Software Development Statistics (2026)
The Crossover: in 2025, the share of developers using AI tools passed the share who feel good about them, and it has stayed ahead. AI now drafts code and pull requests, while developers keep the final say.
Developers' AI use passed their approval of AI in 2025, and stayed ahead
AI in software development statistics: share of Stack Overflow survey respondents who use AI tools vs. share favorable toward them, 2023–2026, %
All respondents in each year's survey. Use and favorability are derived by adding published answer shares. The 2026 survey reworded both questions ("in your role at work"; "somewhat favorable"), so the 2025–26 step is not a like-for-like change.
Almost half of developers trust AI only when they can check it
Trust in AI-generated code and output: how much developers trust AI tools in their workflow, 2026, % of respondents
- Only when I can easily verify it48%48.0%
- For many tasks, not important decisions16.3%16.3%
- For low-risk tasks only16.3%16.3%
- Not for most work tasks12.3%12.3%
- For many tasks, including important decisions6.6%6.6%
- Not sure / don't use AI0.5%0.5%
- All respondents100%100%
Answer labels are shortened from the survey's wording (e.g. "I trust it when I can easily verify the output"). n = 14,304.
AI writes the code, but rarely touches production
What developers use AI for: share currently using AI or AI agents for each task, 2026, %
Nine of the 19 tasks asked about. Labels are shortened from the survey's wording: "Familiar code" is "Generating code in a familiar area", "Debugging" also covers troubleshooting and refactoring, and "Production ops" is "Deploying, operating, or troubleshooting production systems." 36.0% do not use AI for production work and do not plan to. n = 12,547.
Claude Code and GitHub Copilot lead AI coding tools
Most used AI coding tools: share of respondents who used each coding agent or assistant in the past year, 2026, %
Base is the 12,255 respondents who answered the coding-agent question, not all survey takers. Respondents could pick several tools.
Python has closed in on JavaScript, now 4 points behind
Most popular programming languages: share of respondents doing extensive work in each, 2017–2026, %
The 4.0-point gap is JavaScript's 62.0% minus Python's 58.0% in 2026 (30.2 points in 2017). SQL (58.4%) and HTML/CSS (58.2%) also edge Python in 2026 and are left out for clarity. Each year is a different self-selected sample.
U.S. software developer jobs are projected to grow 3× faster than average
Software developer job outlook: projected change in U.S. employment, 2025–35, %
BLS rounds these projections to whole percents. Software developers: 1,717,800 jobs in 2025, 1,892,600 projected for 2035 (+174,700). "3× faster" compares the rounded 10% with 3%.
Software developers earn 2.7× the U.S. median wage
Software developer salary: median annual wage in the U.S., May 2025, US$
2.7× is $135,980 ÷ $50,980 (derived). The lowest 10% of software developers earned less than $82,460 and the highest 10% more than $214,670.