C++ Vs Python, What are the Important Differences?
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C++ vs Python, What are the Important Differences?
C++ and Python are some of the famous general-purpose programming languages widely used. C++ and Python are object-oriented programming languages that provide low-level functionalities and are highly abstract. C++ is popularly used in embedded systems, game development, etc., and Python is commonly used in web applications, data analytics, etc.
An Introduction to C++
C++ is a high-level, general-purpose programming language developed by Bjarne Stroustrup. A general-purpose programming language is a programming language that can be used to create software for a variety of domains, hardware, and operating systems. C++ is a superior version of the C programming language with object-oriented support. C++ is mainly used to write software for embedded systems and game development.
Features Below are some of the note-worthy features of the C++ programming language:
- Object Oriented
- Portable (i.e.) can be run on multiple machines
- Strongly typed. Type checking is done at compile time
An Introduction to Python
Python is a high-level, general-purpose programming language developed by Guido van Rossum. Python is a dynamically typed (type checking is performed at runtime) programming language with object-oriented support. Python is preferably used in web applications, automation tools, and machine learning.
Features Below are some of the note-worthy features of Python programming language:
- Object Oriented
- Simple syntax
- GUI (Graphical User Interface) support
- Portable (i.e.) can be run on multiple machines
Syntax Supported by C++ and Python
C++ and Python are object-oriented programming languages that support Classes and Objects apart from the basic programming language syntax like variables, methods, etc. Below are some of the important syntaxes provided by C++ and Python:
Code Blocks Programming languages use syntax to group certain lines of code. For example, code inside a for loop, code inside an if-else condition, code inside a method, etc. C++ and Python follow different syntaxes to group code.
C++
C++ use curly braces ({}) to enclose a certain piece of code. Below is an example of surrounding code inside a method and for-loop.
Python
Python uses indentations to enclose a certain piece of code. A single indentation is equivalent to a tab character. Below is an example of the indented code block in Python:
Variables Variables are containers used to store values in a program. C++ and Python provide different ways to declare and define various due to the nature of their runtime.
C++
C++ is a statically typed language that provides various data types to store values. E.g.: int, double, char, etc. The syntax for defining a variable in C++ is:
Below is an example of defining variables of different types in C++:
Python
Python variables are dynamically typed and can store any value without the type being specified. We can define variables Python with the syntax:
Below is an example of defining variables of different types in Python:
Methods / Functions Method or Function is a piece of code that can be used multiple times in different places of the program without being written numerous times. It can accept multiple arguments as input and return a value—both C++ and Python support functions.
C++
The syntax of a C++ function is:
Below is an example of a function in C++. This function accepts two integer values as arguments and returns an integer.
Python
Python function can be defined using the def keyword followed by the function name. The syntax of a Python function is:
Below is an example of a function in Python:
Classes & Objects Classes and Objects are the components of object-oriented programming. A class is a template or blueprint that defines the behavior using data members and member functions. An object is an instance of the class. Every object created is allocated with its memory.
C++
Below is an example of creating a class and an object in C++:
Python
Below is an example of creating a class and an object in Python:
Imports / Includes Imports/Includes are the header statements that are included at the top of the program. These statements instruct the compiler to import the specified classes, functions, variables, etc., into the current program. C++ and Python have different ways of including header files.
C++
In C++, #include statement is used to import code. Below is an example of a header statement in C++:
Python
In Python, import keyword is used to import code. Below is an example of an import statement in Python:
Difference Between C++ and Python
| Factor | C++ | Python |
|---|---|---|
| Runtime | C++ uses a compiler to execute the program. The entire program is compiled first before being executed | Python uses an interpreter to execute the program. The program is executed line by line without being compiled first. |
| Typing | C++ is a statically typed programming language where all type checks are done at compile time | Python is a dynamically typed programming language where type checks are performed at runtime. |
| Ease of Development | C++ syntax is a bit complex compared to Python because of its strongly typed nature | Python's syntax is much simpler when compared to C++ as it is a dynamically typed language and doesn't require specifying the type of variables, methods, etc. |
| Performance | C++ is faster than Python as it is statically typed and compiled before being executed | Python is slower than C++ due to its dynamically typed nature. The interpreter executes the code line by line, which makes it slower. |
| Memory Management | C++ memory is managed manually by the developer as it doesn't have a Garbage Collector. Memory allocation and deallocation are manual in C++ | Python has a built-in Garbage Collector which takes care of automatic memory management |
C++ vs. Python: Uses
Uses of C++
- C++ provides many low-level functions and is widely used in embedded systems like echo devices, smart gadgets, etc.
- C++ is popularly used in game development because of its faster performance.
- C++ is widely used to develop compilers for other programming languages. For example, the NodeJs compiler is written in C++.
- Web browsers like Firefox and Chrome are developed using C++ because of their speed and performance.
Uses of Python
- Python is widely used in web development. Django and Flask are some of the most popular Python web development frameworks
- Python is easy to learn and has rich library support; hence it is widely used in automation. Even people from non-development backgrounds can quickly learn and write code in Python.
- Python has a rich library and framework support for data analytics and machine learning. Hence it is one of the go-to languages for training machine learning models.
C++ or Python: Which Language to Prefer?
There are many reasons to use either C++ or Python. The choice of language depends on the problem we are trying to solve. Discussed below are some of the factors that are used to decide the choice of the language, C++ or Python:
Speed
C++ is faster and performs better than Python. Hence it can be preferred for developing low-level software for embedded systems, operating systems, etc. Python is slower than C++ and can be used for non-user-facing software like automation and training machine learning models where speed is not a big deal.
Memory Management
C++ has manual memory management, and it is preferred when developers want to avoid going through the hassle of handling memory management. Python is preferred in terms of memory management because it automatically handles the allocation and deallocation of memory.
Ease of Learning
Python is easier to learn because of its simpler syntax and is preferred for people from non-development backgrounds, whereas C++ is low-level compared to Python and a bit complex.
Learn More
Please visit Scaler's Python and C++ Hub to learn more about Python and C++ programming languages.
Conclusion
- C++ and Python are high-level, general-purpose programming languages developed by Bjarne Stroustrup and Guido van Rossum, respectively.
- C++ is a statically typed language, whereas Python is dynamically typed.
- C++ and Python are object-oriented programming languages supporting classes and objects.
- The syntax of Python is simpler than C++, making it easy to learn and code.
- C++ is faster than Python and widely used in embedded systems, game development, web browsers, etc.
- Python is slower than C++ and widely used in web development, machine learning, automation, etc.