Python vs Java both are programming languages widely used and loved by developers because they are versatile and complete.
Before starting our Python vs. Java comparison, let’s contextualize the two languages under analysis:
Python
Python is a high-level, open-source, object-oriented programming language developed by the Dutchman Guido Van Rossum, in the late 1980s. It came about with the purpose of being a simple and versatile language.
These characteristics are so important that Python code seeks to comply with Zen Of Python criteria, a set of programming principles. Among these principles we value the readability and ease .
Time has demonstrated that this goal has been achieved, since it has become one of the most important programming languages on the market. Nowadays, it is one of the most loved by programmers.
Java
Java is also an object-oriented programming language based on C and C ++ languages. It was created by James Gosling and currently belongs to Oracle, one of the largest software companies in the world.
Its principle is to be a universal language : that is, it is capable of running on any platform or operating system and for any application.
Because of this, it has also become one of the main programming languages, mainly within the scope of mobile development.
Differences between Python and Java
Within programming, it is said that Java is everywhere. The language is used for both Android applications and web development. It is great for building complex, large-scale programs.
Therefore, its application involves desktop programs, embedded systems, mobile and business software. It is no wonder that Java is called the “corporate language”.
In turn, Python has a lot to do with areas of technology that are trending now and for the future , such as artificial intelligence ( Machine Learning and Deep Learning), data analysis ( Big Data and data science ), among others.
It allows you to automate various processes and work with different types of data. So, in that regard, Python is better.
When comparing Python vs Java, popularity has always been a point of much dispute. The two languages have always been at least among the 3 most popular.
Last year, the annual survey of Github developers found that Python surpassed Java as the second most used language .
This confirmed the trend released by the StackOverflow Developer Survey 2018, which ranked Python as the fastest growing programming language. Earlier versions of the survey already showed this upward movement.
So, in that respect, Python also wins.
Python is much more dynamic. When writing the code, we don’t need to define variables or symbols at the beginning and end of the code, making programming much closer to a natural language and resulting in fewer lines of code.
On the other hand, Java follows strict syntactic rules , in whom you need to explicitly declare variables. In addition, the language does not handle anomalies well, interrupting code compilation when it identifies an error.
Therefore, using Python is good for learning programming .
Of the two languages, Python is more cost-effective . It is used in small and medium scale projects, however, the frameworks and libraries allow adding resources to increase the code, increasing its scalability.
Java, in turn, is preferred by large corporations that have financial and time resources. Often, the reason for being chosen is just because it is more expensive, which supposedly would result in better quality.
However, this is not true. It is possible to make projects of very similar quality using both languages. In some cases, Java development can take even longer.
