Programming & DSA

2023 Developer Survey: Technology And Work Trends From The Stack Overflow Community

Dive into the findings of the 2023 Developer Survey, uncovering trends, technology preferences, and the future of software development as envisioned by developers themselves.

Avinash Bidkar

• 7 min read
2023 Software Developer Survey

2023 Developer Survey: Synopsis

The Stack Overflow Developer Survey is said to be the developer's voice. Developers rely on this report for updates on evolving experiences, technologies, and industry changes, ensuring they stay informed and informed about industry trends.

Stack Overflow is investing in AI/ML to enhance the developer experience across their products. They are exploring AI and other technology to provide faster solutions. Stack Overflow Labs provides a closer look into AI/ML insights and experimenting with new solutions.

The key elements of the survey include Developer Profiles, Technology, AI, Work, Community, Professional Developers, and Methodology. This article will dive deeper into the Survey's Technology and Work-related aspects.

Technology

This year, Stack Overflow focused on contrasting the most common technologies used by responders, professional developers, and coders. Also, areas like AI tools and the relationship between Worked With and Want to Work With, introducing Admired and Desired were explored.

In 2023, JavaScript remains the most commonly used programming language, with Python surpassing SQL as the third most used language. Other Coders are primarily using Python. Some technologies, such as Bash/Shell, C, Ruby, Perl, and Erlang, have increased, while Lua, an embeddable scripting language, has gained seven spots since 2022.

Professional developers use JavaScript, HTML/CSS, and SQL, while those learning to code use HTML/CSS and JavaScript. Student developers use Python more than SQL, while professional developers use SQL more. Those learning to code use Java, C, and C.

  • Programming, scripting, and markup languages: Over 80% of developers plan to use Rust again in the upcoming year. Less than 20% of developers wish to use MATLAB again, which shows how poorly thought of it is.
  • Databases: Datomic has the fewest users but is highly regarded, which may persuade others to see it as a viable option.
  • Cloud computing platforms: Hetzner and Vercel have a sizable user base (69% ), and more developers prefer to use them than the top three (AWS, Azure, and Google Cloud).
  • Web frameworks and technologies: More developers choose Phoenix to React, Node.js, and Next.js, making it the most admired web framework.
  • Other frameworks and libraries: The most admired ones include Tauri, Hugging Face Transformers, and.NET(5 ).
  • Other tools: Compared to the top rivals (the top 6 tools respondents want to use in the coming year), more respondents want to continue using Cargo. However, Docker has almost twice as many respondents who want to use it in the coming year as all other options combined.
  • Integrated programming environment (IDE): Neovim has a greater percentage of users who plan to continue using it next year (81% vs. 77%), even though Visual Studio Code is the IDE most users prefer.
  • Asynchronous tools: Markdown files, which are used in hosted instances and provide for-profit solutions for information exchange, are a well-liked and respected asynchronous utility.
  • Synchronous tools: Based on personal experience, people are least likely to wish to continue utilizing Microsoft Teams and Zoom synchronized technologies.
  • Operating system: The most often used operating system for developers is Windows.
  • AI Search tools: Web developers wish to continue using ChatGPT for their AI Search products. They also intend to employ WolframAlpha and Phind.
  • AI Developer tools: Developers want to keep using GitHub Copilot, and more are planning to use it in the coming year than are already doing so.

Admired and Desired

This year's survey results included a section called "Admired and Desired" to track technology trends among developers.

  • Desired — Want to use
  • Admired — Want to continue using

The visualization shows the distance between the proportion of respondents who want to use a technology and the proportion of users who have used the same technology in the past year and want to continue using it. Wide distances indicate that momentum grows with hands-on use, while shorter distances indicate that hype primarily drives popularity.

JavaScript, the most used programming language since 2011, has a short distance between admired and desired, while Rust, a top choice for developers, has a wide distance. This growth in admiration helps identify technologies with staying power and needs improvement to convert new users into coveted evangelists. This new visualization of the data replaces the old Loved, Dreaded, Wanted analysis.

Worked With Vs. Want To Work With

Developers are curious and interested in new technologies based on current usage. Popular programming languages like JavaScript, TypeScript, and HTML/CSS are highly sought after by users for future use. 42% of ChatGPT users want to use Google Bard or Bing AI next year. These users are enjoying their experience: 79% want to use ChatGPT again next year.

