Matplotlib Tutorial

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What is Matplotlib?
Matplotlib is a low level graph plotting library in python that serves as a visualization utility.
Matplotlib was created by John D. Hunter.

Matplotlib is open source and we can use it freely.

Matplotlib is mostly written in python, a few segments are written in C, Objective-C and Javascript for Platform
compatibility.

Where is the Matplotlib Codebase?

The source code for Matplotlib is located at this github repository https://github.com/matplotlib/matplotlib

Matplotlib Getting Started

Installation of Matplotlib
If you have Python and PIP already installed on a system, then installation of Matplotlib is very easy.

Install it using this command:

C:\Users\Your Name>pip install matplotlib

If this command fails, then use a python distribution that already has Matplotlib installed, like Anaconda, Spyder
etc.

Import Matplotlib
Once Matplotlib is installed, import it in your applications by adding the import module statement:

import matplotlib

Now Matplotlib is imported and ready to use:

Checking Matplotlib Version

The version string is stored under __version__ attribute.

Example
import matplotlib

print(matplotlib.__version__)
Matplotlib Pyplot

Pyplot
Most of the Matplotlib utilities lies under the pyplot submodule, and are usually imported under the plt alias:

import matplotlib.pyplot as plt

Now the Pyplot package can be referred to as plt.

Example
Draw a line in a diagram from position (0,0) to position (6,250):

import matplotlib.pyplot as plt

import numpy as np

xpoints = np.array([0, 6])

ypoints = np.array([0, 250])

plt.plot(xpoints, ypoints)
plt.show()

Result:

Matplotlib Plotting

Plotting x and y points

The plot() function is used to draw points (markers) in a diagram.
By default, the plot() function draws a line from point to point.

The function takes parameters for specifying points in the diagram.

Parameter 1 is an array containing the points on the x-axis.

Parameter 2 is an array containing the points on the y-axis.

If we need to plot a line from (1, 3) to (8, 10), we have to pass two arrays [1, 8] and [3, 10] to the plot function.

Example
Draw a line in a diagram from position (1, 3) to position (8, 10):

import matplotlib.pyplot as plt

import numpy as np

xpoints = np.array([1, 8])

ypoints = np.array([3, 10])

plt.plot(xpoints, ypoints)
plt.show()

Result:

The x-axis is the horizontal axis.

The y-axis is the vertical axis.

Plotting Without Line

To plot only the markers, you can use shortcut string notation parameter 'o', which means 'rings'.
Example
Draw two points in the diagram, one at position (1, 3) and one in position (8, 10):

import matplotlib.pyplot as plt

import numpy as np

xpoints = np.array([1, 8])

ypoints = np.array([3, 10])

plt.plot(xpoints, ypoints, 'o')

plt.show()

Result:

Multiple Points
You can plot as many points as you like, just make sure you have the same number of points in both axis.

Example
Draw a line in a diagram from position (1, 3) to (2, 8) then to (6, 1) and finally to position (8, 10):

import matplotlib.pyplot as plt

import numpy as np
xpoints = np.array([1, 2, 6, 8])
ypoints = np.array([3, 8, 1, 10])

plt.plot(xpoints, ypoints)
plt.show()

Result:

Default X-Points
If we do not specify the points in the x-axis, they will get the default values 0, 1, 2, 3, (etc. depending on the length
of the y-points.

So, if we take the same example as above, and leave out the x-points, the diagram will look like this:

Example
Plotting without x-points:

import matplotlib.pyplot as plt

import numpy as np

ypoints = np.array([3, 8, 1, 10, 5, 7])

plt.plot(ypoints)
plt.show()
Result:

Matplotlib Markers

Markers
You can use the keyword argument marker to emphasize each point with a specified marker:

Example
Mark each point with a circle:

import matplotlib.pyplot as plt

import numpy as np

ypoints = np.array([3, 8, 1, 10])

plt.plot(ypoints, marker = 'o')

plt.show()
Result:

Example
Mark each point with a star:

...
plt.plot(ypoints, marker = '*')
...

