5 popular programming languages to learn in 2022

Today, the IT industry as well as the demand for software engineers only continues to grow. But before jumping headfirst in the world of software innovations, take a look at which are the most popular programming languages for the upcoming year, and which will help you land your dream job. Here at Accedia, we try to use a large number of technologies, following the latest trends in software development. We encourage our team to keep learning and challenging themselves.

Still, we know that choosing where to start can be intimidating, especially for someone with little prior experience as a developer, so to make your life easier, we have listed the top 5 most popular programming languages you should definitely consider for a career in software development in 2022.

JavaScript

According to StackOverflow’s latest survey, JavaScript is the most popular programming language for 9 years in a row. This provides abundant opportunities, countless courses, online communities, and many possible career paths ranging from web and mobile development to games and web servers.

But first, let's take a step back and see what we know about JavaScript. This highly versatile and in-demand programming language was first created in 1995 as a scripting language for implementing complex ideas on a web page. JavaScript makes all your favorite websites dynamic, interactive, and user-friendly.

Benefits of learning JavaScript

JavaScript is one of the most popular programming languages for newcomers to software development. It is already installed on your browser, so you don’t need to spend time setting up a deployment environment. JavaScript is fairly easy to pick up as it has a more natural language feel to it. Yet it is a great step to more complex languages as it supports imperative, object-oriented, and functional programming. Being extremely versatile, JavaScript is way more than just a programming language. You can use it for back-end development with Node.js, create mobile applications with React Native and Ionic, or desktop applications with Electron. More and more people today choose Node.js for building video games or cloud-based applications by taking advantage of JavaScript’s abilities to create engaging visual effects. 

In our client's projects, we have used JavaScript for building solutions such as financial planning and analysis platform, vehicle repair management system (stores and predicts vehicle repairs), a portal for managing label creation, central management portal supporting integrations with platforms such as JIRA, Confluence, BitBucket, and many more.

Popular JavaScript frameworks

If you are looking to follow a career as a JavaScript developer, you need to familiarize yourself with some of the most popular frameworks. Our advice is to start with React – a more lightweight open-source and SEO-friendly framework primarily used for creating a responsive user interface. Other highly in-demand JavaScript frameworks are Vue.js – often used when building websites and cross-platform applications, and Bootstrap – for developing mobile-first solutions. If you are also looking to learn some back-end JavaScript frameworks, you should first and foremost focus on Node.js, Express.js, Next.js, and more.

JavaScript current version and future releases

Being among the most popular programming languages, JavaScript is dynamic and constantly improving. Earlier in the summer of 2021, we witnessed the latest release – ES2021/ES12, where some of the new additions include WeakRef, Promise.any, Numeric separators, String.prototype.replaceAll(), and more. The next annual update we are all looking forward to is ES2022 which will be approved in July 2022 after reaching stage four in March same year.

Java

Created in the early 1990s under the name Oak, Java was initially used for handling portable devices. Only in 1995 it was renamed and modified into what we know today - a general-purpose object-oriented programming language. It is simple and efficient, yet powerful, which makes it very popular in recent years. Currently, Java is used by over 10 million developers and 56 billion devices worldwide and is predominantly chosen for creating mobile and web applications (Ebay.com, Linkedin.com, Google.com), developing hardware devices, big data analytics, embedded systems, software tools, scientific applications, and more. Being used in such a wide range of technology sectors, Java offers the competitive advantage of project diversity and high wages.

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Benefits of learning Java

Java is another user-friendly, flexible, and easy to learn programming language. Some people think of it as a highly simplified version of C/C++, but without its multiple inheritances and other complexities.

The main features which make Java one of the most popular programming languages are its independence and portability. This means that you can write Java code on any device regardless of the operating system, hardware, environment, and so on and it will appear and execute on any other platform without modifications. This feature is also known as “Write once, run anywhere” (WORA). Java is also very secure which is a big reason why IT corporations such as Netflix, Amazon, Twitter, and more choose to work with it. Its scalability and stability allow it to be used on desktop, mobile, large industry servers, and applications. Those are just some of the reasons why we have chosen Java for many client projects including a digital banking solution, messaging framework, internal reporting tool, machinery condition monitoring system, and many more. 

