How Python makes app development easier, faster, and better

Python has been around for no less than 30 years. Steadily evolving during that time, it has repeatedly proven to be a top programming language beloved by the community. What’s more, being open-source, it has always offered a great amount of flexibility at a low cost.

Having said that, the most sought-after feature of Python is the rapid app development speed it allows for. This makes it a tempting option for not only well-established organizations but also startups that are only finding their footing.

The main idea behind Python is the combination of simplicity and high quality. It’s also particularly easy to use and learn with very little coding required. This results in some jaw-dropping results with comparatively low effort needed.

All of the above obviously makes Python a very popular programming language. And if a language is popular, that means the talent pool for your potential Python-fluent team members increases exponentially, too.

Is it any surprise, then, that Python dominates the app market to such an extent? Just take a look!

10 best apps written in Python

1. Dropbox

When it comes to online storage services, there is one that overshadows all others: Dropbox. And guess what? It was made with Python. Dropbox’s ease of use and versatility are actually in large part due to the programming language used to create it.

First of all, Dropbox is fully functional on a lot of different devices. It’s available on Windows, Mac, iOS, Android, and Linux, and it remains pretty stable regardless of what platform you access it from.

According to the developers who worked on the app, Python has been instrumental in providing good readability here. The development cycle has also been incredibly swift, and it’s important to note that Dropbox is one of the apps that made the move from Python 2.7 to Python 3. This all happened without a hitch, even though it has been one of the largest migrations to date.

With over 700 million registered users at the time of writing, there’s no denying that Dropbox has used Python to achieve its true potential as an app that’s accessible to all.

2. Instagram

It’s hard to overstate the impact Instagram has had over the years. Developed as a simple app for sharing photography over the internet, it has now become one of the top social media apps in the world. With a wide range of filters to choose from and new ways to express yourself through reels and stories, it has a ton of features you can enjoy using.

Instagram was built with Django—a top Python framework—and started incredibly small. While there’s far more you can do with the app nowadays, the accessibility has stayed there, fitting into the Python ethos of simplicity and highest quality possible above all else.

Though it started as a humble website, Instagram now has over 2 billion active users monthly, proving quite definitively that Python as a programming language is nothing but scalable. No matter how small you start, apps written in Python will adjust and give you room to grow.

3. Spotify

Another famous app written in Python is Spotify, the music streaming service that’s taken the world by storm. And even though we’ve only reached the third app on our list, you can already see how many use cases there are for Python.

It’s not hard to see why Python was a perfect fit here. Once again, its speed and simplicity make it the perfect choice for this medium in particular, as everyone wants their music listening experience to be intuitive. Spotify’s Radio and Discover functions are particularly noteworthy, as they use algorithms to tune in to the user’s musical preferences and help them find new music.

In fact, Spotify may be a solid contender for the most profitable Python-based app, as it brings in an annual revenue of a whopping €10 billion per year.

4. Pinterest

If you ever need to find and organize recipes, create an inspiration board for your creative project, or simply put a pin on some cool art you found online, Pinterest is your go-to place.

It’s a platform that has been around since 2009, allowing its users to save a large number of images, short videos, GIFs, and other visual media on an online account. Its monthly global users are estimated at 433 million at the moment.

Python is the main pillar of the app though it’s not the only thing Pinterest uses. The creators have experimented with other languages for specific functionalities to deal with the vast amount of data Pinterest handles on a daily basis.

Nevertheless, Python is still the main ingredient keeping the app together, firmly setting Pinterest as one of the most popular apps built in Python.

5. Reddit

Launched in 2005 and steadily replacing online message boards as a new social media platform for all kinds of fandoms, hobby groups, and advice seekers to get together, Reddit has become one of the most important places on the internet. With 430 million monthly active users, it’s pretty safe to say it has earned its title of the “front page of the internet.”

There are many benefits to the fact that Reddit uses Python as its code base. As the ninth most-visited website in the world and sixth most-visited website in the US, it has to handle an immense load of images, text posts, as well as ingoing and outgoing links. Add to that the ability to upvote and downvote posts, and you have an environment that definitely needs a solution that’s simple yet robust to keep it all together.

