Being a mobile app developer, whether you are looking for a job, want to develop an app for a specific platform, or want to keep your options as open as possible, you will need to conduct research to find the best app development language.
There are many app development languages which makes it difficult to find the best language for building an app. Don’t worry! To make things easier for you, we’ve divided the languages for app development into categories and shared their pros and cons, so you can choose the best language for your app based on the specific needs and goals of your project.
Nowadays, mobile apps have become an integral part of our daily lives, revolutionizing the way we communicate, work, and entertain ourselves. As the demand for innovative and exciting mobile applications continues to grow, application developers across the globe are constantly seeking the most efficient and effective programming languages for mobile app development projects.
According to a report, the market for app downloads is projected to grow at a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 13.4% between 2022 and 2030. This growth is expected to result in an estimated value of USD 565.40 billion by 2030.
While the number of app downloads has been increasing steadily from 2016 to 2022, in 2023, the global app downloads stagnated, reaching 257 billion downloads, as per a report by Statista, which indicates a one percent year-over-year increase.
In any mobile app development project, selecting the appropriate programming languages for app development is essential. The foundation of your mobile app determines how well it works, how easy it is to keep up, and how it can adapt to new needs and grow.
In today’s fast-changing tech world, picking languages for mobile application development that meet current needs and have lots of support is key. It’s also vital to think about how it can keep up with future changes and improvements.
With 2024 on the go, it’s essential to stay ahead of the curve and practice the top mobile app development languages that will dominate the market. In this blog post, we’ll explore the 17 best languages for mobile app development in 2024, highlighting their strengths, use cases, and why they should be on your radar.
What Is a Programming Language?
Before getting into the detailed structure of the top mobile app dev languages, let’s know what a programming language is. A programming language is a formal language designed to communicate instructions to a computer or computing device to perform specific tasks.
It consists of a set of rules, syntax, and semantics that allow developers to write code that can be interpreted or compiled into machine-readable instructions.
Programming languages for apps are the backbone of application development, enabling developers to deliver applications, websites, operating systems, and various other digital solutions. They provide a structured way to express logic, algorithms, and data manipulation, allowing developers to translate their ideas into functional mobile applications.
With a wider range of mobile development programming languages available, taking into account “what is the best language for mobile app development”?” becomes crucial to your project requirements. Let’s get acquainted with some of the top-performing languages for mobile apps.
Mobile app development is more significant than ever for businesses today due to its near-limitless potential of immersing consumers into using certain products/services. As a manager/entrepreneur/business leader, there’d be a lot of things you’d have your eyes on to increase your audience. But believe me, mobile apps are perhaps the best way to enhance your business presence. There’s a lot you could do with them.
With a mobile app, you could have push notifications sent on your customers’ phones so they could be up-to-date with the latest trends in your brand. Through data analytics integrated with mobile apps, you can gain valuable insights on how customers use the app and use the information to make your services even better. All along the way, your customers will always have a reason to come back to your brand as your mobile app remains installed on their smartphone.
If you are taking the plunge to build your mobile app to get the user’s attention – you need to focus on choosing the right technology, the right programming language, the right UX design tools, and most important of all, one of the top mobile application development companies to create a robust, innovative and user-friendly app for your business needs.
With several mobile programming languages to choose from, you have to consider multiple factors, pros, and cons, as well as the popularity of the language, before making your decision to build the most popular mobile app. Once you’ve chosen the best mobile programming language and built a business app, you step into the marketing stage which demands a suite of best marketing apps to scale up your development efforts.
Which programming language is used for application development in 2025?
Here’s the list of the most widely used programming languages for Android app development:
#1. Java
Java is the first official programming language used by businesses and developers to build mobile applications on Android. Also, the Android platform consists of APIs and Java libraries for you to write code or make use of them to build top-notch apps.
Although it is quite complex to understand this programming language, it provides robust features such as server-side programming and advanced program security to assist you in developing innovative Android apps, server apps, cross-platform apps, and so on. The reason why you should prefer the Java programming language for your Android app development project is that it’s highly flexible, portable, reusable, and versatile.
