Python Performance Debate

Discussions center on Python's speed limitations, especially CPython's slowness compared to C or other languages, with debates on whether it's a real issue, mentions of PyPy as a faster alternative, and calls to use other tools for performance-critical code.

📉 Falling 0.4x Programming Languages
6,227
Comments
20
Years Active
5
Top Authors
#3533
Topic ID

Activity Over Time

2007
4
2008
42
2009
70
2010
132
2011
152
2012
170
2013
262
2014
303
2015
239
2016
299
2017
427
2018
302
2019
375
2020
509
2021
537
2022
624
2023
665
2024
570
2025
500
2026
45

Keywords

PHP JIT PyPy CLI ML LISP plotsummary.html IronPython JavaScript speed.pypy python pypy faster performance cpython speed fast slow prototyping truck

Sample Comments

canadianfella Jun 20, 2021 View on HN

Faster than Python doesn’t mean fast.

dozzie Aug 7, 2014 View on HN

Why do you need Python if C is faster?

seunosewa Nov 5, 2010 View on HN

The problem with python is the lack of speed.

arp242 Jun 12, 2023 View on HN

"Faster than Python" is a very different thing than "near native performance".

botten Apr 3, 2017 View on HN

Python is slow. Sometimes this matters (pypy can improve speed in many but not all cases).

naveen99 Oct 25, 2017 View on HN

Python is slow, you can downvote me all you want. Case in point: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=15548904

morcus Dec 25, 2025 View on HN

Is being faster than Python considered to be a notable feature?

ganstyles May 15, 2020 View on HN

It sounds like you may not consider anything python can do to be fast, so I'm thinking the latter.

hasenj Apr 28, 2017 View on HN

If you want performance don't use Python.

maxerickson Apr 4, 2014 View on HN

"Write it in C if you need speed" is a mainstream, orthodox view in the Python community. Pypy is largely the result of hard work from a small number of people (same goes for Jython and IronPython).