Result:

Marker Reference
You can choose any of these markers:

Marker Description
'o' Circle Try it »

'*' Star Try it »

'.' Point Try it »

',' Pixel Try it »

'x' X Try it »

'X' X (filled) Try it »

'+' Plus Try it »

'P' Plus (filled) Try it »

's' Square Try it »

'D' Diamond Try it »

'd' Diamond (thin) Try it »

'p' Pentagon Try it »

'H' Hexagon Try it »

'h' Hexagon Try it »

'v' Triangle Down Try it »

 '^' Triangle Up Try it »

'<' Triangle Left Try it »

'>' Triangle Right Try it »

'1' Tri Down Try it »

'2' Tri Up Try it »

'3' Tri Left Try it »

'4' Tri Right Try it »

'|' Vline Try it »

'_' Hline Try it »

Format Strings fmt

You can use also use the shortcut string notation parameter to specify the marker.

This parameter is also called fmt, and is written with this syntax:

marker|line|color

Example
Mark each point with a circle:

import matplotlib.pyplot as plt

import numpy as np

ypoints = np.array([3, 8, 1, 10])

plt.plot(ypoints, 'o:r')
plt.show()
Result:

The marker value can be anything from the Marker Reference above.

The line value can be one of the following:

Line Reference
Line Syntax Description

'-' Solid line Try it »

':' Dotted line Try it »

'--' Dashed line Try it »

'-.' Dashed/dotted line Try it »

Note: If you leave out the line value in the fmt parameter, no line will be plottet.

The short color value can be one of the following:

Color Reference
Color Syntax Description
 'r' Red Try it »

'g' Green Try it »

'b' Blue Try it »

'c' Cyan Try it »

'm' Magenta Try it »

'y' Yellow Try it »

'k' Black Try it »

'w' White Try it »

Marker Size
You can use the keyword argument markersize or the shorter version, ms to set the size of the markers:

Example
Set the size of the markers to 20:

import matplotlib.pyplot as plt

import numpy as np

ypoints = np.array([3, 8, 1, 10])

plt.plot(ypoints, marker = 'o', ms = 20)

plt.show()
Result:

Marker Color
You can use the keyword argument markeredgecolor or the shorter mec to set the color of the edge of the
markers:

Example
Set the EDGE color to red:

import matplotlib.pyplot as plt

import numpy as np

ypoints = np.array([3, 8, 1, 10])

plt.plot(ypoints, marker = 'o', ms = 20, mec = 'r')

plt.show()
Result:

You can use the keyword argument markerfacecolor or the shorter mfc to set the color inside the edge of the
markers:

Example
Set the FACE color to red:

import matplotlib.pyplot as plt

import numpy as np

ypoints = np.array([3, 8, 1, 10])

plt.plot(ypoints, marker = 'o', ms = 20, mfc = 'r')

plt.show()
Result:

Use both the mec and mfc arguments to color of the entire marker:

Example
Set the color of both the edge and the face to red:

import matplotlib.pyplot as plt

import numpy as np

ypoints = np.array([3, 8, 1, 10])

plt.plot(ypoints, marker = 'o', ms = 20, mec = 'r', mfc = 'r')

plt.show()

Result:

You can also use Hexadecimal color values:

Example
Mark each point with a beautiful green color:

...
plt.plot(ypoints, marker = 'o', ms = 20, mec = '#4CAF50', mfc = '#4CAF50')
...

Result:

Or any of the 140 supported color names.

Example
Mark each point with the color named "hotpink":

...
plt.plot(ypoints, marker = 'o', ms = 20, mec = 'hotpink', mfc = 'hotpink')
...

Result:

Color Names Supported by All Browsers

All modern browsers support the following 140 color names (click on a color name, or a hex value, to view the color
as the background-color along with different text colors):

