Golang vs Python: Which is Better for Your Project?

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Blog Summary:

Choosing between Golang and Python can feel like standing at a crossroads. While Python offers versatility and simplicity, Golang ensures speed and scalability. Businesses often struggle to pick the right one. This comparative blog on Golang vs Python offers expert guidance to turn this confusion into clarity, helping companies select the ideal language for their unique goals.

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Golang and Python are two high-profile programming languages—both dominate in their ways, but what happens when you pit them against each other?

Python is a tried-and-true favorite for data scientists and web developers worldwide because of its flexibility, versatility, and simplicity. Golang powers Google’s high-performance systems, thriving in speed, scalability, and efficiency.

However, five years from now, their differences could potentially determine your business’s success. When choosing between the conquest of Golang Vs Python, both are powerhouses and promise powerful capabilities.

Remember, you aren’t just picking a language—you’re choosing the future of your application. What if the language you picked can’t handle your growing user base?

So, which one should your business bet on to build your next big product? Let’s compare them head-to-head to ensure you pick the right one and decode which one truly fits your needs.

Introduction to Golang

Golang was born out of Google’s struggles in the mid-2000s. Their servers were jammed and overloaded because millions of users were searching for something every second.

At that time, Google was also building the Chrome web browser, which took hours to compile. No language existed to process huge amounts of text quickly, allow web crawlers to scan billions of web pages, and simultaneously compile the code for Chrome.

Hence, Google decided to build a solution that was unique to them, Golang.

So, in 2009, Golang, or simply “Go,” was introduced to the world. It could handle extremely high traffic at a superfast speed. Using C as its foundational language, Google optimized it to power massive servers, compile in seconds rather than hours, and make it concurrent.

However, Golang originally only used Go because the domain go.org wasn’t available. So, Golang is basically a combination of “Go + language” and, hence, golang.org.

In the following section, let’s understand how it scores over Python and what applications it’s the best bet for.

What is Golang Used for?

Golang offers something powerful—Goroutines. These are lightweight since they use a lot less memory—kilobytes in place of megabytes- which makes this language not just multi-threaded but also concurrent. Concurrent means you can handle multiple tasks at the same time and build efficient programs that don’t crash in between.

Here’s how Golang runs thousands of threads simultaneously without worrying about your system slowing down with Goroutines:

Java Code Example

go fmt.Println("This runs in the background!")

With its speed and scalability, here’s what your business can build with it:

Web applications and APIs – Uber and Dropbox are already leveraging it.
Cloud computing and DevOps – Golang powers Docker and Kubernetes.
Microservices – PayPal and Netflix are your roadmaps.
Networking tools, proxies, and Blockchain apps – Nginx and Cloudflare are your go-to examples.
Machine Learning and Data Science – Python rules this space, but its library, TensorFlow, has a Go API!
Game Development – Its framework, called Ebiten, can help you build 2D games at lightspeed fast.

So, what makes Golang the best choice for the above applications? We will explain the following advantages in detail.

I think because Go doesn’t have classes, it really forces you to think about your program design in a different (and I would say better) way.

– Peter Evans, Chief Technology Officer, Built-In.

Advantages of Golang

There is no place for confusing syntax in Golang, and coding is clean and highly readable. Execution with Golang is not sluggish; instead, its performance is blazing fast.

Before we discuss its advantages, our experts recommend listening to the highly impactful podcast “Go Time” to understand its intricacies.

Simplicity and Speed

Go’s minimalist design ensures that codebases are always clean and maintainable. It has no inheritance trees and a straightforward syntax that makes writing code feel effortless, making it highly intuitive and high-performing.

Ease of learning

It reduces cognitive load and promotes code readability, often rescuing developers from inconvenient flaws. For iTrellis’s lead software developer, Loren Anderson, Go has been super useful for their systems integration consultancy in writing lightweight microservices for APIs.

Garbage collection

Go offers a garbage collector to automatically free up unused memory, reducing the risks of memory leaks. JumpCloud’s software engineering manager, Julio Santana, praises Go for its efficient garbage collection, which plays a crucial role in their Directory-as-a-Service platform for user and device management.

