TIOBE Software has named Python the “Language of the Year 2024,” growing in popularity every month, surpassing that of its competitors.
Python Voted Programming Language of the Year 2024!
TIOBE, the creator of the eponymous index that measures the popularity of programming languages, has awarded Python the title of “Programming Language of the Year 2024.” In one year, Python has seen a sharp increase in popularity, jumping 9.3%, far ahead of its competitors, which have also seen strong growth: Java (+2.3%), JavaScript (+1.4%), and Go (+1.2%). According to Paul Jansen, CEO of TIOBE Software, “Python is now everywhere and is the undisputed default language in many areas. It may even become the highest-ranked language in the history of the TIOBE index.”
The only serious drawbacks of Python are its lack of performance and the fact that most errors occur at runtime, Paul Jansen says.
Aside from Python’s strength in the web development landscape, other notable developments occurred in 2024: C declined significantly in popularity, overtaken by C++ and Java. PHP also said “its final farewell” to the top 10, replaced by Go, which is strengthening its position. Finally, Paul Jansen is keen to note the interesting gains of “two promising languages”: Zig, a competitor to Rust, and Mojo, “the faster Python,” which entered the top 100 in 2024.
Top 20 Most Popular Computer Languages as of 2025
Between January 2024 and January 2025, we saw Python’s popularity climb by almost 10 points, reaching 23.28% of searches. C++ and Java vie for second place on the podium, each with a +10% increase over the past year. Finally, two programming languages were particularly scrutinized in 2024: Rust and Kotlin. The former continues to gain popularity, even if “its steep learning curve” can be discouraging. Kotlin, for its part, “disappointed,” losing “perhaps permanently” its place in the top 20 in 2025.
The 20 most popular programming languages among developers in 2025:
- Python (= position identical to 2024)
- C++ (+1)
- Java (+1)
- C (-2)
- C# (=)
- JavaScript (=)
- Go (+4)
- SQL (+1)
- Visual Basic (-1)
- Fortran (+2)
- Delphi/Object Pascal (+2)
- Scratch (-2)
- PHP (-6)
- Rust (+5)
- MATLAB (-1)
- Ruby (+2)
- Assembly language (-2)
- R (+5)
- Swift (-3)
- COBOL (=)
How does the TIOBE index work?
Updated monthly since its creation in 2002, the TIOBE index assesses the popularity of programming languages based on the number of searches performed on around twenty search engines, ranging from Google to Wikipedia, including Bing and Amazon. TIOBE Software specifies that this index is not intended to designate the best programming language or the one that has produced the most lines of code. However, it can be a useful tool for assessing the relevance of a language to a project before it begins.