Popular Java frameworks

Probably the most popular Java framework is Spring – a very lightweight, practical, and portable, it can be used for basically any project. It makes programming fast and secure and is great for processes like authentication and validation. Being the most in-demand Java framework, there is a lot of available documentation online that can help you get started. Another framework you should definitely familiarize yourself with is Hibernate. It offers greater data manipulation and allows high productivity for OOP projects. Digging deeper into different Java frameworks will allow you to focus more on the business logic instead of on the smaller pieces of code.

Java current version and future releases

Earlier in September this year, Oracle released Java 17 - the first LTS (Long term support) version since 2018. Delivering many security, stability, and performance improvements, updates for this current version will be available to customers until at least 2029. Some of the most appreciated features include the new context-specific deserialization filters, vector API, sealed classes, macOS rendering pipeline, foreign function & memory API, new Java record data type, and more. There are no major changes when it comes to syntax or functionality, but there are many improvements that software developers highly appreciate. If you are just starting out your journey with Java development, we encourage you to take a look at Java 17 as it is here to stay. As for Java 18 (non-LTS), we are expecting it in March 2022.

C#

Being one of the newest programming languages, created only in 2000, C# quickly created a great following and is continuously extending its community. The language is developed by Microsoft as an alternative and a direct competitor to Java, which it is very similar to. C# is a general-purpose object-oriented programming language derived from its predecessors C and C++. It is primarily used for building web-based applications, along with mobile, business applications, and games (Many Unity games are developed on C#). While you can use it with .NET, C# is also compatible with other open-source platforms. Its popularity is still growing due to its ability to adapt, answer the needs and requests of users, and enroll new features and innovations quickly.

Benefits og learning C#

C# provides a gentle learning curve and since it's closely tied to C, C++, and Java it will be fairly easy for you to jump from one language to the other and expand your skills even further. That way you will have the bigger picture behind the C programming logic and also it can look very impressive on your resume, especially if you are just starting your journey as a developer.

Its object-oriented characteristics make it ideal for creating easily scalable websites; Windows applications, customized specifically for Microsoft; mobile, or even console games using cross-platform technologies. If you are looking for a language from the .NET technology stack, then C# is the right way to go. It aids software developers to create complex development projects by simplifying the code and saving development time. At the same time, developed programs stay consistent due to the static coding nature of the language, which makes the code easy to read, adjust, and fix.

Being one of the most popular programming languages, C# is also widely used in Accedia. Some of our solutions based on the language include a reporting tool, a platform for digitalizing order and delivery management, and more.

Popular C# frameworks

When looking into frameworks, our advice is to start with ASP.NET MVC and Blazor, which are both web application frameworks. ASP.NET MVC will help you reach a fast, TDD-friendly development and create innovative and sophisticated applications. Blazor, on the other hand, is fairly new and offers rich UI experience as well as stable and consistent full-stack web development. If you are looking to dip your toe into machine learning, then maybe you should also check out Accord.NET, written entirely in C#. More highly in-demand frameworks include Identity Server, ASP.NET Web API, ASP.NET Core, Entity Framework, and more.

C# current version and future releases

Just a few weeks ago during the .NET Conf 2021 Microsoft released the latest version of C# - C# 10 along with the first LTS .NET version since 2019 - .NET 6. C# 10 is already available so if you are learning or about to start learning the language, this should be some exciting news for you! The new version allows both assignment and declaration in the same deconstruction and const interpolated strings; offers improvements of structure types and extended property patterns. All in all, the latest updates are focused on making C# more accessible and comprehensive, still allowing you to build more interesting and complex projects.

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Python

Created 30 years ago in 1991, Python is a high-level general-purpose programming language known for its natural language feel and easy-to-use syntax. Thus, it easily holds a leading position when choosing a very first programming language. Highly versatile and powerful, Python can be used for back-end web development, data science, machine learning, AI, IoT, robotics, automation, and much more. Proficiency in Python can open many doors for your career development all in highly in-demand and fast-developing sectors. Many tech giants today use Python for their products and services – Uber, Instagram, Google, Dropbox, and others. Some of the Python projects our software development teams have been working on include ETL solutions for the manufacturing industry, consolidated reporting systems, algorithmic trading platforms, and more.

