programming languages

Rank

Common Lisp vs Clojure

  1. I learned this language early in my career as a programmer

    89% 11%
    Common Lisp 17 out of 19 picked Common Lisp over Clojure Clojure

  2. Developers who primarily use this language often burn out after a few years

    82% 18%
    Common Lisp 28 out of 34 picked Common Lisp over Clojure Clojure

  3. This language has a very dogmatic community

    80% 20%
    Common Lisp 42 out of 52 picked Common Lisp over Clojure Clojure

  4. This language is likely to be around for a very long time

    76% 24%
    Common Lisp 36 out of 47 picked Common Lisp over Clojure Clojure

  5. This language is large

    75% 25%
    Common Lisp 34 out of 45 picked Common Lisp over Clojure Clojure

  6. I often write things in this language with the intent of rewriting them in something else later

    74% 26%
    Common Lisp 23 out of 31 picked Common Lisp over Clojure Clojure

  7. This language excels at symbolic manipulation

    72% 28%
    Common Lisp 44 out of 61 picked Common Lisp over Clojure Clojure

  8. This language is good for numeric computing

    70% 30%
    Common Lisp 35 out of 50 picked Common Lisp over Clojure Clojure

  9. This language is very flexible

    68% 32%
    Common Lisp 44 out of 64 picked Common Lisp over Clojure Clojure

  10. I often get angry when writing code in this language

    68% 32%
    Common Lisp 11 out of 16 picked Common Lisp over Clojure Clojure

  11. The semantics of this language are much different than other languages I know.

    68% 32%
    Common Lisp 13 out of 19 picked Common Lisp over Clojure Clojure

  12. This language is unusually bad for beginners

    68% 32%
    Common Lisp 45 out of 66 picked Common Lisp over Clojure Clojure

  13. Writing code in this language is a lot of work

    67% 33%
    Common Lisp 41 out of 61 picked Common Lisp over Clojure Clojure

  14. I use a lot of code written in this language which I really don't want to have to make changes to

    66% 34%
    Common Lisp 12 out of 18 picked Common Lisp over Clojure Clojure

  15. Programs written in this language will usually work in future versions of the language

    66% 34%
    Common Lisp 34 out of 51 picked Common Lisp over Clojure Clojure

  16. It is too easy to write code in this language that looks like it does one thing but actually does something else

    65% 35%
    Common Lisp 29 out of 44 picked Common Lisp over Clojure Clojure

  17. Programs written in this language tend to be efficient

    64% 36%
    Common Lisp 33 out of 51 picked Common Lisp over Clojure Clojure

  18. The thought that I may still be using this language in twenty years time fills me with dread

    64% 36%
    Common Lisp 31 out of 48 picked Common Lisp over Clojure Clojure

  19. This language has a high quality implementation

    64% 36%
    Common Lisp 18 out of 28 picked Common Lisp over Clojure Clojure

  20. I would use this language for writing programs for an embedded hardware platform

    62% 38%
    Common Lisp 28 out of 45 picked Common Lisp over Clojure Clojure

  21. I enjoy playing with this language but would never use it for "real code"

    61% 39%
    Common Lisp 26 out of 42 picked Common Lisp over Clojure Clojure

  22. This language allows me to write programs where I know exactly what they are doing under the hood

    61% 39%
    Common Lisp 36 out of 59 picked Common Lisp over Clojure Clojure

  23. There are many good commercial tools for this language

    60% 40%
    Common Lisp 31 out of 51 picked Common Lisp over Clojure Clojure

  24. There is a wide variety of open source code written in this language

    60% 40%
    Common Lisp 34 out of 56 picked Common Lisp over Clojure Clojure

