Fortran (Formula Translation) is one of the oldest high-level programming languages, first developed by a team at IBM led by John Backus and released in 1957. It was the world's first compiled high-level language, proving that machine-generated code could be as efficient as hand-written assembly. Fortran pioneered concepts like subroutines, variables, and loops that all subsequent languages inherited.
Modern Fortran (Fortran 90, 95, 2003, 2008, 2018) is a thoroughly contemporary language with array operations as first-class constructs, modules, object-oriented features, and parallel computing via coarrays and OpenMP/MPI integration. It remains the dominant language for high-performance scientific computing because of its exceptional numerical performance and decades of optimized libraries.
What is Fortran used for?
Fortran is used for numerical simulation and scientific computing in physics, chemistry, and engineering, climate and weather modeling (most major climate models are written in Fortran), computational fluid dynamics, finite element analysis, quantum chemistry, and high-performance computing (HPC) on supercomputers. Libraries like BLAS, LAPACK, and LINPACK, the foundation of numerical computing, are written in Fortran.
Fortran for beginners
Fortran is not typically a first language, but it is a necessary language for computational scientists and engineers. If you are in physics, engineering, or a STEM field that involves numerical simulation, you will encounter Fortran. Modern Fortran's syntax is cleaner than its reputation suggests, the free-form source format introduced in Fortran 90 reads much like other structured languages. Use myCompiler's online Fortran compiler to practice without installing gfortran.
Fortran vs other languages
Compared to C/C++, Fortran's array syntax and built-in mathematical operations make numerical code more readable and often allow compilers to optimize better for scientific workloads. Compared to Python/NumPy, Fortran produces significantly faster code for computation-heavy simulations, though Python is easier and more flexible for general use. Compared to MATLAB/Octave, Fortran is faster and free-form, but MATLAB has more interactive toolboxes for engineers.
Why use an online Fortran compiler?
An online Fortran compiler, also called a Fortran sandbox or Fortran runner, lets you compile and run Fortran programs directly in your browser without installing gfortran. This is invaluable for students in computational science courses, researchers who need to test numerical algorithms, and anyone learning Fortran array operations and intrinsic functions.
myCompiler's online Fortran compiler uses gfortran, supporting modern Fortran standards including free-form source, modules, arrays, and mathematical intrinsics. You can provide stdin input for interactive programs, save your Fortran code, and share via URL, completely free.
Why is Fortran so popular?
Fortran's continued relevance after nearly 70 years is a testament to its unmatched performance for numerical computing. The world's fastest supercomputers run Fortran for climate modeling, molecular dynamics, and computational physics. BLAS and LAPACK, the linear algebra libraries used by NumPy, SciPy, MATLAB, and R under the hood, are written in Fortran. While new scientific code is often written in Python or C++, Fortran's legacy codebase in simulation and HPC ensures it will remain relevant for decades.
Fortran career opportunities
Fortran expertise is valued for computational scientist, HPC engineer, numerical analyst, and scientific software developer roles at national laboratories (NASA, NOAA, national energy labs), defense contractors, and academia. Fortran skills combined with MPI, OpenMP, and HPC cluster experience command excellent salaries in scientific computing roles.