Benefits of learning Python

As we already mentioned above, one of the main reasons Python is among the most popular programming languages is its accessibility and syntax simplicity. This doesn’t just mean you will be able to master it quickly, but you will also be able to write, execute, or debug complex code much faster. Something that will be of great help during your journey of learning Python is the incredibly active and supportive community online. You have access to support documentation and constant help from developers of all seniority levels, which is very useful when working with tight deadlines and are stuck on a problem.

Being a general-purpose language, Python can be used to create almost all kinds of development work you can think of. This includes some of the biggest trends in technology in recent years – cloud computing, machine learning, and more. Due to its out-of-the-box data analytics capabilities and the continuously growing number of frameworks, Python’s popularity will only increase. 

Popular Python frameworks

Python frameworks are three types: full-stack, micro-frameworks, and asynchronous ones. Some of the most widely used full-stack frameworks are Django, Web2Py, Giotto, CubicWeb, and Pyramid. If you are looking to pursue Python web development as a career we encourage you to take a look at them. Micro-frameworks are more lightweight and with limited functionalities. So, if you choose them for your project, you will have to spend a lot more time adding code and further requirements yourself. Some of those frameworks are CherryPy, Dash, Flask, and Hug. The asynchronous Python frameworks (AIOHTTP, Growler, Sanic, Tornado), on the other hand, can help you handle sets of concurrent connections and lately have been gaining more popularity.

python CURRENT VERSION AND FUTURE RELEASES

Earlier in October this year was released the latest Python version 3.10. Even though we didn’t see a huge number of new features there were definitely ones that will be highly appreciated by developers in the long run. Some of the most valuable upgrades include new error messages making debugging faster and easier, more specific type hints, calculating multivariable statistics, checking the length of sequences when using zip(), structural pattern matching, and more.

PHP

Another very popular programming language, especially among those who are about to start their software development career is PHP – a server-side general-purpose programming language. It is created based on C, which means that the transition between both languages can be done seamlessly. PHP is most widely used for developing web applications with a graphic user interface, but also for image processing, content management systems, and data analytics.

Benefits of learning PHP

PHP’s syntax and command functions are easy to learn which makes the learning curve not too steep. Once you start learning the language, fairly quickly you will be able to build your first web page. This brings us to the next advantage of PHP - scalability. This is crucial when you work on a web project and your client expects their website to be able to grow with time. PHP is also stable, secure, and helps developers write test cases and perform testing smoothly. Many web projects choose PHP as it is platform-independent and runs on Linux, Unix, Windows, and so on. It’s compatible with the majority of servers and supports almost all databases.

Popular PHP frameworks

As with any programming language, frameworks will help you write less code, follow best practices, use libraries for more common tasks, and so on. Probably the most in-demand PHP framework is Laravel – it is flexible, offers easy 3^rd party integrations, great security, and website performance. Also, it is ideal when building applications with more complex back-end requirements. More popular PHP frameworks these days are Symfony, CakePHP, CodeIgniter, Drupal, and more.

PHP current version and future releases

Every few years PHP launches one major release version. The latest PHP 8.0 which came out in 2020 brought us many new features, performance enhancements, and the most exciting change of all – the new JIT compiler. Still, we have PHP 8.1 already here (Launch date: November 25^th), which is promising many performance improvements and upgrades such as pure intersection types, “never” return type, new “read-only” properties, new sodium XChaCha20 functions, and so on. It is most definitely an exciting time for PHP and you won’t be disappointed by becoming a part of its community.

Final words

Whether you are brand new to software development or just wish to expand your skills, taking up a new programming language can open many doors in your career. However, different technologies and programming languages can offer different opportunities on the job market so being aware of what skills are currently in demand can be extremely beneficial.

In the end, regardless of which popular programming language you choose, one thing is sure – there is no better or more exciting time to start your career as a software engineer. Being a part of a community, driven by curiosity and innovation is very important for us. That is why we offer our team growth opportunities such as tech talks, workshops, academies, and initiatives such as the Innovation Development Center (IDC). If you are looking to start or expand your career in some of the most popular programming languages, take a look at our open positions and join us now!