We all know how important Android apps are in our daily lives. The majority of services are now online and have Android applications for their users. Everything is possible because of applications, whether it’s seeing your emails, listening to music, texting someone, or ordering food or other items. We’ll go over some of the greatest programming languages for Android app development in this article.
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Programming Languages
Programming languages are a means of interacting with or communicating with your computer or device. As we all know, computers only understand binary at the machine level, that is, 0s and 1s. A programming language is required to turn our instructions into a machine-understandable language. As a result, programming languages play an important role in communicating with devices and systems and performing desired activities.
When it comes to Android devices, we need Android applications to communicate with them. We’ll need to learn a programming language to create those Android apps. The Android operating system is written mostly in Java, with low-level libraries written primarily in C++.
Top 8 Programming Languages for Android App Development
Several programming languages are currently available to assist you in developing Android applications. Some of the most popular programming languages for android development are listed below.
Java
The official language for developing Android applications in Java. However, Java is being phased out in favor of Kotlin, a more compact and safe language. Java is a popular programming language, and most of the apps available on the Google Play Store are written in it.
Function overriding, constructors, containers, classes, objects, threads, exceptions, null pointers, and other notions are all part of the Java language. If you’re a novice looking for a simple language to learn, Java might not be the greatest option.
Even though Java appears to be difficult, it is a fantastic language to learn and implement. Knowing Java will also aid you in comprehending topics such as Object-Oriented Programming and will give you an advantage while creating servlets using JSP (Java Service Provider).
Kotlin
Kotlin is one of the most popular and emerging languages for creating Android apps. It’s an open-source programming language that lets you build more secure and concise programs. It has recently attracted a lot of interest in the market, and newcomers to Android found it quite simple to learn and execute.
Zomato, the well-known food delivery app, may be recognizable to you. Developers at Zomato utilize Kotlin to create their apps. With the help of Kotlin, Zomato was able to considerably cut the length of their application’s code.
In comparison to Java, Kotlin has a considerably simpler syntax and requires fewer lines of code. In the year 2019, Google declared the brand-new Kotlin as an approved Android application development language. Kotlin, on the other hand, can run on the Java Virtual Machine and can be used instead of Java in Android development.
Dart
Dart is one of the most current languages developed by Google for the creation of Android applications. Dart’s stable version was introduced in 2021, and it’s presently gaining a lot of traction in the market. Dart is most commonly used to create client-side applications. It has a syntax that is comparable to C and allows for object-oriented programming.
Dart syntax is simple in comparison to other languages, and it’s utilized to create some stunning user interface elements. Because of the Flutter Framework, it has grown in popularity. Flutter, like a dart, is well-known for its ability to create cross-platform applications. To put it another way, you can create apps for Android, iOS, and even desktop applications. Dart’s community is currently growing, and it will gradually establish itself as one of the top languages for Android development.
C#
C# is also one of the most popular programming languages for developing Android apps. C# has a syntax that is quite similar to Java, and it also has garbage collection that is similar to Java. Because C# has a well-known garbage collection mechanism, there are fewer chances of memory leaks.
Due to a lack of platform support, C# was unable to establish a strong foothold in Android development. C# was first only supported in.NET framework systems such as Windows. This difficulty has been solved with the introduction of Xamarin and Unity. The use of C3, Xamarin and Unity give an android SDK that aids in the development of android applications. Cross-platform applications are created with Xamarin and C#. Simultaneously, Unity is well-known for creating cross-platform games.
C++
The Android Native Development Kit (NDK) is used by C++ to create Android applications. Both C++ and the NDK are required to create an app. The syntax becomes extremely complicated, and some of the features necessitate a thorough understanding of the C++ core libraries. As an alternative to C++, you may use Java or Kotlin.
Python
Python is another programming language that may be used to create outstanding Android apps. However, you can’t provide native features with Python. In Python, there is a library called “Kivy” that aids in the development of Android applications. Even though Python is a sophisticated language, I would not recommend using it for Android development because it is not as suitable as other languages.
Lua
Lua is a less popular programming language these days, but it is still a viable option for creating Android apps. It’s most commonly used with the Corona SDK, which includes tools for creating native Android apps. Corona Simulator and Corona Native are the results.
Corona SDK is a simple to learn programming language that is mostly used to create graphical applications and games. You may, however, use it to create native apps as well.
JavaScript
Most web developers are familiar with JavaScript. This client-side scripting language is most commonly used in web development, and many developers are familiar with it. There are various frameworks for JavaScript, including React, Vue, and Angular. These frameworks can also be used to create Android apps.
React Native and Ionic are two good examples of this, both of which employ Javascript, HTML, and CSS to allow you to create cross-platform applications. If you’re a web developer wishing to branch out into android development, you should use React Native or Ionic as your development framework.
Why everyone uisng Kotlin?
As previously stated, Google now considers Kotlin to be the official language for Android development. It is not only the official language, but it is also quite easy to learn and understand. Kotlin creates code that is both concise and secure. When writing Kotlin code, you don’t have to bother about semicolons. The ‘!’ mark is used to deal with the null pointer exception.
Kotlin-based application
Kotlin is one of the most popular programming languages nowadays, and many app developers utilize it to create their apps. Zomato, for example, uses Kotlin to shorten their application’s code and make it more simple and secure.
Summary
This post introduced you to programming languages that aid in the development of Android applications. You witnessed how programming languages are used to create Android apps. After that, you saw the top eight programming languages for Android development. Later on, you learned the specifics of each programming language and how to use them for Android development. Finally, you learned about Kotlin and the advantages of utilizing language to develop Android apps.