. However, definitely it will be worth keeping an eye out for which horse to bet on!

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