Where is programming heading?

A couple of years ago we wrote the article "The 10 most used programming languages at present" to focus upon which are really the most used by developers and preferred when it comes to projects.

With this article we want you to update about these trends, taking a cue from different sources like the following indexes: TIOBE, PYPL, and IEEE, as well as Stack Overflow and GitHub. We would, however, like to make one point. The fact that one programming language is more trendy than another does not mean that it has to be chosen. Each language has specific characteristics and spheres of application.

As we have stressed several times, the choice of a programming language always depends on the specific needs of a project, needs – we repeat – to be identified with clear and transparent communication between all the teams involved in that particular project. For further information on this theme, we invite you to read "Why do so many software projects fail?"

Let us now turn to the article and give you an overview of each source and a final comparison of all of them.

The TIOBE index is a ranking that measures programming languages' popularity based on their searches on search engines like Google, Bing and Wikipedia. Caution here, however: it does not indicate which are the ‘best’, only those most talked about online.

Let's look at the first 10 positions in the following chart:

Source: Tiobe

According to this index, the most searched language in 2024 was Python. Also, the search for C++ and Java increased, making them the top languages together with Python. Interest for C and SQL has decreased, while searches for C# and JavaScript have remained unchanged. It is interesting to note that dated technologies have come into the first 10 positions, like Delphi/Object Pascal (published by Apple for the first time in 1986) and Visual Basic (released by Microsoft in 1991).

Looking at the highest positions from the previous year:

The table shows more or less the same positions for the most searched languages on the search engines, the only real difference being that compared to 2023, Java has risen one position and that third place was occupied by C, which for 2024, on the other hand, has dropped one place. Unchanged instead were C# and JavaScript, as well as Python and C++ at the top places.

In the following picture, however, we can get an overview of the Tiobe index over the years:

This graph shows the development of languages for the TIOBE index since 2002. Python's growth over time is evident. Although historically dominant, Java and C have lost some ground when compared to Python. C++, on the other hand, has maintained a fairly stable position, albeit with some fluctuations. C#, JavaScript and SQL show stable popularity, but not at the levels of Python, Java and C. Go and other languages have gained a lot of visibility but remain secondary to the big names. 

PYPL stands for PopularitY of Programming Language and is based on the number of tutorial searches on Google for every language. The basic idea is that the more people search for guides on a programming language, the more that programming language is growing.

Source: PYPL

The PYPL index also confirms Python's supremacy with the number of tutorial searches performed. Java and JavaScript retain the second and third places, but both register a drop of -0.9%. C/C++ rises to fourth place, demonstrating its still relevant role. Interestingly, Rust rises in the rankings, a sign of the growing interest in its security and performance. PHP (-0.7%) and TypeScript (-0.1%) see a slight decrease, indicating a possible reduction in their popularity. It should be noted that Objective-C (2.74%) is still in the ranking, despite Swift being the main language for iOS development.

Let us now look at what the PYPL ranking looked like in 2024:

Comparing the PYPL index of 2024 with the current one (March 2025), one can see the decline of some languages. Java and JavaScript are in a gradual but steady decline, the largest decline, however, being seen with PHP. R and Swift have maintained steady growth, albeit with smaller values, while the most promising language according to this index appears to be Rust.

The IEEE index has been created by the omonimous IEEE, an important engineering and technology organisation. This index combines data from different sources (online searches, job postings, GitHub and so on) to evaluate which languages are the most used in different contexts, like web and mobile development or science.

The trending section measures the languages' general popularity based on factors like online searches and academic usage.

Source: IEEE

Again, Python dominates the ranking, clearly distancing itself from the other languages. Java and JavaScript follow in second and third place, confirming their importance, albeit with a considerable gap from Python. This is followed by C++ and C, which remain in high positions, and TypeScript, which is well placed, demonstrating the growing adoption, especially in modern frontend development. Go and Rust are on the rise, a sign of increased interest in high-performance and secure languages. Finally, C# continues to hold a solid position, while HTML appears, demonstrating its role in web content creation.

