# Which language's open source projects answer a stranger fastest?

The typical Go project takes 18.9 hours to answer a stranger's pull request. Dolt, also written in Go, takes 24 minutes.

That gap is why I stopped asking which language answers fastest. There is an answer, but it barely helps you.

I track this in [Porchlamp](https://porchlamp.org/), a ranking I built of open source projects by what happens to pull requests from outsiders.

For each of 3,246 projects, I took the median first reply from a person, not a bot. The data is its November 2026 snapshot.

## The languages differ by hours

The median Rust project replies in 15.0 hours, the fastest of the six. The median Python project takes 22.7, the slowest.

That's about eight hours. It's real, but it's less than a working day.

## The projects differ by days

Take Rust. A quarter of its projects answer within about 6 hours, and another quarter take more than 37.

Python runs the same way. A quarter answer within 11 hours, and another quarter take more than 60.

![Range chart of the middle half of projects by language, in hours to a first human reply: Rust 6 to 37, C and C++ 8 to 36, Java 9 to 42, Go 8 to 50, JavaScript 9 to 69, Python 11 to 61](https://cdn.hashnode.com/uploads/covers/6ad14e276939f997e86dc7d5/3d716209-9743-47ba-90b1-4de183597f73.png align="center")

So the language you already know is fine. Choose the project with care.

## Where I'd start in each language

**Go.** [Dolt](https://porchlamp.org/projects/dolthub/dolt/), a database you can branch like Git, answers in 24 minutes. [Ebiten](https://porchlamp.org/projects/hajimehoshi/ebiten/), a 2D game engine, in 41.

**Rust.** [probe-rs](https://porchlamp.org/projects/probe-rs/probe-rs/), for debugging embedded chips, answers in 58 minutes. [The compiler itself](https://porchlamp.org/projects/rust-lang/rust/) takes about 70.

**JavaScript.** [AG Grid](https://porchlamp.org/projects/ag-grid/ag-grid/), a data table for web apps, answers in 45 minutes. [PlayCanvas](https://porchlamp.org/projects/playcanvas/engine/), a web graphics engine, in 1.7 hours.

**Java.** [Vespa](https://porchlamp.org/projects/vespa-engine/vespa/), a search platform, answers in 1.3 hours. [CrateDB](https://porchlamp.org/projects/crate/crate/), a distributed SQL database, in 1.6.

**C and C++.** [RIOT](https://porchlamp.org/projects/riot-os/riot/), an operating system for small devices, answers in 1.2 hours. [SDL](https://porchlamp.org/projects/libsdl-org/sdl/), the media library many games use, in 2.0.

**Python.** [Astropy](https://porchlamp.org/projects/astropy/astropy/), the astronomy library, answers in 1.8 hours. [Click](https://porchlamp.org/projects/pallets/click/), for building command line tools, in 2.5.

An early reply doesn't promise a merge, but it does mean someone is reading.

If your language's two don't suit you, there are [longer lists on the site](https://porchlamp.org/fastest-replies/) and [30 more picks with what each one does](https://dev.to/pctablet505/30-open-source-projects-to-contribute-to-that-actually-answer-your-pull-request-44n0).

What's the quickest answer you've had from a project you didn't expect to reply at all?