Python popularity reaches an all-time high

Tiobe estimates Python could surpass Java and C in popularity in three to four years

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(Image: Python)

11 June 2019

Python has reached its highest rating ever in the monthly Tiobe index of programming language popularity. On its current trajectory, Tiobe noted, Python could leapfrog Java and C in the next three or four years to become the index’s most popular language.

The June Tiobe rating of 8.53% for Python tops its previous high of 8.376% achieved last December. Python remains in third place behind Java and C. Python offers an ease of use that Java and C do not and is attracting a lot of newcomers, Tiobe reasoned.

Tiobe’s index bases its ratings on a formula that assesses searches related to programming languages in search engines such as Google, Yahoo, and Bing. Specifically, ratings are based on the number of courses, skilled engineers, and third-party vendors pertinent to a language. Python already is at the top of the rival Pypl (popularity of programming language) index, which bases ratings only on how often language tutorials are searched in Google.

Also on the rise in the June Tiobe index, Apple’s Swift language is ranked 11th, with a rating of 1.419%. Swift was ranked 15th at this time last year and 18th last month, while its predecessor Objective-C language ranked 12th this month with a rating of 1.391. Tiobe expects Objective-C to drop out of the top 20 within two years.

The June Tiobe index has the Groovy language ranked 14th, with a rating of 1.3%. This compares to a ranking of 60th one year ago, with a barely measurable .19 rating. Tiobe sees Groovy as having been boosted by its use in writing scripts for the Jenkins continuous integration tool but questions whether Groovy can keep its top 20 position.