  25. I use many applications written in this language

    58% 42%
    Common Lisp 35 out of 60 picked Common Lisp over Clojure Clojure

  26. Code written in this language tends to be verbose

    58% 42%
    Common Lisp 35 out of 60 picked Common Lisp over Clojure Clojure

  27. This is a low level language

    58% 42%
    Common Lisp 36 out of 62 picked Common Lisp over Clojure Clojure

  28. I am reluctant to admit to knowing this language

    57% 43%
    Common Lisp 23 out of 40 picked Common Lisp over Clojure Clojure

  29. Learning this language significantly changed how I use other languages.

    57% 43%
    Common Lisp 16 out of 28 picked Common Lisp over Clojure Clojure

  30. This language is well documented

    56% 44%
    Common Lisp 33 out of 58 picked Common Lisp over Clojure Clojure

  31. This language has many features which feel "tacked on"

    56% 44%
    Common Lisp 25 out of 44 picked Common Lisp over Clojure Clojure

  32. This language makes it easy to shoot yourself in the foot

    56% 44%
    Common Lisp 22 out of 39 picked Common Lisp over Clojure Clojure

  33. It is easy to debug programs written in this language when it goes wrong

    56% 44%
    Common Lisp 31 out of 55 picked Common Lisp over Clojure Clojure

  34. I know many other people who use this language

    56% 44%
    Common Lisp 28 out of 50 picked Common Lisp over Clojure Clojure

  35. There is a lot of accidental complexity when writing code in this language

    56% 44%
    Common Lisp 28 out of 50 picked Common Lisp over Clojure Clojure

  36. Learning this language improved my ability as a programmer

    55% 45%
    Common Lisp 31 out of 56 picked Common Lisp over Clojure Clojure

  37. If my code in this language successfully compiles, there is a good chance my code is correct.

    54% 46%
    Common Lisp 12 out of 22 picked Common Lisp over Clojure Clojure

  38. This language is good for scientific computing

    54% 46%
    Common Lisp 31 out of 57 picked Common Lisp over Clojure Clojure

  39. This language is well suited for an agile development approach using short iterations.

    53% 47%
    Common Lisp 7 out of 13 picked Common Lisp over Clojure Clojure

  40. This language is suitable for real-time applications

    53% 47%
    Common Lisp 24 out of 45 picked Common Lisp over Clojure Clojure

  41. The resources for learning this language are of high quality

    52% 48%
    Common Lisp 29 out of 55 picked Common Lisp over Clojure Clojure

  42. This language has a niche outside of which I would not use it

    52% 48%
    Common Lisp 26 out of 50 picked Common Lisp over Clojure Clojure

  43. This language has unusual features that I often miss when using other languages

    51% 49%
    Common Lisp 23 out of 45 picked Common Lisp over Clojure Clojure

  44. There are many good tools for this language

    50% 50%
    Common Lisp 27 out of 53 picked Common Lisp over Clojure Clojure

  45. It's unusual for me to discover unfamiliar features

    50% 50%
    Common Lisp 28 out of 55 picked Common Lisp over Clojure Clojure

  46. This language encourages writing reusable code.

    50% 50%
    Common Lisp 15 out of 30 each for Clojure and Common Lisp Clojure

  47. If this language didn't exist, I would have trouble finding a satisfactory replacement

    50% 50%
    Common Lisp 16 out of 32 each for Clojure and Common Lisp Clojure

  48. I still discover new features of this language on a fairly regular basis

    50% 50%
    Common Lisp 22 out of 44 each for Clojure and Common Lisp Clojure

  49. This language has a wide variety of agreed-upon conventions, which are generally adhered to reasonably well, and which increase my productivity