  • Programming, scripting, and markup languages: Popular programming languages like JavaScript, TypeScript, and HTML/CSS are highly sought after by users, as they are highly sought after for future use.
  • Databases: 11K PostgreSQL users plan to switch to Redis next year, while 9K users plan to use PostgreSQL.
  • Cloud platforms: ~14K AWS developers—a little less than half—want to develop in Google Cloud or Microsoft Azure next year.
  • Web frameworks and technologies: jQuery users prefer Node.js or React over jQuery next year.
  • Other frameworks and libraries: .NET (5 ) users prioritize.NET(5 ),.NET MAUI, and.NET Framework for next year, with strong.NET favoritism.
  • Other tools: Many individuals utilize npm, Kubernetes, and Docker, seeking to collaborate with similar technologies.
  • Integrated development environment: Over 50% of Visual Studio users plan to switch to VS Code next year, citing its extensive extensions and plugins, making it more compatible with diverse developer needs.
  • Asynchronous tools: Jira and Confluence are closely interconnected and interested in collaborating with other asynchronous tools due to their unique purpose in developers' workflows.
  • Synchronous tools: Discord ranks third among the top synch tools used in the past year, following Microsoft Teams, Slack, and Zoom.
  • AI Search tools: 42% of ChatGPT users plan to use Google Bard or Bing AI next year, with 79% repurchasing.
  • AI Developer tools: 70% of GitHub Copilot users plan to use it again next year.

Top Paying Technologies

This year, Zig ranks as the highest-paid language, Clojure decreased by 10%, and Dart and SAS experienced 20% year-over-year median pay growth. The detailed breakup for all the 47,883 responses for each category can be found here.

That is a wrap for the Technology section. Now, moving on to the Work aspect of the Stack Overflow Developer Survey 2023.

Work

Employment

  • Employment Status: This year, respondents reported a slight increase in independent contractors, freelancers, and self-employed individuals, while full-time students decreased by 1 percentage point. Inflation's rising costs may not discourage many from enhancing their developer skills.
  • Employment Status by Geography: Full-time employment has decreased in the top five countries while Independent contractor, freelancer, or self-employed has increased (all less than 1%).
  • Work Environment: Hybrid work is prevalent in larger organizations, with over half of employees in 5,000 organizations being hybrid. Smaller organizations are more likely to be in-person, with 2% more developers working in-person this year. Coding is easily adaptable to remote work, with one-third of all organizations still fully remote.

Company Size

40% of respondents work for an organization with less than 100 employees.

Salary

  • Salary by developer type: Senior roles like c-suite executives and engineering managers typically have the highest salaries, with engineering managers in Germany earning comparable salaries to c-suite executives. Developer Experience professionals in the US, UK, and Canada also earn higher salaries.
  • Salary and experience by developer type: Experience is crucial for higher salaries, with the three highest-paid roles having an average of 11 years.
  • Salary and experience by language: Zig developers earn the highest per year of experience, while Raku and Cobol developers have significantly more experience but earn 25% less.

Purchasing Technology

  • Influence on technology purchases: 66% of Professional Developers influence their organization's technology purchases, with senior executives and engineering managers having the most influence. Senior-level positions have 99% influence, followed by 86% of engineering managers.
  • Shortlist or investigate new tech purchases: Most respondents investigate new technology purchases independently (80%) instead of relying on a list provided to them.
  • Research new tools and technology: Free trial is the most common method for evaluating new tools, up 2% from last year's survey. Full-stack and mobile developers prefer free trials, while SRE and embedded application developers seek feedback from colleagues or friends. This highlights the need for diverse perspectives in research for specific roles.

Coding Outside Of Work

Professional developers code for personal development (70%), while 37% use it for professional growth or self-paced learning from online courses.

Summary

Developers and tech fans can use the Stack Overflow 2023 Developer Survey as a compass to navigate the ever-evolving tech landscape. It provides information on market trends, including labor dynamics, AI technologies, and programming languages. In light of these trends, the importance of fundamental abilities like coding is clear.

A software developer course equips people starting out on this road with the fundamental abilities necessary to succeed in the fast-paced IT industry. Adaptability is essential as work and technology merge. Tools like VS Code and GitHub Copilot, combined with choices for hybrid work, give hope for a future full of opportunities. The poll exhorts us to embrace innovation and change by reminding us that there is untold potential in the tech sector for those prepared to investigate.

FAQs

What is the significance of the 2023 Developer Survey by Stack Overflow?

For developers looking for information on changing consumer preferences for technology and market trends, the Stack Overflow 2023 Developer Survey is an essential resource. It offers a thorough analysis of the trends influencing the developer landscape.

JavaScript continues to be the most widely used language, and Python has surpassed SQL to take third place. With increasing use and admiration, rust stands out.

By measuring the difference between desire and actual usage, this new visualization may identify which technologies are gaining popularity naturally and which result from hype.

Although AWS, Azure, and Google Cloud are well-known, Hetzner and Vercel are becoming increasingly well-liked.

Which AI tools are favored by developers, and what are their future plans?

Developers prefer programs like GitHub Copilot and ChatGPT. In order to demonstrate the dependability and utility of these tools, they want to continue utilizing them in the upcoming year.

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