Comparison of multi-paradigm programming languages

Programming languages can be grouped by the number and types of paradigms supported.

Paradigm summaries

A concise reference for the programming paradigms listed in this article.

• Concurrent programming – have language constructs for concurrency, these may involve multi-threading, support for distributed computing, message passing, shared resources (including shared memory), or futures
  • Actor programming – concurrent computation with actors that make local decisions in response to the environment (capable of selfish or competitive behaviour)
• Constraint programming – relations between variables are expressed as constraints (or constraint networks), directing allowable solutions (uses constraint satisfaction or simplex algorithm)
• Dataflow programming – forced recalculation of formulas when data values change (e.g. spreadsheets)
• Declarative programming – describes what computation should perform, without specifying detailed state changes cf. imperative programming (functional and logic programming are major subgroups of declarative programming)
• Distributed programming – have support for multiple autonomous computers that communicate via computer networks
• Functional programming – uses evaluation of mathematical functions and avoids state and mutable data
• Generic programming – uses algorithms written in terms of to-be-specified-later types that are then instantiated as needed for specific types provided as parameters
• Imperative programming – explicit statements that change a program state
• Logic programming – uses explicit mathematical logic for programming
• Metaprogramming – writing programs that write or manipulate other programs (or themselves) as their data, or that do part of the work at compile time that would otherwise be done at runtime
  • Template metaprogramming – metaprogramming methods in which a compiler uses templates to generate temporary source code, which is merged by the compiler with the rest of the source code and then compiled
  • Reflective programming – metaprogramming methods in which a program modifies or extends itself
• Object-oriented programming – uses data structures consisting of data fields and methods together with their interactions (objects) to design programs
  • Class-based – object-oriented programming in which inheritance is achieved by defining classes of objects, versus the objects themselves
  • Prototype-based – object-oriented programming that avoids classes and implements inheritance via cloning of instances
• Pipeline programming – a simple syntax change to add syntax to nest function calls to language originally designed with none
• Rule-based programming – a network of rules of thumb that comprise a knowledge base and can be used for expert systems and problem deduction & resolution
• Visual programming – manipulating program elements graphically rather than by specifying them textually (e.g. Simulink); also termed diagrammatic programming ^[1]

