# Python 1067 Hacker News commenters recommended Python and 821 criticized it, November 2025 to November 2026. It was recommended in 12 of 13 months; owners who said how long report a median of 18 years (64 owners). **Verdict:** Python is recommended for its huge library ecosystem, readable pseudo-code-like syntax and fast productivity on scripts and small programs; critics cite slow performance, dynamic-typing pain and dependency conflicts. ## Why people recommend it - Huge library ecosystem (6 comments): "I end up using Python almost every time because it has more libraries, and it's easier to find software engineers and collaborators to work on Python." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46053013)) "First class package manager, first class numeric operations for scientific usages (numpy), garbage collection, uniform human-readable syntax." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46355244)) "Python has a very strong ecosystem of useful libraries because it's been around so long and is popular in a number of application domains." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48107100)) - Readable, beginner-friendly syntax (4 comments): "Python (and really just about every scripting language of the time) was simply better for containing complexity and easier for a newbie to understand." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=45986729)) "A standard visual structure and a syntax that is pretty close to executable pseudo-code lowered the barrier to entry for a lot of people" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46355397)) "I like python now. more sanity, (somewhat) more likely that different people will solve a problem with similar and/or readable code." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=45804699)) - Productive for scripts and small programs (3 comments): "Python is a joy to program in and it's great for making small utilies, scripts, and even programs that don't require incredible performance." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49749072)) "Python (or anything garbage collected with solid libraries) simply is way more productive on short time scales for small codebases." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47883983)) "Python is very productive and has excellent libraries, but for a file-heavy encryption workflow the performance characteristics" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47069132)) - Batteries-included standard library (2 comments): "Python was batteries included, in the standard library, in an era where putting those kinds of things in the standard library made sense." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46358008)) "The bloated standard library is the reason why you can send around a single .py file to others and they can execute it instantly." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46055637)) ## What people warn about - Dynamism limits performance (3 comments): "I rather think it's the very dynamic nature of Python (e.g. at run time one can add members to classes) which limits performance gains achievable by compilation." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48956337)) "It's very deeply dynamic and even if yu run imports at the top of your code yu still have many large libs with lazy code execution baked deep inside" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=50149917)) "I don't believe that CPython can realistically replace its interpreter with JIT compiler without causing major problems with the community packages." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=50271492)) - Duck typing hurts large codebases (2 comments): "The ill effects of duck typing and extreme flexibility in the face of massive code bases and large teams are incredibly well documented at this point." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48141335)) "When LLMs have to navigate Python and TypeScript there is a massive combinatorial space of frameworks, typing approaches, and utility libraries." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47223533)) - Dependency and version conflicts (2 comments): "Python is the main culprit in most cases when I see conflicts between various software packages that insist to use only a specific version of their dependencies" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48137154)) "it’s only true within a single version of Python, but that over the years there will be multiple, incompatible ways to do niche wild rare stuff" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46176850)) - Painful Python 2 to 3 transition (3 comments): "I stopped using python for several years around the transition period from 2 to 3 because a number of libraries I used at the time were in flux with 3 support" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=45992793)) "It was closer to a decade (3.7) till they'd put enough of the bits they'd ripped out back in for Py3 to be suitable for the things I used Py2 for." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46001978)) "Python 3 got very slow update and poor acceptance precisely because it DIDN'T fix major problems, it only tweaked around the edges of minor ones." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48537362)) ## Alternatives hackers recommend - [Rust](https://hackerapproved.com/p/rust.md): 2039 recommend - [Go](https://hackerapproved.com/p/go-programming-language.md): 1254 recommend - [Zig](https://hackerapproved.com/p/zig.md): 743 recommend - [TypeScript](https://hackerapproved.com/p/typescript.md): 574 recommend - [Java](https://hackerapproved.com/p/java.md): 553 recommend ## Cite as Hacker Approved, "Python", https://hackerapproved.com/p/python/ (counts from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026).