Go vs Java Popularity, Salaries, Performance, Features, and Applications
If you are interested in building command line interfaces, cloud & network services, web applications, DevOps, and Site Reliability, you should learn Go over Java.
Go is a statically typed, compiled programming language that makes it easy to build secure, scalable systems.
On the other hand, if you want to work on big data, web applications, cloud-based app development, and Android apps, you should learn Java.
Java is a general-purpose high-level, class-based, object-oriented programming language that is designed to have as few implementation dependencies as possible.
Java is intended to let programmers write once, run anywhere (WORA). This means that compiled Java code can run on all platforms that support Java without the need to recompile.
Comparing programming languages and choosing which one to learn or use for your next project can be tricky.
There are many factors to consider in order to choose the right programming language for the job you want to do.
Popularity, opportunities, type of projects, salaries, resources, learning curve, etc. are some of the factors that many people consider when comparing programming languages and choosing which one to learn or use.
Here are some of the comparisons and considerations you should make when choosing to learn a new programming language.
GO VS JAVA POPULARITY
Comparing the popularity of programming languages is not an easy task because each programming language is different.
Although the usage of many programming languages may intersect, different fields and projects may require the use of different programming languages.
Plus, other programming languages have been around for a longer time than others, giving them more time to be tried and tested, so, bear that in mind.
If you want to learn a programming language solely for its popularity among developers, you should learn Java over Go.
Generally, Java is more popular than Go. As of July 2023, the TIOBE INDEX ranks Java as the 4th most popular programming language while Go is ranked 14th.
According to a Stack Overflow survey of 2023, Java is the 7th most commonly used programming language, it is used by 22.42% of developers.
On the other hand, Go is the 13th most commonly used programming language, it is used by 13.27% of developers.
Although Java is more popular than Go, Go is admired by a lot of developers than Java, Go is admired by 62.45% of developers while Java is admired by 44.11% of developers.
Ultimately, if your choice of which programming language to learn depends on popularity, you should learn Java over Go.
Also read Can Go be used for Game Development
GO VS JAVA SALARY
Another popular criterion that many people use to compare programming languages and as an incentive to learn a new programming language is salary.
Salaries for developers differ from one company to the other and from one country to the other.
Experience is another factor that comes into play as far as salaries are concerned.
The more experience you have with a certain technology or programming language, the more likely you are of getting a higher salary.
Generally, Go developers get higher salaries than Java developers. Glassdoor reported that in the United States, Go developers with 1 – 3 years of experience get an estimated salary of $116,881 per year.
On the other hand, Java developers with 1 – 3 years of experience get an estimated salary of $88,468 per year, about $28,200 less than Go developers.
According to a Stack Overflow survey of top-paying programming languages, Go developers get a median salary of $92,760 per year and Java developers get a median salary of $72,701 per year.
So, if the salary is your major incentive for learning a programming language, you should learn Go over Java, because you are more likely to get a higher salary as a Go developer than as a Java developer.
Here are 10 Programming Languages that Pay more than $90,000
JAVA VS GO WHICH ONE IS EASIER
Some programming languages can be learned more easily than others.
If you want a programming language that is beginner-friendly and can be used to develop different types of applications, you should learn Go over Java.
Go is generally considered to be easier to learn than Java. This is because Go has a simpler syntax and semantics than Java.
Go also has less boilerplate code than Java, which means that there is less code that you need to write to get started.
On the other hand, Java is verbose, this means that you have to write a lot of lines of code to do something that you can achieve in a few lines of code in other programming languages.
The good news is that there are plenty of helpful resources for both Java and Go to help you learn the languages.
The Java and Go communities are very active and helpful, in case you get stuck with something.
Also read, Is Java Enough to Get a Job?
GO VS JAVA PERFORMANCE
IS GOLANG FASTER THAN JAVA
In terms of performance, Go is generally faster than Java. There are specific cases where Java can be more performant than Go but generally Go is faster than Java.
Go is a highly performant language. Go programs are compiled into native binaries bound to the operating system, this makes Go programs fast and efficient.
Go has built-in support for concurrency, which allows Go programs to run multiple tasks at the same time.
This can also help to improve the performance of Go programs by allowing them to take advantage of multiple cores.
GO VS JAVA FEATURES AND APPLICATIONS
GO
Go has great unique features that make it suitable for building command line interfaces, cloud & network services, DevOps & Site Reliability, etc.
Go has features such as built-in concurrency, memory safety, garbage collection, structural typing, and a robust standard library that makes development quick and straightforward.
Go powers some of the complex applications made by companies like Twitter, Uber, Cloudflare, American Express, Capital One, PayPal, Meta, Wild Life, Allegro, Dropbox, Netflix, Trivago, Microsoft, Salesforce, Twitch, Stream, Google, Riot Games, Target, and many others.
JAVA
Java helps developers to write once and run everywhere (WORA). This makes Java very popular in the enterprise world. It is suitable for Android app development, web development, big data, micro-services, etc.
Another great feature of Java is its interoperability with other languages like Kotlin and Scala. This makes it easy to call Kotlin or Scala code in a Java codebase and vice-versa.
As a result, developers can add more functionality to their Java codebase seamlessly using Kotlin or Scala.
Java powers some of the complex applications developed by companies like Google, Oracle, Airbnb, Intel, Amazon, eBay, Microsoft, Pinterest, Uber, LinkedIn, Spring, Flipkart, TripAdvisor, and many others.
SHOULD I LEARN GO OR JAVA
Once you have compared the languages and evaluated all the factors, you can choose which programming language to learn or use depending on the factors that are on your side and what you want to build.
If you are interested in building command line interfaces, cloud & network services, web applications, DevOps, Site Reliability, and potentially getting a high salary, you should learn Go over Java
If you want a popular language that can help you work on big data technology, cloud-based applications, web applications, distributed applications, and Android apps, you should learn Java over Go.