Language overview

List of multi-paradigm programming languages

Language	Paradigm count	Concurrent	Constraints	Dataflow	Declarative	Distributed	Functional	Metaprogramming	Generic	Imperative	Logic	Reflection	Object-oriented	Pipelines	Visual	Rule-based	Other
Ada [2] [3] [4] [5] [6]	5	Yes [a 1]	—	—	—	Yes	—	—	Yes	Yes	—	—	Yes [a 2]	—	—	—	—
ALF	2	—	—	—	—	—	Yes	—	—	—	Yes	—	—	—	—	—	—
AmigaE [ citation needed ]	2	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	Yes	—	—	Yes [a 2]	—	—	—	—
APL	3	—	—	—	—	—	Yes	—	—	Yes	—	—	—	—	—	—	Array (multi-dimensional)
BETA [ citation needed ]	3	—	—	—	—	—	Yes	—	—	Yes	—	—	Yes [a 2]	—	—	—	—
C++	7 (15)	Yes [7] [8] [9]	Library [10]	Library [11] [12]	Library [13] [14]	Library [15] [16]	Yes	Yes [17]	Yes [a 3]	Yes	Library [18] [19]	Library [20]	Yes [a 2]	Library [21]	—	Library [22]	Array (multi-dimensional; using STL)
C#	6 (7)	Yes	—	Library [a 4]	—	—	Yes [a 5]	—	Yes	Yes	—	Yes	Yes [a 2]	—	—	—	Reactive [a 6]
ChucK [ citation needed ]	3	Yes	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	Yes	—	—	Yes [a 2]	—	—	—	—
Claire	2	—	—	—	—	—	Yes	—	—	—	—	—	Yes [a 2]	—	—	—	—
Clojure	5	Yes [23] [24]	—	—	Yes	—	Yes [25]	Yes [26]	—	—	Library [27]	—	—	Yes [28]	—	—	Multiple dispatch, [29] Agents [30]
Common Lisp	7 (14)	Library [31]	Library [32]	Library [33]	Yes [34]	Library [35]	Yes	Yes	Yes [36]	Yes	Library [37]	Yes	Yes [a 7] [a 2] [38]	Library [39]	Library [40]	Library [41]	Multiple dispatch, meta-OOP system, [42] Language is extensible via metaprogramming.
Curl	5	—	—	—	—	—	Yes	—	Yes [a 3]	Yes	—	Yes	Yes [a 2]	—	—	—	—
Curry	4	Yes	Yes	—	—	—	Yes	—	—	—	Yes	—	—	—	—	—	—
D (version 2.0) [43] [44]	7	Yes [a 8]	—	—	—	—	Yes	Yes [45] [a 3]	Yes [a 3]	Yes	—	Yes	Yes [a 2]	—	—	—	—
Delphi	3	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	Yes [a 3]	Yes	—	—	Yes [a 2]	—	—	—	—
Dylan [ citation needed ]	3	—	—	—	—	—	Yes	—	—	—	—	Yes	Yes [a 2]	—	—	—	—
E	3	Yes	—	—	—	Yes	—	—	—	—	—	—	Yes [a 2]	—	—	—	—
ECMAScript [46] [47] (ActionScript, E4X, JavaScript, JScript)	4 (5)	Partial [a 9] [a 10]	—	—	Library [48] [49]	—	Yes	—	—	Yes	—	Yes	Yes [a 11]	Library [50] [51]	—	—	Reactive, [a 12] [52] event driven [a 13] [a 14]
Erlang	3	Yes	—	—	Yes	Yes	Yes	—	—	—	—	—	—	Yes	—	—	—
Elixir	4	Yes	—	—	—	Yes	Yes	Yes	—	—	—	—	—	Yes	—	—	—
Elm	6	Yes	—	Yes	Yes	—	Yes (pure) [a 15]	—	Yes	—	—	—	—	Yes	—	—	Reactive
F#	7 (8)	Yes [a 8]	—	Library [a 4]	Yes	—	Yes	—	Yes	Yes	—	Yes	Yes [a 2]	—	—	—	Reactive [a 6]
Fortran	4 (5)	Yes	—	—	—	—	Yes [a 15]	—	Yes [a 16]	—	—	—	Yes [a 2]	—	—	—	Array (multi-dimensional)
Go	4	Yes	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	Yes	—	Yes	—	Yes	—	—	—
Haskell	8 (15)	Yes	Library [53]	Library [54]	Yes	Library [55]	Yes (lazy) (pure) [a 15]	Yes [56]	Yes	Yes	Library [57]	—	Partial [a 17]	Yes	Yes	Library [58]	Literate, reactive, dependent types (partial)
Io	4	Yes [a 8]	—	—	—	—	Yes	—	—	Yes	—	—	Yes [a 11]	—	—	—	—
J [ citation needed ]	3	—	—	—	—	—	Yes	—	—	Yes	—	—	Yes [a 2]	—	—	—	—
Java	6	Yes	Library [59]	Library [60]	—	—	Yes	—	Yes	Yes	—	Yes	Yes [a 2]	—	—	—	—
Julia	9 (17)	Yes	Library [61]	Library [62] [63]	Library [64]	Yes	Yes (eager)	Yes	Yes	Yes	Library [65]	Yes	Partial [a 18]	Yes	—	Library [66] [67]	Multiple dispatch, Array (multi-dimensional); optionally lazy [68] and reactive (with libraries)
Kotlin	8	Yes	—	—	—	—	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	—	Yes	Yes	Yes	—	—	—
LabVIEW	4	Yes	—	Yes	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	Yes	—	Yes	—	—
Lava	2	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	Yes [a 2]	—	Yes	—	—
LispWorks (version 6.0 with support for symmetric multi-processing, rules, logic (Prolog), CORBA)	9	Yes	—	—	—	Yes	Yes	Yes	—	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes [a 2]	—	—	Yes	—
Lua [ citation needed ]	3	—	—	—	—	—	Yes	—	—	Yes	—	—	Yes [a 11]	—	—	—	—
MATLAB	6 (10)	Toolbox [69]	Toolbox [70]	Yes [71]	—	Toolbox [72]	—	Yes [73]	Yes [74]	—	—	Yes [75]	Yes [76]	—	Yes [77]	—	Array (multi-dimensional)
Nemerle	7	Yes	—	—	—	—	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	—	Yes	Yes [a 2]	—	—	—	—
Object Pascal	4	Yes	—	—	—	—	Yes	—	—	Yes	—	—	Yes [a 2]	—	—	—	—
OCaml	4	—	—	—	—	—	Yes	—	Yes	Yes	—	—	Yes [a 2]	—	—	—	—
Oz	11	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	—	—	Yes	Yes	—	Yes [a 2]	Yes	—	Yes	—
Perl [ citation needed ]	8 (9)	Yes [78]	—	Yes [79]	—	—	Yes	Yes	—	Yes	—	Yes [a 2]	Yes [a 2]	Yes	—	—	—
PHP [80] [81] [82]	4	—	—	—	—	—	Yes	—	—	Yes	—	Yes	Yes [a 2]	—	—	—	—
Poplog	3	—	—	—	—	—	Yes	—	—	Yes	Yes	—	—	—	—	—	—
Prograph	3	—	—	Yes	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	Yes [a 2]	—	Yes	—	—
Python	5 (10)	Library [83] [84]	Library [85]	—	—	Library [86]	Yes	Yes [87] [88]	Yes [89] [90]	Yes	Library [91]	Yes	Yes [a 2]	—	—	—	Structured
R	4 (6)	Library [92]	—	—	—	Library [93]	Yes	—	—	Yes	—	Yes	Yes	Yes [94]	—	—	Array (multi-dimensional)
Racket	10	Yes [95]	Yes [96]	Yes [97]	—	Yes [98]	Yes	Yes	—	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	—	—	—	Lazy [99]
Raku	10	Yes [100]	Library [101]	Yes [102]	—	Library [103]	Yes	Yes [104]	Yes [105]	Yes	—	Yes [106]	Yes [107]	Yes	—	—	Multiple dispatch, lazy lists, reactive.
ROOP	3	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	Yes	Yes	—	—	—	—	Yes	—
Ruby	5	—	—	—	—	—	Yes	Yes	—	Yes	—	Yes	Yes [a 2]	—	—	—	—
Rust (version 1.0.0-alpha)	6	Yes [a 8]	—	—	—	—	Yes	Yes [108] [109]	Yes [110]	Yes	—	—	Yes	—	—	—	Linear, affline, and ownership types
Sather [ citation needed ]	2	—	—	—	—	—	Yes	—	—	—	—	—	Yes [a 2]	—	—	—	—
Scala [111] [112]	9	Yes [a 8]	—	Yes [a 19]	Yes	—	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	—	Yes	Yes [a 2]	—	—	—	—
Simula [ citation needed ]	2	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	Yes	—	—	Yes [a 2]	—	—	—	—
SISAL	3	Yes	—	Yes	—	—	Yes	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
Spreadsheets	2	—	—	—	—	—	Yes	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	Yes	—	—
Swift	7	Yes	—	—	—	—	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	—	Yes	Yes [a 2]	—	—	—	Block-structured
Tcl with Snit extension [ citation needed ]	3	—	—	—	—	—	Yes [113]	—	—	Yes	—	—	Yes [a 11] [114]	—	—	—	—
Visual Basic .NET	6 (7)	Yes	—	Library [a 4]	—	—	Yes	—	Yes	Yes	—	Yes	Yes [a 2]	—	—	—	Reactive [a 6]
Windows PowerShell	6	—	—	—	—	—	Yes	—	Yes	Yes	—	Yes	Yes [a 2]	Yes	—	—	—
Wolfram Language & Mathematica	13 [115] (14)	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes [116]	—	Yes	Knowledge Based