    49% 51%
    Common Lisp 28 out of 55 picked Clojure over Common Lisp Clojure

  50. I rarely have difficulty abstracting patterns I find in my code

    48% 52%
    Common Lisp 29 out of 56 picked Clojure over Common Lisp Clojure

  51. This language would be good for teaching children to write software

    48% 52%
    Common Lisp 13 out of 25 picked Clojure over Common Lisp Clojure

  52. This language matches it's problem domain particularly well.

    48% 52%
    Common Lisp 13 out of 25 picked Clojure over Common Lisp Clojure

  53. I know this language well

    47% 53%
    Common Lisp 266 out of 511 picked Clojure over Common Lisp Clojure

  54. This language has an annoying syntax

    47% 53%
    Common Lisp 10 out of 19 picked Clojure over Common Lisp Clojure

  55. I would use this language for writing embedded programs

    47% 53%
    Common Lisp 9 out of 17 picked Clojure over Common Lisp Clojure

  56. This language is likely to have a strong influence on future languages

    46% 54%
    Common Lisp 25 out of 47 picked Clojure over Common Lisp Clojure

  57. I use this language out of choice

    46% 54%
    Common Lisp 24 out of 45 picked Clojure over Common Lisp Clojure

  58. Code written in this language tends to be very reliable

    46% 54%
    Common Lisp 29 out of 54 picked Clojure over Common Lisp Clojure

  59. When I run into problems my colleagues can provide me with immediate help with this language

    46% 54%
    Common Lisp 28 out of 52 picked Clojure over Common Lisp Clojure

  60. There are many good open-source tools for this language

    45% 55%
    Common Lisp 31 out of 57 picked Clojure over Common Lisp Clojure

  61. This language has a strong static type system

    45% 55%
    Common Lisp 35 out of 64 picked Clojure over Common Lisp Clojure

  62. I would use this language to write a command-line app

    45% 55%
    Common Lisp 29 out of 53 picked Clojure over Common Lisp Clojure

  63. This language is built on a small core of orthogonal features

    44% 56%
    Common Lisp 21 out of 38 picked Clojure over Common Lisp Clojure

  64. This is a high level language

    44% 56%
    Common Lisp 42 out of 76 picked Clojure over Common Lisp Clojure

  65. Code written in this language is very readable

    43% 57%
    Common Lisp 36 out of 64 picked Clojure over Common Lisp Clojure

  66. This language excels at text processing

    43% 57%
    Common Lisp 31 out of 55 picked Clojure over Common Lisp Clojure

  67. I find it easy to write efficient code in this language

    43% 57%
    Common Lisp 38 out of 67 picked Clojure over Common Lisp Clojure

  68. I am sometimes embarrassed to admit to my peers that I know this language

    43% 57%
    Common Lisp 21 out of 37 picked Clojure over Common Lisp Clojure

  69. This language is best for very small projects

    42% 58%
    Common Lisp 32 out of 56 picked Clojure over Common Lisp Clojure

  70. This language is frequently used for applications it isn't suitable for

    42% 58%
    Common Lisp 23 out of 40 picked Clojure over Common Lisp Clojure

  71. I find this language easy to prototype in

    41% 59%
    Common Lisp 39 out of 67 picked Clojure over Common Lisp Clojure

  72. This language is expressive

    41% 59%
    Common Lisp 43 out of 73 picked Clojure over Common Lisp Clojure

  73. This language has a niche in which it is great

    40% 60%
    Common Lisp 36 out of 60 picked Clojure over Common Lisp Clojure

  74. I often feel like I am not smart enough to write this language

    40% 60%
    Common Lisp 9 out of 15 picked Clojure over Common Lisp Clojure

  75. This language is best for very large projects

    40% 60%
    Common Lisp 30 out of 50 picked Clojure over Common Lisp Clojure

  76. I find code written in this language very elegant

    38% 62%
    Common Lisp 44 out of 72 picked Clojure over Common Lisp Clojure

  77. When I write code in this language I can be very sure it is correct

    37% 63%
    Common Lisp 34 out of 54 picked Clojure over Common Lisp Clojure

  78. This is a mainstream language

    35% 65%
    Common Lisp 13 out of 20 picked Clojure over Common Lisp Clojure

  79. I would use this language for a web project

    34% 66%
    Common Lisp 40 out of 61 picked Clojure over Common Lisp Clojure

  80. I usually use this language on projects with many other members

    34% 66%
    Common Lisp 40 out of 61 picked Clojure over Common Lisp Clojure

  81. I regularly use this language

    34% 66%
    Common Lisp 44 out of 67 picked Clojure over Common Lisp Clojure

  82. This language has well-organized libraries with consistent, carefully thought-out interfaces

    34% 66%
    Common Lisp 31 out of 47 picked Clojure over Common Lisp Clojure

