Python vs Go: Which is Better

Codes are a key building block to everything you see on the internet. From websites to social media platforms, blogs, mobile apps, etc, they were developed through coding. In fact, you are reading this article on this website based on some written codes. While users may not take into account the work put into creating fully functional web applications, mobile applications, or APIs, it is a big deal for developers. 

This causes programmers to engage in conversations as to which programming language is best. In this tutorial, we will be dissecting two fantastic programming languages, Python and Go. We would look at instances where each of them shines and falls from a neutral standpoint. By the end of the tutorial, you will learn

• What is Python
• Why choose Python
• Features of Python
• Demerits of Python
• What is Go
• Why choose Go
• Features of Go
• Demerits of Go
• Head to head comparison between Python and Go

Let’s get into it. 

What is Python

Python is a high-level dynamically typed programming language that is used for various purposes such as software testing, machine learning, web development, hacking, etc.

The programming language has built-in data types, structures, objects and has a library that can be reused to create quick web applications. 

There are also a lot of open-source projects on GitHub that can be reused. When do not have to reinvent the wheel every single time. Python has an easy syntax that focuses on simplicity and readability. Some say python codes can be read like plain English making it a choice language for beginners. 

Why Choose Python

• Python is easy to learn and debug given its simple syntax 
• Python is a powerful OOP language
• Python is a lightweight language and can run on many platforms such as Windows, Linux, macOS
• Python has built-in libraries that can be used right away during development
• Python provides a great interface to almost all key public database management systems. This means that you can easily manage your DB with the knowledge of Python
• Python has its shell that it been auto-installed 
• You can interface with commercial database management system easily
• With Python’s interactive shell, you can carry out unit testing easily before deployment.
• Python has a lot of frameworks such as Django and tk toolkit that supports GUI 

Features of Python 

• Python is an interpreter which means codes are run line by line
• Python can be run on many hardware facilities with the same interface
• The learning curve of python is gentle. Suitable for complete freshers in programming
• Python provides a structure for small as well as large codes to be run
• Python has an interactive shell that allows you to do a test and debug your program
• It is a high-performing programming language
• Python allows you to integrate low-level libraries into its interpreter
• You can integrate other programming languages such as C, C++, or Java

Demerits of Python

• Python is way slower than Go or any C family programming language
• Python is not so great for mobile development
• Its database access has limitations
• Python is not the best choice for memory-intensive tasks as its dynamic typing feature would consume a lot of memory.

Now let’s talk about Go

What is Go?

Go (shorthand for Golang) is an open-source programming language developed by a team from Google in 2009. Go is a statically typed programming language and codes are compiled rather than interpreted in Python. Go can be seen as a Programming language under the C family. However, it was created to solve some of the abounding excesses and bulkiness in C and C++. Speaking of speed, Go is a very fast programming language. 

Besides, Go allows for concurring programming rather than Object-Oriented Programming. The fact that you do concurring programming in Go allows you to run multiple programs simultaneously without problems. Go however has some downsides. One of which is that it does not have as many libraries and no GUI library whatsoever. We would get into all these demerits going forward. Let’s see why you should choose Go

Why Choose Go

• Go is a high-performing programming language with a lightning-fast runtime
• Go was built to support massive scalability
• You can combine all libraries and modules into one binary file through static linking. 
• Go supports concurrency which implies that you can run multiple codes at once. 
• Go is a statically-typed programming language.

Features of Go 

• It is an open-source project by Google.
• The codes are compiled.
• Go is a powerful and fast programming language.
• It is a statistically typed programming language.
• It supports running multiple codes concurrently.
• It has a great package/module management.
• Go has great inbuilt libraries.
• Codes are relatively easy and readable.

Demerits of Go

• It may not the best platform to solve your common problems.
• It does not support exception handling.
• It is not a generic programming language.
• It has limited library/framework support.

Head-to-head Comparison Between Python and Go

With the discussion, you can now make an informed decision whether to choose Python vs Go lang. In any case, it’s all going to depend on your preference and intentions. 

If you’ve got any questions, feel free to leave them in the comment section and I’d do my best to answer them.