While Kotlin has emerged as the preferred language for Android development, Java continues to hold its ground as a stalwart in the realm of native mobile development language. With its widespread adoption and mature ecosystem, Java remains a trusted choice for building robust and scalable Android applications.
Many existing codebases and libraries are written in Java, making it a pragmatic option for developers. To determine whether Java or Kotlin is more suitable for your application development projects, please read our blog.
| Pros | Platform independence, strong community support, robust performance. |
| Cons | Verbosity, memory consumption, slower compilation. |
| Real-World Example | Used for Android apps like WhatsApp, Twitter, and LinkedIn. |
Java stands out as a powerful and popular language for Android app development. Originally created by Sun Microsystems, Java is now maintained by Oracle. Moreover, its modern features make Java successful for mobile development.
Kotlin is now the go-to language for Android development, but Java is going nowhere. Moreover, Java’s well-established tools make it a reliable option for building strong, adaptable Android apps. Popular apps developed using the Java programming language include Spotify, Twitter, and the New York Times.
Advantages of Java
- Object-oriented programming language.
- Rich libraries and frameworks.
- Strong security features.
- Write once, and run anywhere.
- Automatic memory management.
- Large toolset and IDEs.
- Multithreading support.
- Large open-source ecosystem.
Disadvantages of Java
- Impacts the performance compared to a native language.
- Larger app size.
- Uses more memory due to the JVM and garbage collection.
- Restriction to direct hardware access.
- Verbose code.
- Higher battery drain on mobile devices.
- It has limited UI development tools.
- Not Ideal for simple apps.
#2. Python
Python is the most popular open-source programming language among businesses to build best-in-class Android apps for smartphones and tablets. Python is well known for its simplicity and versatility. It can also be used to develop other applications, such as web development, desktop apps, and server-side scripting. Today, many Android app development companies prefer Python for developing mobile apps.
It offers a wide range of libraries and frameworks that allow you to use any feature of the platform in your app. The libraries available for creating Android apps using Python make it easier for you to create apps without having to worry about the underlying operating system or framework being used on the device because your Android application will run on top of the tech ecosystem.
Python is a general-purpose programming language popular for its readability and flexibility. It supports object-oriented programming and is suitable for small-scale as well as large-scale projects.
Beyond progressive web applications (PWAs), Python is useful for data analysis, data visualization, web development, task automation, and building various software applications.
Advantages of Python
- Rapid development.
- Vast collection of libraries and frameworks.
- Frameworks like Kivy allow for code reusability across various platforms.
- A large and engaged community.
- Open-Source and Free.
- There are less maintenance costs.
- Integration with other languages.
- Ideal for creating functional prototypes.
Disadvantages of Python
- There are limited native features.
- Higher battery usage on mobile devices.
- Larger app size.
- Slow performance due to its interpreted nature.
- Fewer resources or a smaller community compared to established native options.
- Debugging challenges.
- Susceptible to security vulnerabilities.
- Not Ideal for highly complex mobile app development.
#3. Kotlin
Kotlin is a programming language that has been gaining popularity in the past few years. It’s a modern, clean, and safe alternative to Java. It’s focused on making it easier for businesses and developers to write code more concisely and readable while also giving you the power to use Java libraries.
It is one of the best programming languages used by top companies since it will help you minimize errors in the code, improve compiler performance, alter changes in the existing Android apps, etc. You can use Kotlin for Android app development to have access to extensions to the standard library, including collections like List and Set, which makes it easy to use other libraries written in Kotlin without needing to rewrite your code.
As the officially endorsed language for Android app makers, Kotlin has swiftly risen in popularity due to its modern syntax, conciseness, and seamless interoperability with Java.
It offers developers enhanced safety features, Kotlin has become the go-to choice for Android programming and building efficient and maintainable Android applications.
| Pros | Concise syntax, interoperability with Java, reduced boilerplate code. |
| Cons | Smaller community compared to Java, slower compilation. |
| Real-World Example | Adopted by companies like Pinterest and Trello for Android apps. |
#4. C++
Many businesses and developers use C++ for Android App Development since it is one of the most widely used coding languages. It can be compiled down to machine code before running on the device. It is designed to be highly efficient, and it supports object-oriented and imperative programming styles.