  83. Code written in this language will usually run in all the major implementations if it runs in one of them.

    33% 67%
    Common Lisp 12 out of 18 picked Clojure over Common Lisp Clojure

  84. This language has a very coherent design

    33% 67%
    Common Lisp 32 out of 48 picked Clojure over Common Lisp Clojure

  85. Third-party libraries are readily available, well-documented, and of high quality

    32% 68%
    Common Lisp 37 out of 55 picked Clojure over Common Lisp Clojure

  86. I would list this language on my resume

    32% 68%
    Common Lisp 35 out of 52 picked Clojure over Common Lisp Clojure

  87. I would use this language for casual scripting

    32% 68%
    Common Lisp 38 out of 56 picked Clojure over Common Lisp Clojure

  88. This language has a very rigid idea of how things should be done

    31% 69%
    Common Lisp 37 out of 54 picked Clojure over Common Lisp Clojure

  89. I would recommend most programmers learn this language, regardless of whether they have a specific need for it

    30% 70%
    Common Lisp 18 out of 26 picked Clojure over Common Lisp Clojure

  90. This language encourages writing code that is easy to maintain.

    30% 70%
    Common Lisp 16 out of 23 picked Clojure over Common Lisp Clojure

  91. This language is minimal

    30% 70%
    Common Lisp 30 out of 43 picked Clojure over Common Lisp Clojure

  92. I would use this language for writing server programs

    30% 70%
    Common Lisp 42 out of 60 picked Clojure over Common Lisp Clojure

  93. This language is good for beginners

    30% 70%
    Common Lisp 42 out of 60 picked Clojure over Common Lisp Clojure

  94. Code written in this language tends to be terse

    29% 71%
    Common Lisp 40 out of 57 picked Clojure over Common Lisp Clojure

  95. Libraries in this language tend to be well documented.

    29% 71%
    Common Lisp 17 out of 24 picked Clojure over Common Lisp Clojure

  96. I can imagine using this language in my day job

    28% 72%
    Common Lisp 50 out of 70 picked Clojure over Common Lisp Clojure

  97. Programs written in this language tend to play well with others

    28% 72%
    Common Lisp 43 out of 60 picked Clojure over Common Lisp Clojure

  98. This language has a good library distribution mechanism.

    28% 72%
    Common Lisp 18 out of 25 picked Clojure over Common Lisp Clojure

  99. I would use this language for a desktop GUI project

    27% 73%
    Common Lisp 39 out of 54 picked Clojure over Common Lisp Clojure

  100. I enjoy using this language

    27% 73%
    Common Lisp 47 out of 65 picked Clojure over Common Lisp Clojure

  101. I can imagine this will be a popular language in twenty years time

    27% 73%
    Common Lisp 29 out of 40 picked Clojure over Common Lisp Clojure

  102. This language has a good community

    25% 75%
    Common Lisp 46 out of 62 picked Clojure over Common Lisp Clojure

  103. It is easy to tell at a glance what code in this language does

    25% 75%
    Common Lisp 47 out of 63 picked Clojure over Common Lisp Clojure

  104. This language is easier to use for it's problem domain by removing unneeded expressiveness (such as not being Turing complete).

    25% 75%
    Common Lisp 12 out of 16 picked Clojure over Common Lisp Clojure

  105. This language is good for distributed computing

    23% 77%
    Common Lisp 36 out of 47 picked Clojure over Common Lisp Clojure

  106. I would use this language for mobile applications

    23% 77%
    Common Lisp 40 out of 52 picked Clojure over Common Lisp Clojure

  107. I usually use this language on solo projects

    22% 78%
    Common Lisp 45 out of 58 picked Clojure over Common Lisp Clojure

  108. I would like to write more of this language than I currently do

    21% 79%
    Common Lisp 51 out of 65 picked Clojure over Common Lisp Clojure

  109. I would use this language as a scripting language embedded inside a larger application

    19% 81%
    Common Lisp 38 out of 47 picked Clojure over Common Lisp Clojure

  110. This language is likely to be a passing fad

    15% 85%
    Common Lisp 32 out of 38 picked Clojure over Common Lisp Clojure

  111. This language excels at concurrency

    10% 90%
    Common Lisp 58 out of 65 picked Clojure over Common Lisp Clojure

What's going on here?

The absolute rankings are interesting for large scale comparisons but when you want to know about two specific languages it's much more informative to look at how the two fare when they go directly head to head.

Here are all the statements which we've got enough comparisons between Common Lisp and Clojure to be meaningful and which of the two our users picked.

The order in which we're presenting them is a little arbitrary (sorry), but we've tried to put the things which they're both good at first so as to give you the most interesting picture of it.