Stack Overflow: Kotlin overtakes Python and enters top 5 most loved languages among developers

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Stack Overflow: Kotlin enters the top 5 most loved programming languages among developers

According to the annual Stack Overflow developer survey for 2022, the Kotlin programming language has broken into the top 5 most loved languages among professional developers. This year, Kotlin took 4th place, surpassing heavyweights such as Python (5th place) and C++ (6th place).

The survey, which involved more than 73,000 developers from 180 countries, showed that 63.5% of respondents using Kotlin expressed a desire to continue working with it in the future. This is 4% more than in 2021, when Kotlin held the 6th position. The leaders of the ranking remain Rust (87% loyalty), Elixir (74%), and Clojure (71%).

Experts attribute the growth in Kotlin's popularity to several factors. First, it is the official language for Android development, which ensures a huge audience. Second, Kotlin is actively displacing Java in backend development due to its conciseness and type safety. "Kotlin is Java, but without its drawbacks. It allows you to write less code and avoid NullPointerException," commented Alexey Zuev, lead developer at Tinkoff, on the results.

Interestingly, Kotlin showed growth not only in the "most loved languages" category but also in the "most used" category. Over the year, the share of developers using Kotlin as their primary language grew from 8% to 11%. The growth is especially noticeable in the segment of enterprise applications and fintech.

At the same time, Python, despite its drop in the affection ranking, remains the most popular language for beginners and data specialists. However, Kotlin demonstrates a confident trend: if in 2020 it was in 10th place, by 2022 it is already among the elite.

"Kotlin is not just a trendy language. It is a pragmatic choice for those who want to write reliable and maintainable code. Its compatibility with Java allows you to gradually migrate projects without rewriting everything from scratch," notes Anna Smirnova, CTO at the startup DocDoc.

Overall, the results of the Stack Overflow 2022 survey confirm: Kotlin has ceased to be a niche language and has turned into a serious player in the software development market. If the trend continues, in the coming years it may compete for a spot in the top three.