It has a large standard library and a number of third-party libraries, making it easy to develop applications with a high level of functionality. C++ is an object-oriented language, which means that it uses classes and objects to represent data. This makes it easy to create reusable code and write programs that are more efficient than their counterparts written in other languages.
#5. C#
C# is a general-purpose, object-oriented programming language. It is used to develop computer software applications as well as Android apps for mobile devices. It supports multiple programming paradigms like imperative, declarative, and functional. It has been around for more than 20 years, and it has become the most popular choice for developing Android apps because of its cross-platform capabilities.
One of the most important things that makes C# an excellent choice for Android app development is that C# has access to the.NET framework. It provides a lot of tools and libraries to help you write code for Android apps, but it also includes classes and interfaces that can be used for debugging and testing.
C# (pronounced C sharp), developed by Microsoft, is a powerful object-oriented programming language. It is popular for game development, but its reach extends beyond games. C# is also used for command-line scripting on Android. Moreover, it also integrates with some low-code platforms like OutSystems and Kony through SDKs.
Advantages of C#
- Cross-platform development.
- Active developer community.
- Object-oriented programming language.
- Type-safe language that helps catch errors early in the development process.
- Offers excellent development tools.
- Easy integration with .NET libraries.
- Offers built-in security features to help protect apps from vulnerabilities.
Disadvantages of C#
- Limited to Microsoft tools.
- Performance overhead compared to native apps.
- Sometimes, apps are larger compared to native apps.
- There’s a certain level of vendor lock-in to Microsoft’s tools and ecosystem.
- Limited to certain platforms only.
- C# with Xamarin development has higher initial costs.
- Changes in C# code require recompilation.
#6. JavaScript
JavaScript is the most popular programming language for Android app development. It uses JavaScript to communicate with the Web and sometimes with other apps on the device. The language is known for its ease of use and its ability to interact with other languages. Its frameworks are well-suited for creating mobile applications that run on any Android platform.
The main advantages of using JavaScript for Android apps are that it can be used to detect device capabilities, improve performance, and has the ability to run on a wide range of devices and platforms. Instead of having to create two entirely different apps, you can create cross-platform mobile apps thanks to JavaScript.
#7. Corona
Corona is one of the best Android app development languages as it is designed to be quick and easy to use while being powerful enough to handle most Android application needs. It is based on Lua but has a new interpreter written in Java.
It’s lightweight and easy to use, so you don’t have to worry about memory management or performance issues. Corona allows you to write code for Android apps once and run them on multiple platforms without having to learn different languages. It supports multithreading, so your code will run faster when compared to other languages.
#8. TypeScript
Typescript is an open-source programming language developed by Microsoft. It is a modern version of JavaScript that can be used for both client-side and server-side applications. However, JavaScript has a number of constraints that make it very challenging to use it as a programming language for creating complicated mobile applications. If you’re looking for an advanced way to create apps for your business, then you should go for TypeScript.
#9. Dart
Dart is a programming language that is designed to run on the Android platform. It was created by Google and has been around for about 8 years now. It’s an open-source language, which means that anyone can use it and customize it to suit their needs for building Android apps.
The Dart programming language has many benefits for your business, including being strongly typed, having an emphasis on functional programming (FP), being very expressive, and the Dart Virtual Machine (VM) allows programs to run on multiple operating systems.
Google launched Dart, a UI-focused open-source programming language. It allows users to develop outstanding applications instantly and is a great substitute for JavaScript.
Along with the Flutter framework, the Dart programming language enables you to create native mobile apps for different platforms with a single codebase. This approach allows the creation of stunning, feature-rich applications with user interfaces that adapt seamlessly.
Advantages of Dart
- Speeds up development cycles.
- Rich set of customizable widgets.
- Efficient app performance even on older devices.
- Cross-platform app development support.
- Write less code, even for complex functionalities.
- Rich community support with numerous plugins and resources.
