Golang vs Python: Who Has Edge Over Whom?

If you search the Internet, you will find various debates on Golang and Python. On one hand, you will find developers defending their beloved Python, on the other side, you will find that coders are adamant about their preference of Golang Development. So, in this blog, we would like to settle the debate once and for all.

I am going to let you be the judge to decide which language is better. We will be assessing Golang vs Python on the basis of various parameters.

Speed and Performance

• Golang uses CSP-style (Communicating Sequential Processes) concurrency for the execution of codes, which Python does not. Golang communicates the variable value from one thread to another. This requires both the sending and the receiving thread to wait for the data. And this ‘waiting’ creates a proper synchronization, for which Golang provides native features without having to rely on frameworks and extra libraries. This makes Golang faster than Python. Furthermore, Golang, like Python, uses parallelism which means multiple tasks take place at the same time.
• Go is said to be 30 to 40 times faster than Python and numerous tests have confirmed this. Thus, it is highly scalable when compared to Python. This is validated by developers conducting tests on calculations. In fact, here is a benchmark test game statistics that will confirm this statement.

(Source: Go vs Python 3 - Which programs are fastest? (pages.debian.net))

• If you were to program small projects, then Go is the clear winner as it is elementary and straightforward. But if you were to go with large projects that require community codebases and open source libraries, then Python will be the winner. This is because Python is more resourceful than Go.
• When it comes to deployment, Python has an edge over Golang. This is because codes in Golang have to be compiled, packaged and sent for distribution. On the contrary, Python takes considerably less time to deploy as it is a continuous process (feature of interpreter language)
• In cases of applications, programming languages act as the connection between the database and the app. So, if you were to use Python, then you will not be impressed with the performance as it ranks lower than Golang when it comes to ranking, aggregation and serialization and deserialization.

Libraries

• Python appeared first in 1991, whereas Golang came into the scene in 2009. As there is a difference of 18 years, you can imagine how Python will have greater repositories compared to Golang.
• Python enjoys a larger community, which means that it has a great support for beginners. One can enjoy tutorials, lessons, and check out libraries in Stack Overflow. This means irrespective of the project you are working on, you won’t have to start from scratch.
• Some of the most important libraries in Python include Tensorflow (useful for machine learning and Deep Learning). You can use Scikit-Learn which is associated with SciPy and Numpy and helps you work with complex data. Numpy is preferred by developers for the array interface, and for performing numerous operations on Tensors. PyTorch is another machine learning library, in fact the largest, and it helps you perform Tensor computations, automatic gradient calculation and more.
• But, Golang does not lose the competition by a wide margin. When Google developed the language, they included significant libraries that would help the developers while coding. GORM is especially useful for converting Go types and database types. Testify is a testing toolkit which is great for easy assertions and mocking. Zap is a very handy logging library. urfave/cli is nifty when it comes to building command-line apps in Golang. FInally, Gorilla Web Toolokit which allows developers to register URL paths and handlers with ease.

Are you still with me on this Golang vs Python discussion? Ok, let’s move forward.

Readability

• When multiple developers work on the same project for a client, then the readability of the code becomes important. And in this regard, all developers would agree that Python has incredible readability as the Golang syntax can be intimidating for the beginners.
• Python has a downside too. Since you can write one code in ten different ways, it can be perplexing for anyone. On the other hand, Golang has stringent programming rules, disallowing developers to create unnecessary variables or import redundant libraries. Although the versatility of coding is absent in Golang, a few developers prefer it for core programming.
• The programming language that has greater readability is usually the preferred choice for learning. So, Python takes the cake here when it is pitted against Golang. And this is confirmed by the graph displayed below.

Python, Golang - Explore - Google Trends

Error Handling

When you code in Python, most IDEs will point out the errors. Unfortunately, Golang simply handles an error by returning it from a function, as it has no dedicated error handling provision. Thus, you have to spend more time debugging the codes as it is expected that you know how to code properly in Golang.
There are some workarounds in Golang as the calling code can handle the error. Furthermore, the errors package enables you to add a stack trace and context to the errors. If you forget to handle an error, then you can rely on static analysis tools like megacheck and errcheck to take care of the issue.

Applications

Developers use Python in the field of AI, deep learning, web development, data analytics, game development, image recognition and text processing. This is because of the huge libraries available in Python.
On the contrary, developers rely on Golang for systems programming. Moreover, it finds application in cluster computing and cloud computing due to its reliance on concurrency. Many have used Go for site reliability automation and DevOps and for designing command line tools. The language has also been praised for its application in web development due to simple and powerful libraries.

Execution

Golang uses a compiler and is a statically typed language. On the other hand, Python uses an interpreter and is a dynamically typed language.
In a dynamically typed language, type inference is carried out by the interpreter, so some bugs may still be present as a result of the interpreter misinterpreting something. When variable types are explicitly stated for the compiler in a language, even minor errors are found very quickly.
Python is henceforth not suitable for big programs as some mistakes might remain due to the inefficiency of the interpreter. On the contrary, Golang can handle both small and large programs with ease.

So, based on the above discussion, you cannot clearly pick a winner. More or less, every programming language has its pros and cons. Hopefully, you have an insight into Golang vs Python. Based on your requirements, you have to make a decision whether you will opt for Golang or Python.