The TIOBE Index for February 2026 reveals that domain-specific languages are slowly but surely gaining traction at the expense of Python's dominance. While Python remains the most popular programming language worldwide, its market share has declined to 21.81% this month, down from its peak popularity in July 2026.
This shift is largely attributed to the resurgence of R and Perl, two scripting languages that have traditionally been strong competitors to Python in the field of data science. R, a statistical programming language, has long been a direct competitor to Python, and its recent re-entry into the TIOBE Index top 10 suggests it's regaining momentum.
On the scripting side, Perl has also staged a comeback, reclaiming its position in the top 10 since January 2018. This renewed interest in domain-specific languages is expected to have a significant impact on app user experience, as developers increasingly turn to these languages to tackle specific challenges and industries.
The TIOBE Programming Community index is an indicator of the popularity of programming languages, based on the number of skilled engineers worldwide, courses, and third-party vendors. The ratings are updated once a month, and popular web sites like Google, Amazon, Wikipedia, and Bing contribute to the calculations.
Top 10 Programming Languages
Here's the complete top 10 list for February 2026:
| Position | Programming Language | Ratings | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Python | 21.81% | -2.08% |
| 2 | C | 11.05% | +1.22% |
| 3 | C++ | 8.55% | -2.82% |
| 4 | Java | 8.12% | -2.54% |
| 5 | C# | 6.83% | +2.71% |
| 6 | JavaScript | 2.92% | -0.85% |
| 7 | Visual Basic | 2.85% | +0.81% |
| 8 | R | 2.19% | +1.14% |
| 9 | SQL | 1.93% | -0.93% |
| 10 | Delphi/Object Pascal | 1.88% | -0.29% |
Other Programming Languages
The complete top 50 list is available below, with the next 50 languages denoted by their alphabetical order:
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Very Long Term History
To gain a better understanding of programming language trends over time, please find below the positions of the top 10 programming languages for many years back. Note that these are average positions for a period of 12 months.
| Programming Language | 2026 | 2021 | 2016 | 2011 | 2006 | 2001 | 1996 | 1991 | 1986 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Python | 1 | 3 | 5 | 7 | 8 | 27 | 16 | - | - |
Important Observations
Data prior to 2001 are not based on Web search engine counts but rather on Usenet's newsgroup hits, which have been calculated retrospectively. Additionally, there is a difference between "Visual Basic" and "(Visual) Basic" in the table above, with the former referring to all possible dialects of Basic until 2010.
As we move forward into the future, it will be crucial for developers to prioritize app user experience by leveraging domain-specific languages to tackle specific challenges and industries. With this shift in mind, the TIOBE Index serves as a valuable indicator of programming language trends and their impact on the industry.