Python vs Java: What’s the dif­fer­ence?

The dif­fer­ence between Python and Java mostly lies in smaller details. While Python is known for its user friend­li­ness, Java is great for security and stability.

What are Python and Java?

Python and Java are two of the most versatile and popular pro­gram­ming languages out there. So if you’re thinking about learning a pro­gram­ming language, both of these languages should make it on to your short list. Numerous companies swear by these two languages and achieve great results with them. Each language also has its own large community of devotees. And indeed, the two languages have a lot in common. But if you’re con­sid­er­ing which language to learn or looking for the best solution for an upcoming project, you’ll want to take a closer look at the dif­fer­ences between Python and Java.

What are the ad­vant­ages and dis­ad­vant­ages of Python?

Before we take a closer look at Python vs Java, we’ll introduce each of the pro­gram­ming languages and talk about their ad­vant­ages and dis­ad­vant­ages.

Python was developed in 1991 by Guido van Rossum and pri­or­it­ises sim­pli­city and read­ab­il­ity. Compared with most other pro­gram­ming languages, it’s very easy to un­der­stand. Thanks to its close con­nec­tion with English, it’s also re­l­at­ively easy to learn and derive. Python is object oriented and platform in­de­pend­ent and is primarily used in software de­vel­op­ment, in AI and machine learning and for web apps. It’s open source and is con­stantly being developed by the Python Software Found­a­tion. You can find an in­tro­duc­tion to the language in our Python tutorial.

Ad­vant­ages of Python

• Read­ab­il­ity: Python can be learned re­l­at­ively quickly, meaning you’ll quickly feel you can suc­cess­fully use the language. If you want to implement a small project in a short amount of time without any previous knowledge, all roads will lead to Python. Moreover, the language’s clear syntax makes it well suited to col­lab­or­a­tion. Ex­per­i­enced pro­gram­mers can quickly get a sense of code written by someone else and start working on it right away.
• Flex­ib­il­ity: Python is a very versatile and flexible language. The main reason for this is its platform-in­de­pend­ent structure. That means that it’s fully possible to start a project on one operating system and use the result on another system. The object-oriented approach and the use of a portable in­ter­pret­er also con­trib­ute to its flex­ib­il­ity.
• Open source: Open-source prin­ciples have long been at Python’s core. That means that the language is not only free and open source but that it’s con­stantly being developed. This keeps the language modern and in step with all the most recent de­vel­op­ments.
• Community: So who’s working on these new de­vel­op­ments? Python has a huge community of de­velopers who work on doc­u­ment­a­tion and op­tim­isa­tion and are there to answer beginners’ questions.
• Business: This approach appeals not only to smaller de­velopers but also to large companies. Google, Spotify, Uber and Netflix all use Python in one form or another. The success of these companies speaks volumes about the language and its future prospects.

Dis­ad­vant­ages of Python

• Speed: Python is slow relative to the com­pet­i­tion. This won’t be as obvious for small projects but will likely be no­tice­able when it comes to more com­pre­hens­ive apps.
• Mobile devices: Python also falls short when it comes to de­vel­op­ing for mobile devices, which is why re­l­at­ively few mobile apps are written with Python. And in fact, iOS and Android cannot natively run Python apps.
• Errors: Python is very secure, but its dynamic approach means that many errors aren’t detected before runtime. That means that programs written in Python require more testing.
• Crossover: No other pro­gram­ming language is as simple as Python. However, that also means that it doesn’t play well with other languages. If you want or need to switch to another language in the middle of your project, you’ll have to start from scratch.

What are the ad­vant­ages and dis­ad­vant­ages of Java?

Java is slightly younger than Python. The class-based, object-oriented language was released in 1995. It’s es­pe­cially popular for mobile apps, web servers and embedded systems. Java is also platform in­de­pend­ent and thus very flexible. The language is under the GNU General Public License, making it freely available and editable. It’s a re­gistered trademark of Sun Mi­crosys­tems and Oracle.

Ad­vant­ages of Java

• Port­ab­il­ity: Java is platform in­de­pend­ent and therefore very portable. Re­gard­less of which platform you write your Java code on, you can easily use it in other systems or pass it along to co-workers. This in­de­pend­ence fa­cil­it­ates a more effective workflow.
• Libraries: There are numerous functions and libraries for Java, meaning there will often be a pre-existing solution you can use. They’re tested and proven, which means less work for you.
• Security: Security is a top priority with Java. In­di­vidu­al security levels can be freely con­figured and don’t have any negative effects on per­form­ance. Code that’s not secure can be tested and checked in a contained en­vir­on­ment, which will eliminate the risk of damaging files and systems.
• Community: Java also has a large and engaged community that creates doc­u­ment­a­tion and is there to help if you get stuck. This means that bugs and other problems can be quickly iden­ti­fied and solved.

Dis­ad­vant­ages of Java

• Wordiness: Java is a bit simpler than many other languages thanks to its use of terms from everyday language. This can of course be an advantage, but also has the downside that lines of code can get very long and wordy.
• Per­form­ance: Java’s per­form­ance doesn’t always meet ex­pect­a­tions. This is because it uses a re­l­at­ively large amount of memory. When automatic memory man­age­ment is being used (that is, when a program thread isn’t executed), even more memory is used. Languages that are compiled directly into machine code are faster.
• GUI for desktops: Java leaves a lot to be desired when it comes to graphic in­ter­faces for desktops. The language is very well suited to mobile en­vir­on­ments but has some catching up to do in desktop en­vir­on­ments.

What sets Python and Java apart?

Now that we’ve looked at the two languages in­di­vidu­ally, let’s get into the dif­fer­ences between Python and Java.

Syntax

The most obvious dif­fer­ences between Python and Java can be found in their syntax. Python is known for its short and simple syntax. Many terms are taken from English, and you’ll usually just need a few lines for code. Java, on the other hand, is sig­ni­fic­antly more complex, typed and requires knowledge of classes and keywords. The rules are very strict, meaning that even the smallest of errors will make the code un­read­able.

Here’s an example of Python’s Syntax:

>>> print("Hi! This is Python.")

And this is the cor­res­pond­ing code in Java:

class Hello {
    public static void main/String[] args) {
        System.out.println("Hi! This is Java.");
    }
}

Other dif­fer­ences between Python and Java

In addition to syntax, Python and Java also differ with regard to the following:

• Per­form­ance: Both pro­gram­ming languages have room for im­prove­ment when it comes to per­form­ance, but Java is faster overall. This is primarily due the fact that Java takes a static approach while Python is dynamic. Java processes code in advance and delivers it as byte code, whereas Python compiles it at runtime.
• User friend­li­ness: This one clearly goes to Python. From simpler setup to day-to-day work in the language, Python is the more user-friendly and simple language. Java is much more com­plic­ated and comes with a higher learning curve.
• Im­ple­ment­a­tion: Java is a compiled language. It trans­lates codes com­pletely into machine language and then executes it. Python is an in­ter­preted language. State­ments are trans­lated and directly executed. This makes the language clearer but also slower.
• Stability: Both languages are very stable, but Java has earned a par­tic­u­larly good repu­ta­tion in this area over the years. Numerous security features, analysis tools and com­pat­ib­il­ity with older versions ensure that Java-based projects are well-protected and will run stably.

Which language wins in Python vs Java?

So which language comes out ahead? That will vary from case-to-case and usually hinge on details. For a quick job and quick success, Python will probably be the best choice. Work in large teams will also be easier in Python. However, Java might be the choice of ex­per­i­enced pro­gram­mers who value stability, can navigate more complex syntax and are working on mobile apps.