Oracle Java’s share has dropped to 34% of Java distributions, while Amazon’s distribution has risen to 22%, according to New Relic’s 2022 State of the Java Ecosystem report.
Oracle Java remains a prominent player in the Java ecosystem, but its dominance is slipping, according to New Relic’s 2022 State of the Java Ecosystem report. Released on April 26, the report reveals a significant decline in Oracle’s share of the Java Development Kit (JDK) market over the past two years. In 2020, Oracle Java commanded approximately 75% of the market. By 2022, its share had dwindled to just 34.48%, reflecting a notable shift in preferences among developers.
The rise of alternative JDK distributions is highlighted in the report. Amazon, which held a mere 2.18% share in 2020, has seen its presence grow to 22.04%. This surge is attributed to the more restrictive licensing terms associated with Oracle’s JDK 11 distribution, which led many developers to seek alternatives. Oracle later adjusted its approach with JDK 17, released in September 2021, aiming to regain some of the lost ground by adopting a more open stance.
Other JDK distributions making an impact include Eclipse Adoptium, Azul Systems, Red Hat, IcedTea, Ubuntu, and BellSoft. Eclipse Adoptium holds an 11.48% share, followed by Azul Systems at 8.17%, and Red Hat at 6.05%. These distributions are part of a growing trend of diverse options available to Java developers, contributing to Oracle’s decreasing market share.
In terms of Java versions, the report indicates a shift toward Java 11, which has become the most commonly used version. Java 11, a Long-Term Support (LTS) release from 2018, is now utilized by over 48% of applications in production. This marks a significant increase from its 11.11% usage in 2020. In contrast, Java 8, another LTS version, holds the second spot with a 46.45% share, down from 84.48% in 2020.
The report also notes that non-LTS Java versions remain relatively rare, with only 2.7% of applications in production using them. Java 14, released in 2020, is the most popular non-LTS version, yet it accounts for just 0.95% of the applications monitored. This underscores a strong preference for stable, long-term support releases among Java developers.
Additionally, over 70% of Java applications reporting to New Relic are running in containers. G1 has emerged as the preferred garbage collector among developers who have moved beyond Java 8. The data, drawn from applications reporting to New Relic in January 2022, offers a snapshot of current Java usage trends but does not reflect global Java adoption. New Relic has ensured that the report maintains privacy and security by anonymizing and generalizing the data to prevent misuse.