Lionel Sujay Vailshery
Research expert covering cloud computing and emerging tech industries
These activities are planned and put into stages in a logical order, a process known as the software development life cycle (SDLC) or software development. The SDLC often includes six stages: requirement analysis, design, development, testing, implementation, documentation, and evolution. Programming languages such as JavaScript and C++ are used to create software, with JavaScript being the most popular programming language in 2023 and used by roughly 65 percent of software developers.
As an integral part of the IT market, the software industry has seen rapid growth lately. Despite the temporary decline brought about by the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak in 2020, the market has recovered well to retrieve the growth trajectory in the foreseeable future. As the creative engine of this ever-evolving industry, software development plays a vital role; tech companies spend exponentially on research and development, with Adobe allocating over three billion U.S. dollars to R&D new software products and improving current ones. For instance, Adobe spends exponentially on research and development. Software developers are among the most generously paid for their work in the United States, among other professions.
Depending on the software type, there are several types of software development. One of the most common types is application development, which develops software applications that perform specific tasks on personal computer operating systems. With the growing ubiquity of smartphones, mobile app development – the process of developing a mobile app for mobile devices – is also becoming popular. Most developers work with both Android and iOS mobile operating systems, while others work exclusively with one of the two primary mobile operating systems. Another popular type of software development is web development, which involves developing websites for the internet or an intranet (a private network). Application programming interface (API) development and embedded systems development are some other software development types.
Detailed statistics
Enterprise software total worldwide expenditure 2009-2024
Detailed statistics
Quarterly mobile app consumer spend on mobile apps Q2 2024
Detailed statistics
Number of iOS and Google Play app downloads as of Q1 2024
Enterprise software total worldwide expenditure 2009-2024
Information technology (IT) spending on enterprise software worldwide from 2009 to 2024 (in billion U.S. dollars)
Global enterprise application software revenue 2017-2026
Enterprise application software market revenue worldwide from 2017 to 2026 (in billion U.S. dollars)
Software market revenue worldwide 2016-2027, by segment
Revenue of the software market worldwide from 2016 to 2027, by segment (in billion U.S. dollars)
Quarterly mobile app consumer spend on mobile apps Q2 2024
Total value of global consumer spend on mobile apps as of 2nd quarter 2024 (in billion U.S. dollars)
Quarterly consumer spend on mobile apps per user 2019-2023
Average consumer spend on mobile apps per smartphone as of 3rd quarter 2023 (in U.S. dollars)
Number of iOS and Google Play app downloads as of Q1 2024
Number of Apple App Store and Google Play mobile app downloads worldwide from 3rd quarter 2016 to 1st quarter 2024 (in billions)
Revenue of the application outsourcing industry worldwide 2020-2029
Revenue of the application outsourcing market worldwide from 2020 to 2029 (in billion U.S. dollars)
Most widely utilized programming languages among developers worldwide 2024
Most used programming languages among developers worldwide as of 2024
Most utilized cloud platform by developers globally in 2024
Most used cloud platform among software developers worldwide, as of 2024
Most utilized frameworks among developers worldwide 2024
Most used libraries and frameworks among developers, worldwide, as of 2024
Most popular web frameworks among developers worldwide 2024
Most used web frameworks among developers worldwide, as of 2024
Programming languages with the highest salaries 2024
Programming languages that are associated with the highest salaries worldwide in 2024 (in 1,000 U.S. dollars)
Main testing targets worldwide in 2023
What is your primary testing target in 2023?
Types of tests in software projects worldwide in 2023
What types of tests do you have in your projects?
Techniques used for test design worldwide in 2023
Which test design techniques do you use in 2023?
Primary test frameworks, tools, and technologies worldwide in 2023
Which test frameworks, tools, and technologies do you use, if any in 2023?
Tools used for test case storage worldwide in 2023
What tools do you use to store test cases in 2023?
Proportion of project tests that are automated worldwide 2023
Approximately how many of your project tests are automated in 2023?
Mobile operating systems targeted by developers globally 2022-2023
Mobile operating systems targeted by developers worldwide in 2022 and 2023
Cross-platform mobile frameworks used by developers worldwide 2019-2023
Cross-platform mobile frameworks used by software developers worldwide from 2019 to 2023
Number of applications submitted to the iTunes App Store 2017-2023
Number of applications for the release of newly developed apps in the Apple App Store from January 2017 to October 2023
Global iOS app retention rate Q3 2023
iOS app retention rates worldwide in 3rd quarter 2023
App tracking transparency: opt-in rate of iOS users worldwide 2022
Monthly opt-in rate of mobile users worldwide allowing app tracking after iOS 14.5 update as of April 2022
Total Apple App Store iOS developer payout 2014-2023
Cumulative Apple App Store earnings of mobile app developers as of January 2023 (in billion U.S. dollars)
Most popular uses of AI in the development workflow globally 2024
Most popular uses of AI in the development workflow among developers worldwide as of 2024
Reasons for using ChatGPT among global IT professionals in 2023
Reasons for using ChatGPT among technology professionals worldwide in 2023
Weekly usage of AI tools worldwide in 2023, by experience
Usage of artificial intelligence (AI) tools weekly among IT professionals worldwide in 2023, by years of experience
Share of IT professionals who use AI tools daily worldwide 2023, by profession
Percentage of technology professionals who use artificial intelligence (AI) tools daily worldwide in 2023, by profession
Developers’ work satisfaction with or without AI tools worldwide 2023
Developers’ work satisfaction with or without artificial intelligence (AI) tools worldwide in 2023
Average software developer remuneration globally 2024, by role
Average salaries of software developers worldwide as of 2024, by role (in 1,000 U.S. dollars)
Length of time developers have spent on coding globally 2024
Number of years spent coding for developers worldwide as of 2024
Developer gender distribution worldwide 2023
Distribution of developers worldwide by gender as of 2023
Global formal education levels of software developers 2024
Levels of formal education for software developers, worldwide, as of 2024
Software developer engagement rate of popular technologies worldwide 2023
Most popular technologies software developers are engaged with worldwide as of 2023
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