Testing and profiling

With an arsenal of robust testing and profiling tools, Go offers developers plenty of opportunities to write code for unit tests and benchmarking without relying on external libraries. As Upbound’s software engineer Nic Cope notes, its enterprise cloud management greatly benefits from Go’s testing for its back-end.

Open-source

Since Go is open-source, it accelerates innovation by sharing insights, libraries, and tools with the developer community. The senior software development engineer of Progress Chef’s product, Chef Automate, Stephan Renatus, puts it as their first choice.

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Use Cases of Golang

Golang is a powerhouse that drives performance and is specifically designed for speed, scalability, and efficiency. It can manage blockchain transactions and even build lightning-fast APIs. Let’s explore its use cases:

Web servers

Go delivers high-performance concurrent web apps as it is lightweight and can handle millions of simultaneous connections. The top frameworks are Echo, Gin, and Fiber. Dropbox transitioned from Python to Golang for its cloud storage system.

System Utilities

Go allows for the extremely quick execution of command-line interface (CLI) tools, DevOps, and automated scripts for large-scale infrastructure. Top frameworks include Viper and Cobra. Docker, the industry-leading containerization tool, is built entirely in Go.

ETL (Extract, Transform, Load)

Golang’s concurrency makes it an excellent choice for data pipelines and ETL processes when extracting large volumes of data. Top frameworks include Go ETL and Apache Beam. Netflix utilizes Golang for its ETL pipeline to process petabytes of data.

APIs and Web Services

Go’s speed and simplicity make it a top pick for RESTful and GraphQL API development. Top frameworks include Go-kit and gRPC. Uber rebuilt parts of its system in Go to power millions of ride requests per second without lag.

Blockchain and Cryptography

Thanks to frameworks like Hyperledger Fabric and Go Ethereum, Golang is the future of secure transactions in Blockchain, with high-speed processing.

Microservices

Go’s fast startup times and memory efficiency make it ideal for microservices with distributed architectures and tools like NATS and Go Micro. Monzo, a leading digital bank, rebuilt its banking infrastructure using Go-based microservices.

Introduction to Python

When the Dutch programmer Guido Van Rossum thought of developing this language in the 1980s, his idea was to invent a language that was so simple that anyone could code with it. With this, Python was born and became as simple as reading English.

Python runs behind the scenes at places you’d never expect. Whether you’re doing a Google search or dropping and uploading files on Dropbox, Python powers some of the top companies. Its uniqueness is shown by helping different parts of a system communicate with each other seamlessly.

So, if your end goal is faster speed to market, Python wins every single time over Go because of its higher development speed.

What is Python Used for?

In software programming, development speed matters more than execution speed. Even though Python is slower than compiled languages like C or even Golang, it allows you to launch apps way faster.

It makes everything right from back-end to front-end, databases, and automation work together in perfect harmony. That’s the biggest advantage it brings to build a plethora of applications:

Machine Learning and Artificial Intelligence apps – Netflix recommendations and Tesla’s self-driving technology are some famous examples.
Scientific computing – NASA uses for space exploration
Graphical User Interfaces (GUIs) – Dropbox uses these to create user-friendly interfaces across devices.
Web development – YouTube and Instagram are your go-to inspiration.
Image processing – Python powers Adobe Photoshop plugins.
Automation – it powers web scraping of Google SERPs.
Big Data – Spotify analyzes user preferences to suggest the best music

Advantages of Python

Python has over 15.7 million users worldwide. This is because it is a dynamically typed language, which makes components reusable. The interface between components and scripts is so well-defined that Python is extremely productive yet concise.

Let’s understand how:

Cross-platform Compatibility

From unlocking your phone to checking the weather or ordering a coffee from an app, Python powers all platforms. Since it translates itself into every language, its codebase can run apps smoothly across multiple platforms without modifications on Windows, Mac, or Linux.

Automation and Scripting

Python provides digital assistance, automating everything from simple data entries to sending and receiving reports, scheduling tasks, and even managing cloud servers. Tesla, NASA, and Netflix are proof that smart work beats hard work.

Integration Capabilities

Python is also a great diplomat because it speaks multiple languages! From C++ to JavaScript, Python’s integration capabilities ensure that various back-end systems connect seamlessly, regardless of which technology they are built with.

