# C/C++

Hacker Approved page: https://hackerapproved.com/p/c-c-plus-plus/

11 people recommended C/C++ in Hacker News comments, 2 had mixed feelings and 23 criticized it, November 2025 to October 2026. It was recommended in 7 of 12 months, in 11 threads. It does not meet the Hacker Approved badge rule.

**Verdict:** Criticized more than recommended, mainly for memory bugs and undefined behavior make correct code hard to write; those who recommend it cite low-level and systems work, memory layouts, game development, and wide availability on nearly any platform.

Summary written by Claude from the comments below.

## What people warn about

- Memory bugs and undefined behavior (5 comments in the sample): "languages like C or C++ just say well, if you accidentally destroy the illusion your program might do absolutely anything at all" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47433243)) "It's also difficult to yourself that you were never in command of a language as far as UB/other footguns go" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48205649)) "It is much harder to write quality stuff in c/c++ that doesn't have memory bugs" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48077942))
- Security risks and deadlocks (2 comments in the sample): "how hard doing this stuff is in C/C++ without creating a lot of dead locks, crash bugs, and security issues" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47147974)) "please don't create unnecessary security risk by writing it in unsafe languages such as C/C++" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46210380))
- Awful syntax and verbose types (2 comments in the sample): "that set of languages have objectively AWFUL syntax" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49843996)) "Writing type explicitly everywhere is just bad UX." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49036910))

## Why people recommend it

- Available everywhere, low friction (2 comments in the sample): "I personally detest the babel of languages involved in "modern ways of programming" and have settled on C/C++ for everything since they are available everywhere." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49587178)) "I use C/C++ because it seems to be the least friction option to me overall" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48971154))
- Stricter patterns with performance benefits (1 comment in the sample): "If I want stricter coding pattern with performance benefits I will use C/C++ for the job instead." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48838895))
- Preferred for serious low-level work (1 comment in the sample): "for serious stuff C/C++ is still the preferred way" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46432715))

## Other programming languages people recommend

- [Rust](https://hackerapproved.com/p/rust/): 1346 recommend, 468 mixed, 715 criticize
- [Go](https://hackerapproved.com/p/go-programming-language/): 855 recommend, 270 mixed, 513 criticize
- [Python](https://hackerapproved.com/p/python/): 683 recommend, 261 mixed, 719 criticize
- [Zig](https://hackerapproved.com/p/zig/): 454 recommend, 181 mixed, 358 criticize

## The badge

A product earns the Hacker Approved badge when at least 10 people recommend it, recommenders outnumber critics at least 2 to 1 (mixed feelings count toward neither side), it was recommended in at least 4 of the 12 months and in at least 5 different threads, and no single thread supplies more than half of the people who recommend it. Health and money products are never badged.

## Cite as

Hacker Approved, "C/C++", https://hackerapproved.com/p/c-c-plus-plus/ (11 recommend, 2 mixed, 23 criticize; Hacker News comments, November 2025 to October 2026).

Counts updated 2 Nov 2026, with data through October 31, 2026.