Kotlin by JetBrains: Now Among Tiobe’s Top 20 Languages
In September 2023, Kotlin, developed by JetBrains as an alternative to Java, achieved a significant milestone by entering the top 20 in Tiobe’s programming language popularity index with a 0.90% rating. This marks a notable ascent for Kotlin, reflecting its growing acceptance and adoption within the developer community. Kotlin’s rise can be attributed to several factors, including its endorsement by Google in 2017 as a primary language for Android app development, alongside Java.
Tiobe’s ranking methodology evaluates metrics such as the number of engineers using the language, educational courses available, and the presence of third-party vendors across various search engines. Despite its rapid growth, Kotlin faces comparisons to Java, which remains deeply entrenched due to its extensive ecosystem of programmers, educational resources, and libraries.
According to Tiobe CEO Paul Jansen, Kotlin’s challenge lies in maintaining its newfound position amidst Java’s dominance. The fluctuating nature of language popularity indices underscores the competitive landscape within the programming community.
For instance, while Kotlin surged to 20th place, the Julia language, which recently entered the top 20, slipped to 25th in the same index update. This volatility highlights the dynamic nature of language preferences and the ongoing evolution in developer tool choices.
Kotlin, the Java language alternative from JetBrains, has made its way into the top 20 in Tiobe’s monthly index of programming language popularity. The just-published September 2023 edition of the Tiobe Programming Community index has Kotlin ranking 20th, with a .90% rating. It is believed to be the first time Kotlin has ever ranked so high in the index, notwithstanding its surging popularity in 2017, when Google declared Kotlin a first-class language and viable alternative to Java for Android development.
Tiobe’s popularity ranking is based on a formula that assesses the number of engineers, courses, and third-party vendors related to each language, derived from popular search engines. Kotlin’s rise traces many years of steady growth of the Kotlin community. Today, Kotlin is a “fierce” competitor to Java, according to software quality services vendor Tiobe.
“The main argument against Kotlin is that Java is a more established language thus having more programmers, books, training courses, libraries, etc,” Tiobe CEO Paul Jansen said. “Let’s see whether Kotlin can keep its top 20 position the next few months.” Elsewhere in the Tiobe index this month, the Julia language, which reached the top 20 for the first time last month, dropped back to 25th.