Data Analysis and Scientific Computing

Python extracts the goldmine called data, refines it, and turns it into valuable insights, using tools like Pandas, NumPy, and SciPy to decode genetic sequences and predict stock crashes. Spotify and CERN are your go-to examples relying on Python for deep data analysis.

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Use cases of Python

Python powers plenty of industries by automating operations and deciphering data while keeping the code extremely simple, readable, and easy to understand.

Here’s how it brings a quiet revolution:

Scientific Computing

Scientists use Python to analyze and predict climate change and even model black holes! Top frameworks include SymPy and NumPy. NASA is the top example of using Python to process space-processing telemetry data.

Web Development

Python is great for the back-ends of web apps, from small blogging platforms to enterprise platforms. Top frameworks for Python in web development include Flask and Django. Instagram is a top example of a web app using Python to handle over 2 billion users.

Data Science and Machine Learning

Python’s powerful libraries and simple syntax build powerful recommendation engines for fraud detection systems. Top Frameworks include TensorFlow, Scikit-learn, and Pandas. Spotify uses it to analyze listening habits.

Game Development

Python brings games to life with its flexibility for both Indie and AAA game titles. Pygame, Panda3D, and Godot are top frameworks. EVE Online is a massive multiplayer game running on Python.

Desktop GUI

Python is functional for user-friendly and visually appealing desktop applications. PyQt, Tkinter, and Kivy are the top frameworks. Dropbox built its desktop client using Python.

A Detailed Comparison of Golang Vs Python

Python isn’t the fastest language for executing software. If you look at it, Golang scores over Python because it executes 30 times faster. Well, when it comes to developing software, raw speed isn’t everything.

Let’s understand a detailed comparison between both through the following table:

Particulars	Python	Golang (Go)	Who Scored
Syntax	Python has a simpler syntax to read, which allows development processes to run into fewer bugs and code faster.	Go has a strict syntax, similar to C. It is minimalist and readily understandable. However, it has curly braces for code blocks.	Python scores over Go since it’s easier to learn as it relies on indentation.
Performance and Scalability	Performance is impacted by how well a language handles multiple tasks at once. Python is slow in execution compared to Go, but it scales well in distributed environments.	Go executes at high speed, making it optimized and scalable for large-scale systems. Since it is a compiled language, it has quicker operational speeds.	Golang wins over Python because of its better speed and scalability.
Concurrency	Python is multi-threaded but has a Global Interpreter Lock (GIL), which restricts it from original parallel processing.	Go’s concurrency is inexpensive and does not block anything. Since Go schedules functions automatically, it can run functions in the background without waiting for the previous one to finish.	Golang is the winner in this area due to its powerful Goroutines.
Libraries	Python has huge web frameworks like Flask and Django, making it fast to debug and maintain code. It covers everything from web development to AI and automation.	Go’s libraries are still growing and are fewer compared to Python’s. However, it has stronger ones for networking and backends.	Python conquers Go since it has more libraries.
Code Execution	Execution speed is affected by the type of language used. In the case of Golang vs. Python, Golang is a compiled language, and Python is an interpreted language, making Python slower in code execution.	Since Golang translates source code into machine code before running tasks, it is faster than Python in execution. It also has Goroutines that allow it to handle concurrency quite efficiently.	Golang undoubtedly scores over Python since it has a faster execution speed.
Prototyping	Python is great for rapid prototypes because it’s easy to write and is dynamic.	Go requires more boilerplate code, which makes it less flexible for quick iterations.	Python scores over Go since it’s better for building prototypes.
Security	Python has built-in security features for input sanitization and safe random number generation. However, because it is dynamically typed, it is more likely to have runtime errors.	Go is statically typed and has memory safety, removing vulnerabilities like memory leaks and buffer overflows.	Golang wins over Python because it’s more secure.

Golang vs Python: The Similarities Between Python and Golang

At first glance, they would seem opposites because one focuses on performance, and the other prioritizes flexibility. However, they share the same traits when it comes to simplicity and strong community.

Let’s understand how your answer sometimes might just lie not in choosing from Golang vs Python but knowing when to use both:

They Both Solve the Need for Simplicity

In the pursuit of finding the perfect language for your project, your journey should focus on solving problems. This means you don’t have to struggle with syntax’s readability. Python’s elegance is in its readability, and Go brings clarity with its minimalist structure.

