Technology evolves at lightning speed—and so do the languages we use to build it. Some programming languages fade quietly into history, others cling on through legacy systems, while fresh new contenders rise to meet modern development needs.
At Presence Digital, we keep a close eye on these shifts, and in this post, we’ll break down:
- Languages that are effectively dead in 2025
- Languages on the decline
- Emerging languages worth watching
🪦 Dead or Obsolete Languages
These are languages that are no longer used in modern development environments or are strictly relegated to legacy systems.
1. Perl
Once a dominant scripting language, especially for sysadmins and web devs, Perl’s popularity has nosedived. Despite ongoing releases, Perl 5 has been in “maintenance mode” for years, and Perl 6 (now Raku) failed to catch mainstream attention.
2. Objective-C
Apple’s official transition to Swift has rendered Objective-C largely obsolete. While still used in some legacy iOS/macOS codebases, it’s not recommended for new projects.
3. Visual Basic (VB.NET & Classic VB)
Visual Basic had its heyday in the late ’90s and early 2000s, but it’s now in terminal decline. Microsoft is still supporting VB.NET to an extent, but even they encourage using C# instead.
4. Flash/ActionScript
Once the darling of interactive web content, Adobe Flash and its language, ActionScript, are fully discontinued. RIP.
📉 Declining Languages
These languages aren’t quite dead—but they’re not thriving either. You may still find them in enterprise systems or niche areas, but their broader relevance is fading.
1. Ruby
Ruby (and by extension, Ruby on Rails) once ruled the startup world. But over the last five years, interest has slowed dramatically. It’s still loved by some, but new devs rarely pick it up unless maintaining an existing stack.
2. Java
Java isn’t dead by any means—it powers a huge portion of enterprise and Android systems—but its “cool factor” has dropped. The rise of Kotlin on Android and modern server-side alternatives like Go and Rust has pushed Java to the backseat in many greenfield projects.
3. C/C++
Still very much in use, especially in embedded and systems programming. However, the steep learning curve and safety concerns mean modern projects often favour languages like Rust.
4. PHP
Despite powering a significant chunk of the web (WordPress, Facebook’s early years), PHP continues to decline in developer mindshare. Tools like Laravel keep it afloat, but many are migrating to Node.js, Python, or even newer full-stack JS frameworks.
🌱 Languages on the Rise
Looking forward, these are the languages gaining traction in 2025 and beyond. They’re built to solve modern problems—whether that’s speed, safety, concurrency, or developer ergonomics.
1. Rust
Rust is the poster child of modern systems programming. Sponsored by the likes of Mozilla and Microsoft, it offers memory safety without a garbage collector. It’s seeing adoption everywhere from embedded systems to cloud infrastructure.
2. Go (Golang)
Created by Google, Go has exploded in popularity thanks to its simplicity, speed, and stellar concurrency support. It’s a go-to for DevOps tools (like Docker and Kubernetes), web servers, and microservices.
3.
Kotlin
Kotlin is now the preferred language for Android development and is expanding into backend development via Ktor. It’s fully interoperable with Java but offers a cleaner, more modern syntax.
4.
TypeScript
TypeScript has taken over the frontend world, and is now expanding into backend and infrastructure tooling (e.g. Deno, Bun). The rise of typed JavaScript in modern codebases makes this one a must-know for web devs.
5.
Zig
An up-and-coming systems programming language that’s gaining love for being “C done right.” Still early-stage, but watch this space.
👀 Honourable Mentions
- Elixir: Loved in the real-time, concurrent world. Think chat apps and IoT.
- Swift: Dominant for iOS/macOS but rarely used outside Apple’s ecosystem.
- Dart (with Flutter): Flutter keeps Dart relevant, but outside mobile dev, its use is limited.
Final Thoughts
Programming languages live and die with the communities that support them. Some fade due to poor performance or tooling, others due to being replaced by languages better suited to the evolving tech landscape. As a digital-first agency, Presence Digital embraces the technologies that empower modern web experiences—and we’re always watching where the future is headed.
What’s in your stack? If you’re still relying on a declining language, it might be time to reassess. And if you’re starting something new, consider future-proofing with a language that’s built for what’s next.
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