By Aijaz Alam
How many software developers are there in the world?
More than 225 million developers use GitHub, according to GitHub's Octoverse report of 28 October 2026, covering October 2025 to September 2026. GitHub changed its method for that report, so the figure is not directly comparable with the more than 180 million in its 2025 report. That counts accounts, not jobs: the US Bureau of Labor Statistics counts 1,905,400 jobs for US software developers, QA analysts and testers in 2025.
- 225 million+Developers on GitHub worldwideGitHub Octoverse, Oct 2025 to Sep 2026
- 180 million+Developers on GitHub in the 2025 report (earlier method, not directly comparable)GitHub Octoverse 2025, Sep 2024 to Aug 2025
- 38.3 millionDevelopers on GitHub in the US, the largest countryGitHub Octoverse, Sep 2026
- 32.0 millionDevelopers on GitHub in IndiaGitHub Octoverse, Sep 2026
- 1,905,400US jobs for software developers, QA analysts and testersUS Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2025
The numbers
The full breakdown
How many developers, by measure
| Measure | Count | Period | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Developers on GitHub worldwide | More than 225 million | Oct 2025 to Sep 2026 | GitHub Octoverse |
| Developers on GitHub worldwide (2025 report, earlier method) | More than 180 million | Sep 2024 to Aug 2025 | GitHub Octoverse |
| New developers joining GitHub in a year | More than 36 million | Sep 2024 to Aug 2025 | GitHub Octoverse |
| Developers on GitHub in the US | 38.3 million | Sep 2026 | GitHub Octoverse |
| US jobs: software developers, QA analysts and testers | 1,905,400 | 2025 | US Bureau of Labor Statistics |
GitHub counts developers using its platform, including students and hobbyists, and one person can hold more than one account. BLS counts paid jobs in the US. The two are not comparable.
Developers on GitHub by country, September 2026
| Country | Developers on GitHub |
|---|---|
| United States | 38.3 million |
| India | 32.0 million |
| China | 12.4 million |
| Brazil | 10.2 million |
| Japan | 7.15 million |
| United Kingdom | 6.47 million |
| Indonesia | 6.34 million |
| Germany | 6.30 million |
| Russia | 5.07 million |
| France | 4.75 million |
GitHub Octoverse 2026, top 10 countries. GitHub maps developers to countries by self-reported location. The US and India each added more than 10 million developers in the year.
Over time
Developers on GitHub, as first reported by GitHub (methods differ)
| When | Developers on GitHub | Report |
|---|---|---|
| Early 2023 | More than 100 million | Octoverse 2023 (8 Nov 2023), a milestone, not a full-year count |
| Sep 2024 to Aug 2025 | More than 180 million | Octoverse 2025 (28 Oct 2025), earlier method |
| Oct 2025 to Sep 2026 | More than 225 million | Octoverse 2026 (28 Oct 2026), new method |
Not a trend series: each figure is as GitHub first published it, and the methods differ. Octoverse 2026 counts public and private activity over October to September; earlier reports used a September to August window. GitHub says it recalculated 2024 and 2025 on the new definitions, so they may differ from earlier reports, but its 2026 post gives no recalculated worldwide total. Do not read the change from 180 million to 225 million as one year's growth.
Why sources differ
Same question, different answers
| Number | When | Who measured | Why it differs |
|---|---|---|---|
| 225 million+ | Oct 2025 - Sep 2026 | GitHub | Accounts using GitHub worldwide, including students and hobbyists; company data. |
| 38.3 million | Sep 2026 | GitHub | Developers on GitHub located in the US. |
| 1,905,400 | 2025 | US Bureau of Labor Statistics | Paid US jobs for software developers, QA analysts and testers; excludes web developers and other roles. |
| 36 million+ | Sep 2024 - Aug 2025 | GitHub | New accounts in one year, not working developers. |
There is no official count of developers worldwide, and the published numbers count very different things.
GitHub's 225 million is the number of developers using its platform. It is the largest count, because anyone who writes code on GitHub counts: students, hobbyists, data analysts, designers and professionals, some of them with more than one account. It also changed its method in 2026, so it should not be compared directly with earlier totals.
The US Bureau of Labor Statistics counts jobs. Its 1,905,400 covers paid US jobs for software developers, QA analysts and testers, and leaves out web developers and other technical roles. GitHub counts 38.3 million developers in the US alone, about 20 times the BLS figure, which shows how many GitHub users are not professional software developers.
Private research firms publish estimates of professional developers worldwide, but they are not used on this page because they are not in our source list. Quote GitHub's number as developers on GitHub, not developers in the world.
What it means
How to use these numbers
The world has far more people who write code than people employed as software developers. GitHub alone counts more than 225 million developers on its platform, while the US, the largest country on GitHub with 38.3 million, has about 1.9 million jobs for software developers, QA analysts and testers.
Growth is fastest outside the US and Europe. India, with 32.0 million developers on GitHub, added more than 10 million in a year, as did the US, and Brazil added 3.28 million. GitHub notes that its developer count has grown rapidly since AI coding tools such as Copilot went mainstream in early 2023.
For employers and educators, the large GitHub numbers show a broad pool of people with some coding skill, not a pool of experienced engineers. For journalists, say "more than 225 million developers on GitHub" and name the report and date. For a count of professional jobs in one country, use official labour statistics instead.
Method and sources
How it was measured
Method
- GitHub Octoverse 2026
- Published 28 Oct 2026; GitHub platform data for 1 Oct 2025 to 30 Sep 2026, public and private repositories; developers mapped to countries by self-reported location
- GitHub Octoverse 2025 and 2023
- Published 28 Oct 2025 (year to 31 Aug 2025) and 8 Nov 2023
- US Bureau of Labor Statistics
- Occupational Outlook Handbook, software developers, quality assurance analysts and testers: jobs in 2025, page modified 27 Aug 2026
- Checked at source
- 23 Oct 2026 (repo stats); 31 Oct 2026, Octoverse 2026, 2025 and 2023 posts on github.blog
- Last changed
- 31 Oct 2026
- Data files
- CSV · JSON (stable links)
Sources
- Octoverse, GitHub Vendor data
- Occupational Outlook Handbook, US Bureau of Labor Statistics Official data
Cite this page
APA
MLA
HTML link
FAQ
More questions people ask
Which country has the most developers on GitHub?
The United States, with 38.3 million in September 2026, ahead of India with 32.0 million and China with 12.4 million (GitHub Octoverse 2026).
How many developers join GitHub each year?
More than 36 million joined between September 2024 and August 2025, a rise of 23% in a year, which GitHub describes as more than one new developer every second.
How many software developer jobs are there in the US?
1,905,400 jobs for software developers, QA analysts and testers in 2025, and BLS projects 10% growth from 2025 to 2035.
Every number on this page was checked at its original source (GitHub, US Bureau of Labor Statistics). Free to cite with a link to this page.