They Both Carry the Wisdom of Strong Libraries

The libraries of any programming language or framework serve as wise mentors. Python and Go both are rich in this area, which allows you not to reinvent the wheel. From web development to networking, you always have the right tools.

They Both are Perfect Allies for Scalable Apps

Python and Go both have thriving communities that help you out whenever you’re stuck in debugging or looking for open-source packages. The former dominates AI and data science, and the latter excels in cloud computing and web applications.

Python vs Golang: Which Language Should You Use?

Python is everywhere—in startups, machine learning, and automation. It has established itself as the most loved language in the software industry due to its wide adaptability in machine learning, web development, automation, and space missions with NASA.

If popularity were the only factor, Python would undoubtedly be a clear winner.

However, when it comes to real-world efficiency, Go is here to change the story. Though lesser-known, Go offers the opportunity to ditch dealing with the complexities of slower compilation times and focuses solely on solving problems.

Since Go is clean and minimalistic, it is also easy to learn if you are familiar with C concepts. It is as fast as C, as simple as Python, and as reliable as Java. In short, Golang is the powerhouse of three languages bundled in one, allowing you to save hours of debugging.

In fact, it is taking serious strides in the software industry to make coding easier without ever replacing its arch-rival, Python.

However, Python is also easier to learn and debug. Developers don’t have to wrestle with the complexities of syntax, managing memory, and even threading.

Unsure Which One to Choose Between Golang or Python?

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Moon Technolabs Will Help You Decide Between Python and Golang

Have you ever built a software product and realized only after launching it that your chosen programming language is limiting your growth? We understand that this can be very disappointing.

That’s where Moon Technolabs steps in. We are a leading Python development company that helps you avoid costly mistakes and ensure that the chosen tech stack accelerates your growth. With deep expertise in Python and Golang, our team doesn’t just build software—we architect solutions that align with your business vision.

Whether you need Python’s vast libraries for AI or Golang’s concurrency for high-performance apps, we will analyze your requirements thoroughly and ensure you make the right choice.

Contact our experts to leverage the right expertise and experience for tailored consultations that enhance the scalability to meet your long-term business goals.

In a Nutshell

The difference between success and failure in developing and executing a software product in the market often comes down to choosing the right tools. On one hand, Python possesses the superpower to build high-speed web applications. On the other hand, Golang is the ideal rocket ship for data-heavy AI platforms.

Without proper guidance, businesses can often gamble on slow applications, limited scalability, or missed opportunities. This comparative blog has all the right information and ingredients to shape your best product development strategy for performance and long-term scalability that empowers growth.

Don’t just pick a language—choose a path to success with the right expert advice.

FAQs

Golang vs Python speed: Which is faster for development?

For initial development processes, Python is faster because it is more readable and has extensive libraries. However, when it comes to executing code, Golang outperforms Python as it builds more maintainable codebases.

Can Golang handle machine learning tasks?

Yes, Golang, also known as Go, can execute complex computations with various deep learning tools. It also includes various libraries and frameworks like GoLearn, Gorgonia, and GoMLX, making it suitable for building intelligent and intensive AI models.

What are some examples of Go and Python-based apps?

Some common examples of Golang-based applications are Docker, Kubernetes, Dropbox back-end services, cloud-based APIs, and Twitch. Similarly, Python-based applications include Netflix backend, Instagram, Spotify, data analysis tools, and Django and Flask web apps.

Which language has better community support and libraries, Golang or Python?

Since Python is quite an older language with wider industry adoption, it boasts a wider range of libraries and, hence, better community support. However, Golang is comparatively faster, has simpler syntax, and is easy to learn.

Does Golang have a future?

Yes, Golang is significantly growing due to several developments, especially in building cloud-native applications and microservices architecture. It can also easily handle concurrent operations, which makes it highly adaptable for integrating the Internet of Things across numerous devices.

About Author

Jayanti Katariya is the CEO of Moon Technolabs, a fast-growing IT solutions provider, with 18+ years of experience in the industry. Passionate about developing creative apps from a young age, he pursued an engineering degree to further this interest. Under his leadership, Moon Technolabs has helped numerous brands establish their online presence and he has also launched an invoicing software that assists businesses to streamline their financial operations.