Java Vs. Kotlin: Which is best for Android App Development?

Although Java has the reputation of being a top-notch programming language, a modern language was required by Android for quite some time. Kotlin has filled this gap, and it has become quite popular amongst the developers at present.

This article will talk about, which is more suitable for Android app development, Java, or Kotlin.

What exactly is Kotlin?

Kotlin happens to be a programming language that is used for JavaScript and Java Virtual Machine. Google officially supports Kotlin for Android mobile development. After Android Studio 3.0 was released in 2017, Kotlin was included as a standard Java compiler alternative.

Kotlin can be described as a language for general purposes. Functional features have been introduced by it for supporting Java interoperability. Kotlin aids in enhancing the coding experience practically and effectively. It is compatible with Java 6 or Java 8 and gets the leading IDEs out there.

Unlike Java, it will be possible to write much less code with Kotlin. Consequently, the files are also of smaller size in the case of Kotlin as compared to Java.

What exactly is Java?

Being amongst the oldest and the easiest languages, Java is quite popular and has been at the summit for over 20 years. Sun Microsystems is responsible for creating Java, which is an object-oriented language.

Apart from developing Android apps, Java does many more things. As a result, if you can master Java, you will become an integral part of the larger Java market and community, thus having many career opportunities ahead of you.

Being a popular programming language, Java is class-based and object-oriented. Moreover, it will be possible to execute lots of statements rather than executing them sequentially. Put simply, Java can be considered a computing program where it will be possible to create applications.

Now that we have been introduced to both Java and Kotlin, we will now look at their pros and cons.

Java Pros:

• Simple to learn and comprehend.

• Works properly for cross-platform as well as native apps.

• You will come across lots of Java libraries that will come of use to you.

• Java has an extensive open-source ecosystem.

• Unlike Kotlin apps, Java apps happen to be more compact and lighter, which results in a faster experience.

• It is quite simple to assemble large projects in Java mainly due to its accelerated assembly with Gradle.

• It will be possible to code more within a short period in Java.

Java Cons:

• Java happens to be a type-heavy programming language, which implies an increased possibility of mistakes if you end up writing more code.

• Because of some inherent limitations, some issues are experienced by Java with Android API design.

• Unlike other languages, more memory is required by Java, which makes it relatively slower.

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Kotlin Pros:

• Kotlin helps in the creation of clean APIs.

• Unlike Java, Kotlin comes with the much-required null within its type system. Android uses null to represent the lack of any value, and Kotlin allows you to use it invalid effectively.

• It is possible to use Java frameworks and libraries in Kotlin mainly because of Java bytecode, and thus, the transition to Kotlin from Java becomes quite simple.

• The Anko library obtainable for Kotlin helps the developers much, and you will come across an extensive collection of projects on Github.

Kotlin Cons:

• There is no doubt about the fact that it is difficult to learn Kotlin. Its syntax is highly concise, and one needs to make lots of efforts to learn it.

• The community of Kotlin is quite young, and there are not many learning resources out there. Therefore, it can be somewhat difficult to find answers to issues. Nevertheless, its community and resources should expand over time, given that it is quite popular.

• On most occasions, the compilation speed of Kotlin is slower as compared to Java development services.

• Unlike Java, some Android Studio features such as compilation and auto-complete tend to run slower.

• It can be tough to come across experienced developers who can function as guides for your team, given that Kotlin is rather new.

Must Read: Kotlin Vs Flutter

Java vs. Kotlin in terms of Android app development service

Below, we have discussed several parameters for comparing Java and Kotlin.

1. Compilation time

On most occasions, slower compilation speed is depicted by Kotlin as compared to Java. The compilation time of Java is relatively fast.

2. Development speed

The code development speed of Kotlin is fast. On the other hand, that of Java is relatively faster.

3. Null safety

Kotlin comes with built-in null safety. The NullPointerException is responsible to a great extent for errors in Android development. Even though Android mainly depends on the null for representing the lack of any value, it can easily destroy an app. Kotlin quickly fixes this problem by incorporating null safety. Because of this, many developers don’t need to write additional code in the long run. However, Null safety is not supported by Java.

4. Lambda expressions

Lambda expressions are supported by Kotlin that are independent functions that one can treat as values. They can be passed as arguments to different methods, returned, or anything else that can be done with any everyday object.

5. Support of the community

Kotlin does not have lots of learning resources since it happens to be a new and small community. Unlike Kotlin, the community circle of Java is much more significant.

Will Kotlin replace Java?

No, both Kotlin and Java come with powerful features. Both of them bind together for treating us with more improvised versions. Therefore, it is a fact that both Kotlin and Java help in Android development cohesively.