See also

• Carbon (programming language) — multi-paradigm language being developed at Google to be a successor to C++
• Programming paradigm
• List of programming languages by type
• Domain-specific language
• Domain-specific multimodeling

Notes

1. rendezvous and monitor-like based
2. class-based
3. template metaprogramming
4. using TPL Dataflow
5. only lambda support (lazy functional programming)
6. using Reactive Extensions (Rx)
7. multiple dispatch, method combinations
8. actor programming
9. promises, native extensions
10. using Node.js' cluster module or child_process.fork method, web workers in the browser, etc.
11. Prototype-based
12. using Reactive Extensions (RxJS)
13. in Node.js via their events module
14. in browsers via their native EventTarget API
15. purely functional
16. parameterized classes
17. immutable
18. Uses structs with function polymorphism and multiple dispatch
19. Akka Archived 2013-01-19 at the Wayback Machine

Citations

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5. Ada Reference Manual, ISO/IEC 8652:2005(E) Ed. 3, Section 6: Subprograms
6. Ada Reference Manual, ISO/IEC 8652:2005(E) Ed. 3, 3.9 Tagged Types and Type Extensions
7. Thread support
8. Atomics support
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11. SystemC
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13. Boolinq
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17. Boost.MPL
18. LC++
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20. Reflect Library
21. N3534
22. Boost.Spirit
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24. Clojure - core.async
25. Clojure - Functional Programming
26. Clojure - Macros
27. Clojure - core.logic
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30. Agents and Asynchronous Actions
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32. constraint programming inside CL through extensions
33. dataflow extension
34. by creating DSLs using the built-in metaprogramming; also see note on functional, constraint and logic paradigms, which are part of declarative
35. MPI, etc via language extensions
36. template metaprogramming using macros (see C++)
37. Prolog implemented as a language extension
38. Common Lisp Object System see Wikipedia article on CLOS, the Common Lisp Object System.
39. implemented by the user via a short macro, example of implementation
40. - Visual programming tool based on Common Lisp
41. rule-based programming extension
42. Archived 2018-04-26 at the Wayback Machine through the Meta Object Protocol
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44. Phobos std.algorithm
45. D language String Mixins
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78. interpreter based threads
79. Higher Order Perl
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96. The Rosette Guide
97. FrTime: A Language for Reactive Programs
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99. Lazy Racket
100. Channels and other mechanisms
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102. Feed operator
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References

• Jim Coplien, Multiparadigm Design for C++, Addison-Wesley Professional, 1998.