Hey everyone!
I’m Nihal from Bangladesh. I’ve just started my journey into the world of programming, and honestly, I’m really enjoying it so far.
At first, I began learning Python — it’s simple, clean, and easy to understand for beginners like me. But when I started solving contest problems, I ran into a few issues, especially time limit errors. That’s when I realized that maybe I need to learn a language that’s faster and more suitable for problem solving.
Now, I’m trying to figure out which language would be the best choice for me. I want something powerful, efficient, and good for improving my logical thinking.
If you’re also new to programming, you might be wondering the same thing —
“Which language should I learn to get better at problem solving?”
I’ll share my thoughts and experiences here as I keep learning. Maybe it’ll help someone else who’s just starting out, like me.
I’m also new, but I’ve done a bit of research on this so I hope it helps. Most people recommend C++ for competitive programming because: it’s super fast (less TLEs), has the STL (which saves a lot of time during contests), and it’s widely used by top-rated coders here. Python’s great for learning logic, but for speed and serious contests, C++ is usually the go-to. If you’re switching, just focus on learning basic syntax + STL and solve problems consistently. It’ll click over time.
If I were you, I would start learning C++. https://usaco.guide and the competitive programmer's handbook (https://cses.fi/book/book.pdf) are great resources for this. I am still a Python programmer simply because I started on Python and know more features of the language. I am trying to switch to C++ now because I am getting frequent "Time Limit Exceeded" errors with Python, and it will only go downhill from here. Python is easier to program in, but is significantly slower (good for things with less strict limits like HackerRank and LeetCode). C++ is the way to go if you want to be a serious competitor on CodeForces.
i dont think speed matters much at your level
the constraints of the problem are such that you wont be at the limit
also c++ wont do miracles !
i think you may stick with python