- Static type checking is conducted.
Disadvantages of Dart
- Limited IDE support.
- It is a relatively new language.
- Lack of widely used debugging tools compared to established languages.
- Performance dip due to complex UIs or heavy computations.
- Native features integration requires additional effort.
- Larger app size.
- Third-party library dependence.
#10. Ruby
Ruby has been used to build applications for Android since its creation in 1996, and today it powers many of the most popular apps in the Play Store. It’s flexible, simple to learn, and open source, so you can modify it as you need to fit your Android application’s needs. Ruby is a powerful and expressive programming language that lets you develop Android apps quickly and easily.
#11.Objective-C
Although largely overshadowed by Swift in recent years, Objective-C still maintains relevance in certain domains and legacy codebases within the iOS development community. With its dynamic nature and close ties to Apple’s frameworks, Objective-C remains a viable option for developers working on specialized projects or maintaining existing iOS applications.
| Pros | Mature, access to Apple’s APIs, well-suited for legacy projects. |
| Cons | Steeper learning curve, and less modern syntax compared to Swift. |
| Real-World Example | Powering legacy iOS apps like Airbnb and Dropbox. |
Each of these application development programming languages offers unique strengths and capabilities, catering to the specific requirements and preferences of developers and businesses alike.
Whether you’re targeting the Android or iOS ecosystem, selecting the right language is essential for achieving optimal performance, scalability, and user satisfaction in your native mobile app development programming.
#12.React Native
React Native was created by Facebook. It utilizes JavaScript to develop cross-platform mobile applications. React Native enables you to manage the user interface to collect and retrieve data, making it presentable to the end user.
In this approach, JavaScript takes center stage in controlling the behavior of the underlying native components. Thus, react native development has its advantages and disadvantages. Let’s examine them.
Advantages of React Native
- Faster development & cost-effectiveness.
- Large talent pool & active community.
- Hot reloading & live reloading.
- Native-like performance.
- Declarative programming style.
- Modular architecture.
- Suitable for cross-platform development.
- Responsive web design.
Disadvantages of React Native
- It has limited native features & access.
- Performance issues for complex apps.
- Debugging challenges.
- Security concerns.
- Potential compatibility issues.
- It has a limited component pool.
- One-way data binding.
- Reliable on third-party libraries.
#13.Swift
A Powerful and User-friendly Programming Language
Swift is one of the mobile application development languages, developed by Apple Inc. and helps apps run on various platforms, such as macOS, iOS, and watchOS, tvOS. It comes with various features, such as fast coding style, the safety of data storage, and easy-to-use syntax.
Moreover, Swift programming is interactive, and the syntax is very concise, which makes this language safer by design. It automatically removes unsafe code to have a highly secure coding environment. And for the best-integrated development environment, you can rely on Xcode.
Swift was introduced in 2014 as an Apple programming language. It was eventually available for development in Xcode the following year.
This language has quickly become the developers’ preferred language when building an iOS app. If you’re getting started with iOS app development, this one of the best programming languages to consider. The usage of Objective-C has declined since Swift’s arrival. For any modern applications built on Apple, Swift is heavily encouraged.
Compared to Objective-C and other programming languages, Swift is easier and more compact. Any Apple developer who already knows how to build with Objective-C shouldn’t have any issues switching to Swift.
#14.Cordova/PhoneGap
Cordova/PhoneGap and Ionic type frameworks are really just built on top of the Apache Cordova programming language. Hybrid mobile application development using this programming language are built by porting over a web experience into a native experience.
What does this mean?
This method allows you to build just like you would do for a website. So if you’re a web developer, you’ll feel right at home here. It uses Javascript, HTML, and CSS. That web environment is ported over natively to iOS and Android. The final software will work on multiple types of mobile devices.
Pros:
- Low barrier to entry
- Anyone with a web development background can easily start programming this way
- Learning curve is easy
Cons:
- Giving up a little bit of frame rate
If you’re developing mobile games, a machine learning native app, or augmented reality (AR) native app, this solution probably isn’t best programming language for you. Both of those require a higher frame rate.
