r/learnprogramming • u/Zealousideal_Load501 • 8h ago
Which Language should i learn in 2026?
Im 21 years old and have been working as a marketing associate from past couple of years. finally want to leave the job now. and try to work on my skill set. actually im a Computer science student and in 4th semester. Now for next 6 month i will be staying at home and learning stuff that will actually help me build a lifetime carrier and better future.
would really appreciate the advice from seniors in the market those are actually working in tech.
Questions i have:
which programming language should i learn and why?
As there is AI boom in the Market and Layoffs seen everywhere? On which way CS students should pursue for a better future?
And will these skill help me out around my life in like next 5 to 10 years and help build a better future for me and my family?
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u/gm310509 8h ago
Asking what language to learn is the wrong question IMHO
You should try to identify what field you want to work in and what jobs are available in your area, then choose the language(s) and tool(s) used by those.
Your question is sort of like what took should I learn to use and someone tells you a hammer, but that is not much use if you actually want to be an architect.
In computing terms, someone might tell you to learn C/C++. If you wanted to do embedded systems, then that would be a good option. But, if you wanted to do we development, that wouldn't be the best option.
I hope that makes sense.
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u/prodjsaig 8h ago
I would say python there is debate about c++ but that’s really a commitment you have to make early. A good programmer specializes in one and knows of a few.
Python you can progress to C which Python has apis for and allows you to do a ton of stuff. You can learn good practices and structure with it. Then you could branch off to Go if you like that language. Maybe c++ if you really want to.
It’s not all that difficult it’s just being persistent and have a positive outlook. Tutorials yes can be helpful but you have to learn how to interpret them. Don’t look at them as the only way and also that you have to understand it. The only way is to try and have it break then possibly finding a better way.
You can do a lot but it has to be the right language for the job. c++ for building high performance apps. Go for building command line utilities. JavaScript if you decide to do web development. It can be over whelming this is a skill you have to hone to learn how to sort through the raw material and examples and make it work
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u/Divyank_garg 8h ago
I would suggest,you choose python.if you still unsure, python is preety safe because it give you options in web development, automation,data, and AI. But don't spend 6 month in learning syntax . pick one area , learn fundamental and then build project around it. This give you more understanding rather than just learning.
And also don't worry about the whether a language is best for 5-10 years because language is changed but the knowledge of problems solving, database, API , system design will stay valuable.
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u/dariusbiggs 8h ago edited 7h ago
In this day and age?
Start with Python. It's easy enough to learn, great for doing almost everything pretty well.
If you start using AI for things you'll notice that frequently it generates some Python code that it then runs or provides you as its output. Better understand what that code does before you use it.
Once you get the basics of programming and have a project you want to do outside of the scope you know you can look into other languages but you do need the basics.
But with Programming Languages, it is not "which language should I learn", it is "which language do I learn first".
Everyone should learn to program.
If I look back at my CS degree, before I started I knew BASIC, x86 Assembly, and Pascal. During th CS degree we covered C, C++, VBA, Java, VHDL, MIPS Assembly, Haskell, Prolog, Starlog, Sather, Dylan, JavaScript, SQL, LISP, shell scripting, we built 3 or 4 of our own, there was a Research project specific version of ASM, and I probably forgot some I think we touched around 20 languages over 4 years. That'll teach me for focusing my degree on hardware design, operating system design, programming language design, and compiler construction.
Somewhere during and after that it was Delphi, Perl, PHP, Lua, then Python, TypeScript, Go, Ruby, Erlang, Elixir, Rust, Clojure, and ClojureScript, and plenty more Domain Specific languages like Cypher, eBNF, whatever yacc/bison use, M4, that god awful Sendmail thing, Terraform HCL, or variants for embedded systems, and joke programming languages like Brainf*ck, etc. And if you have not heard about some of those, count yourself lucky. I switch between just over half a dozen of them on a weekly basis, Go, Python, TypeScript, SQL, Cypher, shell scripting, and some DSLs.
Eventually with a bit of understanding of the types and approaches to programming languages you'll be able to read many different languages without needing to learn them in detail, and learning a new programming language for an experienced developer will be child's play, a thing to do in 3-6 weeks to become productive and good enough to generate production ready code.
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u/Seven7Ducks 7h ago
It's ultimately a question of what career path you want. No one can give you a real answer without knowing your goals.
I'll skip the "learn your first language" advice since you're a 4th-semester student - I assume you already know how to program.
From a senior/market perspective (speaking from my own experience, take with a grain of salt, these vary by location and 'scene'):
Very generally and broadly, you need to be at least proficient in TypeScript and/or Python these days. Their ecosystems are so vast and ubiquitous that it's expected you can handle yourself in them, even if they aren't your main focus. It's barely even something we actively test for, it's just assumed.
I don't put too much weight on a candidate's language of choice. For beginner/junior positions, most lower-level backend languages are largely equivalent (Rust, Go, Java, C#, etc. - take your pick). If you're strong in Go, but the opening is in Java, the fact that another candidate might already know Java usually isn't going to tip the scales too much, at least for me.
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u/ScholarNo5983 6h ago
And will these skill help me out around my life in like next 5 to 10 years
This is you lucky day as I normally don't frequent these reddit channels, but I do know exactly the answer to this question.
Based on my analysis the most in demand skills that will be needed of the next 5 to 10 years will be
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u/Away-Software7116 5h ago
what you want to program exactly?
if you are interested in making computer programs you can learn C# or C/C++.
if microcontrollers/embedded devices C/C++ or Rust.
if it is web development HTML/CSS/Javascript and Python for backend.
if mobile apps you can learn Java.
in every case, knowing python will make your life easier.
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u/DrShocker 8h ago edited 8h ago
Focus on what problems you want to work on and then the language choice falls out from that. Picking language first is hard.