It’s with the help of Python that Reddit can handle an estimated 89 different languages so that communities around the world can connect without any problems. All this is easily achieved once again thanks to Python’s simplicity and flexibility, bringing the app to a diverse group of individuals from all over the world.

6. Disqus

If you’re looking for a way to build engagement with your brand, Disqus is one of the most popular methods to achieve that. It’s a plug-in whose main focus is managing comments, helping fuel discussion, and moderating content so that you are always in control of how your online presence holds up.

Python is not only responsible for Disqus’ ability to function as planned but also for offering a variety of quality-of-life enhancements that help users navigate this complicated world of tomorrow.

These features include multiple sign-ins, cross-site notifications, and various other tools that will help you stay on top of things no matter where you are. Combine that with Django’s sophisticated security systems, and you’re set up for success.

7. Uber

Boldly introduced as an alternative to taxis, Uber didn’t waste any time taking the world by storm. Acting as both a car-hailing and ride-sharing service, the business quickly exploded from being confined to San Francisco to encompassing an immense number of cities worldwide.

As the app was being developed, the programmers had a choice between using Ruby and Python. In the end, Python won, mostly due to its better capacity for mathematical calculations, as well as its ease of use. Software engineers with little experience with the language could hop in and learn everything along the way, massively cutting down on the time and costs of the app’s development.

Nowadays, Uber uses the Tornado Python web framework for all of its asynchronous programming, further tightening its relationship with the programming language.

8. Quora

Yet another successor to the old-school message boards, Quora is an app that allows people to ask and answer questions. With 300 million monthly users, saying that this app gets quite a bit of use would be an understatement.

Once again, we have an example of an app taking full advantage of Python. When the platform was still being developed in the late 2000s, the developers knew that PHP wouldn’t meet their needs. They needed something that would be scalable without making them go bankrupt after a major update. Picking Python was a no-brainer.

The choice has paid off. They needed a language that would guarantee readability, work with simple syntax, and would be efficient on both the backend and the frontend. In the end, without Python, Quora would never come to be as ubiquitous as it is today.

9. Facebook

Though we’re nearing the end of the list, we’re definitely still covering incredibly popular apps. Facebook, along with its parent company, Meta, is an entity that’s simply impossible to miss in this day and age. And though the brand now encompasses far more areas, the Facebook app is where everything began.

As Facebook is a pretty monumental platform, it doesn’t exclusively use Python, though the programming language does comprise 21% of its code base. It currently operates on Python 3, which has allowed the team to substantially reduce the amount of code they needed to use to keep the site functional.

And functional it is. It’s readable on pretty much any device, as well. Moreover, by utilizing Tornado, Facebook can manage several connections at once while providing them with high-level security and user authentication.

10. Netflix

Rounding out this list, we have Netflix. What began as a mail-in DVD rental service underwent a serious rebranding as the age of the physical medium rental started going out of date. The result was a groundbreaking streaming service that has completely changed the way we consume media forever.

Similarly to Spotify, Netflix doesn’t just use Python to be a highly functional platform, but also implements an algorithm that can recommend new shows to its viewers based on their previous viewing habits. It’s thanks in no small part to Python that Netflix could become the app giant that it currently is.

Final thoughts on top 10 apps made with Python

As we’ve shown here, most of the leading mainstream apps on the market use Python in some way, shape, or form, and it’s hard not to see why. It’s an incredible language that’s easy to learn and use while offering a vast array of possibilities.

Due to its inherent properties, Python is easily scalable, making any project you work on future-proof. The big names listed above should be clear evidence that Python can really get you far. You just have to take the chance and seize the opportunity!

Thank you for reading our article. We hope you found it useful. If you did, be sure to take a look at these additional resources on our website and learn more about Python:

At STX Next, we’re always ready to assist you with all your development needs. Python may be our specialty, but it’s only one out of many software services we offer and have experience in.

Whatever support you could use, all you have to do is get in touch with us. We’ll be more than happy to discuss how we can help you build a successful product and achieve your business goals!