When the question “which programming language is better?” pan out, the evident answer is “it relies on.” Naturally, you would want to end up landing on one of the best tech jobs; however, you would like to do it without wasting your time and resources on a language which doesn’t get you to your dream job. With this on the mind, the question to ask is: The differences between Java and Python and which suits me better?
History unfolds and Definition
Java: It is considered to be one of the oldest and most popular programming languages in the world. It was developed by James Gosling in the year 1994 and he is known to be the original design creator of Java. It was developed at Sun Microsystems.
Definition of Java: Java is an object-oriented, class-based, high-level programming language. Its syntax is similar to C++ and it contains extensive libraries (packages). Java can be used to create web-application, desktop applications, and a lot more.
Python: It has its routes set way before Java, Python was thought up in the late 1980s by Guido Van Rossum in the Netherlands as an heir to ABC language. He was later known to be as the creator of the high-level programming language called Python and in the year 1991, it was released.
Definition of Python: It is an interpreted, high-level programming language designed to be simple to implement and easy to read. It is also object-oriented similar to Java and its simple easy to learn syntax emphasizes readability.
Now let’s move onto the differences between Java and Python, by comparing and contrasting them based on the following;
Fast but not Furious – Know which gives you the fastest application?
For anyone in this world the speed of an application plays a vital role in the day to day busy schedule they have, no one wants an application which takes a long time. Speed is also an essential factor in performance-critical applications like in banks a delay of 4 sec will create a major impact on the overall system performance.
Having this on the mind, Java takes less time to execute as it is a statically-typed language which means the syntax is checked at compile time. However, Python takes more time to execute as it is a dynamically-typed language which means the syntax is checked at the time of execution. Talking about the overall speed, Java bags the win.
Weigh your coding?
When we take Python, it has a clear advantage when it’s about the amount of code you need to write for performing the same task. For say we can point to how simple it is to print “hello world” in it when compared to Java. It automatically sets the type of variable to its value.
On the other hand, Java needs a type of variable to be defined before the code is compiled. Way of writing code in Java is more complex and more lines of code have to be written. For say in Java to print “hello world” same as we did in python, 3-4 lines of code is needed.
Which is better when it comes to the Database?
One of the important characteristic to compare these two is a database, Java database connectivity is widely used to connect and it is most popular too. Whereas Python’s database access layers are weaker compared to JDBC (Java Database Connectivity) which is why it is rarely used in Enterprises.
Therefore talking about Database, Java is the clear winner when compared to Python.
Practical Agility
Java imparts more undeviating restructuring support than python because it’s static type system and universality of IDE for the development of mobile and web applications. However, Python has become a popular choice for most of the recent technologies like Machine learning, data science, artificial intelligence, and IoT.
Let’s choose the easiest language for you to learn.
It is generally created as a newbie should start from a statically typed language and finish it in a dynamically typed language. This is not true! If this is the first-ever programming language you are learning, go for Python at first. Java involves usage of complex syntax and structures.
Python is a simple language written with facile syntax. You can even reuse an old variable in Python programming. This is why most users prefer Python over Java. Python is a more understandable and elementary language.
However, Java can be written at once and it can be executed everywhere. Both languages are easy to learn. It depends on your level of knowledge in programming. Go for the one which suits you!
Table of Contents
Is Python famous than Java?
According to the popularity of programming languages (PYPL), Python leads the list among all other languages including Java. Java and JavaScript follow the place next to Python.
Python is easy to understand and it’s interpreted. Interpreted language means that the command line interpreter responds to the command at that moment. Python continuously increases its value in the language sector. If it does the same way, Python will be at the lead shortly too.
It’s been years since Java came into practice. It competes with every other programming language and it is still staying at the top three for years. This proves that it is one of the most successful languages developed. It is fast and secure as well. Popularity is declared at the moment you are comparing programming languages. The future popularity is in no hands!
Companies which recruit Java developers
- Uber
- Amazon
- Airbnb
Companies which recruit Python developers
- ● Netflix
- ● Mozilla
- ● Instacart
- ● Udemy
- ● Spotify
In which cases are Java and Python used?
“Java is worn by all” is the felicitous phrase for Java. Every developer who works with application development uses Java. Mobile and Android applications need the support of complex structures and codes which Java expert in. Java includes numerous frameworks and libraries that help you to support your code for an application.
Python is a very famous and trending language because of its variable usages. It can aid you to develop applications and also work with machine learning, transfer learning and the entire Artificial intelligence sector. Both languages counterbalance each other’s usage.
For a machine learning application, Python is one of the best options as it provides various libraries for Artificial intelligence related projects. Java is used for large-scale applications. The codes don’t necessarily start from scratch when you are coding in Java.
What is the role for a Python and a Java developer?
Java jobs:
- DevOps engineer
- Scrum master
- Solution architect
- Full-stack developer
- SQL developer
- Back-end developer
- Front-end developer
Python jobs:
- Python developer
- Machine learning engineer
- Data science engineer
- Python full stack developer
- Deep learning engineer
- Artificial intelligence developer
Here you have some amazing briefs of Java and Python comparisons and pick what impresses you.
| JAVA | PYTHON |
| It is a prominent level programming language used generally to develop applications | It is also a high-level programming language developed by Rossum, generally interpreted and used for web and mobile applications. |
| .java file is the extension used for java | Python is saved using .py file extension |
| Java is a programming language typed statically. Static typing means to declare the variable type | Python is a dynamically typed programming language. It is not necessary to declare the variable type in a dynamic programming language |
| java is an Object-oriented programming paradigm | Python is a general-purpose multi-paradigm language |
| Java compilation and executing speed is faster than Python | Python is comparatively slower than Java |
| Java is connected with database with its database connectivity making it much popular | Access layers of Python are weaker than Java JDBC |
| To type a program, the syntax is a little complicated in Java | Python programming syntax is very simple compared to all other languages |
| The structure of the program is important | The structure is not a major concern in Python |
| The semicolon is the end of every line or there will be an error in the output | Semicolons and other punctuations are not necessary |
Talking about trends
Even after reading the previous topics, if you still can’t make up your mind. Have a look at this closely as this is about the trends of these two languages which may steer you in the right direction.
The search results of US and India in last two years has seen a drastic drift in the superiority of both languages, there has been a recognizable growth in the search of Python whereas Java has seen a gradual decrease in the graph.
Both experienced Java and Python engineers has seen steady growth in their respective salaries over the years. But when it comes to fresher’s Python has a slight edge over Java due to its increased demand in the market.
Conclusion
So here we are ending the fight of amazing two languages with a positive note. Programming languages argument will continue till all the languages lose the market. It is going to be for you to decide the perfect language for your destination.
It is hard to pick the best one between them. Python is better than Java and vice-versa in the pros mentioned. If you have read the previous article JavaScript frameworks, that would have topped your list. It all depends on your preference for application.
Pick the language that suits you and start working right away!