Now we look at the jobs section, which shows the job demand for each language, based on the job vacancies and demand in the sector compared to the trending graph.

The very first thing we can notice is the first place occupied by SQL (in the trending section, it does not even appear). This indicates to us that SQL is in great demand in the business world but is not a fast-growing language in the general programming ecosystem. Despite being in second place here, Python appears as the most popular and most in-demand language, confirming its importance. Java is in high demand and popular, proving that it remains a key technology for companies and enterprise software. JavaScript is more popular in the trending graph than job demand, while TypeScript is in high demand in the job sector. SAS appears only in the ‘Jobs’ ranking, indicating a strong demand in data analysis and statistics, despite its more limited popularity. C++ and C are important in ‘Trending’, but less in demand in the job market, suggesting that their use is more specialised. Go and Rust, finally, appear in the ‘Trending’, but not in the ‘Jobs’ list, suggesting that they are growing but still not widely in demand in the job market.

Every year, Stack Overflow conducts a survey among developers worldwide. From this, statistics emerge as to which languages are the most used, the most loved or the ones that are growing the most.

The following table shows the 10 favourite languages of professional developers in 2024:

Source: StackOverflow


JavaScript dominates the ranking in Stack Overflow's survey, remaining the most widely used language among the professional developers who participated, followed by SQL, demonstrating the importance of databases in the IT sector. Although they are not ‘pure’ programming languages, HTML and CSS are fundamental to web development, which is why they have such strong adoption. Python occupies the fourth position here, confirming its popularity and continued growth in recent years. TypeScript also remains in a high position, along with Bash/Shell, the latter reflecting developers' need to work with automation, server management and DevOps scripts. Java and C# remain relevant. C++ is less used than other languages, while TypeScript is in continuous decline. 

 

GitHub is the largest platform for sharing code. By looking at how many projects use a certain language and how many contributions are made, one can see which languages are most popular among developers.

The graph below shows the ranking of the most used programming languages on GitHub from 2014 to 2024, based on the number of unique developers contributing to the projects of each language.

Source: GitHub

Python dominates the ranking according to this graph. JavaScript drops to second place, although it is still widely used for frontend and backend development. TypeScript is growing strongly, especially considering that it was not even present in this ranking in 2014. Java, on the other hand, has lost several positions over the years, partly reflecting a decline in interest compared to more modern languages such as Python. Although C# is no longer at the top, it remains stable, while C++ and especially PHP have lost a lot of ground. Shell and C remain in the ranking; Go grows slightly, but Objective-C and Ruby have disappeared from the top positions. Objective-C has been almost completely replaced by Swift in iOS development. Ruby, once very popular thanks to Ruby on Rails, has lost relevance to JavaScript and Python.

We gathered all the data from the graphs into one table to compare the data:

Based on what we have seen so far, we can state that Python excels in no fewer than four out of six rankings. Where it does not occupy a first position, it is always prominent (second position for the IEEE index under Jobs and fourth for Stack Overflow). JavaScript is still dominant, with TypeScript growing strongly for scalable projects. Java and C++ maintain a high status. C is still important but is more niche. SQL skills are the most in demand for the job market (first position for the IEEE ‘Jobs’ index). Go and Rust continue to gain ground in their fields of application.

The analysis of programming language rankings in 2024-2025 clearly shows that the popularity of a language does not automatically imply that it is the best choice for every project. While Python, JavaScript and Java dominate in various fields, languages such as C, Go, Rust and SQL maintain a solid position in specific areas.

When choosing a language, it is crucial to consider the requirements of the project, required performance, scalability and long-term support, rather than relying solely on popularity rankings. For example, while Python is ideal for machine learning and scripting, C and C++ remain irreplaceable in embedded systems, and SQL is indispensable for database management.