Click here to see the 140 colors sorted by HEX Value

AliceBlue
#F0F8FF
AntiqueWhite
#FAEBD7
Aqua
#00FFFF
Aquamarine
#7FFFD4
Azure
#F0FFFF
Beige
#F5F5DC
Bisque
#FFE4C4
Black
#000000
BlanchedAlmond
#FFEBCD
Blue
#0000FF
BlueViolet
#8A2BE2
Brown
#A52A2A
BurlyWood
#DEB887
CadetBlue
#5F9EA0
Chartreuse
#7FFF00
Chocolate
#D2691E
Coral
#FF7F50
CornflowerBlue
#6495ED
Cornsilk
#FFF8DC
Crimson
#DC143C
Cyan
#00FFFF
DarkBlue
#00008B
DarkCyan
#008B8B
DarkGoldenRod
#B8860B
DarkGray
#A9A9A9
DarkGrey
#A9A9A9
DarkGreen
#006400
DarkKhaki
#BDB76B
DarkMagenta
#8B008B
DarkOliveGreen
#556B2F
DarkOrange
#FF8C00
DarkOrchid
#9932CC
DarkRed
#8B0000
DarkSalmon
#E9967A
DarkSeaGreen
#8FBC8F
DarkSlateBlue
#483D8B
DarkSlateGray
#2F4F4F
DarkSlateGrey
#2F4F4F
DarkTurquoise
#00CED1
DarkViolet
#9400D3
DeepPink
#FF1493
DeepSkyBlue
#00BFFF
DimGray
#696969
DimGrey
#696969
DodgerBlue
#1E90FF
FireBrick
#B22222
FloralWhite
#FFFAF0
ForestGreen
#228B22
Fuchsia
#FF00FF
Gainsboro
#DCDCDC
GhostWhite
#F8F8FF
Gold
#FFD700
GoldenRod
#DAA520
Gray
#808080
Grey
#808080
Green
#008000
GreenYellow
#ADFF2F
HoneyDew
#F0FFF0
HotPink
#FF69B4
IndianRed
#CD5C5C
Indigo
#4B0082
Ivory
#FFFFF0
Khaki
#F0E68C
Lavender
#E6E6FA
LavenderBlush
#FFF0F5
LawnGreen
#7CFC00
LemonChiffon
#FFFACD
LightBlue
#ADD8E6
LightCoral
#F08080
-LightCyan
#E0FFFF
LightGoldenRodYellow
#FAFAD2
LightGray
#D3D3D3
LightGrey
#D3D3D3
LightGreen
#90EE90
LightPink
#FFB6C1
LightSalmon
#FFA07A
LightSeaGreen
#20B2AA
LightSkyBlue
#87CEFA
LightSlateGray
#778899
LightSlateGrey
#778899
LightSteelBlue
#B0C4DE
LightYellow
#FFFFE0
Lime
#00FF00
LimeGreen
#32CD32
Linen
#FAF0E6
Magenta
#FF00FF
Maroon
#800000
MediumAquaMarine
#66CDAA
MediumBlue
#0000CD
MediumOrchid
#BA55D3
MediumPurple
#9370DB
MediumSeaGreen
#3CB371
MediumSlateBlue
#7B68EE
MediumSpringGreen
#00FA9A
MediumTurquoise
#48D1CC
MediumVioletRed
#C71585
MidnightBlue
#191970
MintCream
#F5FFFA
MistyRose
#FFE4E1
Moccasin
#FFE4B5
NavajoWhite
#FFDEAD
Navy
#000080
OldLace
#FDF5E6
Olive
#808000
OliveDrab
#6B8E23
Orange
#FFA500
OrangeRed
#FF4500
Orchid
#DA70D6
PaleGoldenRod
#EEE8AA
PaleGreen
#98FB98
PaleTurquoise
#AFEEEE
PaleVioletRed
#DB7093
PapayaWhip
#FFEFD5
PeachPuff
#FFDAB9
Peru
#CD853F
Pink
#FFC0CB
Plum
#DDA0DD
PowderBlue
#B0E0E6
Purple
#800080
RebeccaPurple
#663399
Red
#FF0000
RosyBrown
#BC8F8F
RoyalBlue
#4169E1
SaddleBrown
#8B4513
Salmon
#FA8072
SandyBrown
#F4A460
SeaGreen
#2E8B57
SeaShell
#FFF5EE
Sienna
#A0522D
Silver
#C0C0C0
SkyBlue
#87CEEB
SlateBlue
#6A5ACD
SlateGray
#708090
SlateGrey
#708090
Snow
#FFFAFA
SpringGreen
#00FF7F
SteelBlue
#4682B4
Tan
#D2B48C
Teal
#008080
Thistle
#D8BFD8
Tomato
#FF6347
Turquoise
#40E0D0
Violet
#EE82EE
Wheat
#F5DEB3
White
#FFFFFF
WhiteSmoke
#F5F5F5
Yellow
#FFFF00
YellowGreen
#9ACD32

Matplotlib Line

Linestyle
You can use the keyword argument linestyle, or shorter ls, to change the style of the plotted line:

Example
Use a dotted line:

import matplotlib.pyplot as plt

import numpy as np

ypoints = np.array([3, 8, 1, 10])

plt.plot(ypoints, linestyle = 'dotted')

plt.show()
Result:

Example
Use a dashed line:

plt.plot(ypoints, linestyle = 'dashed')

Result:

Shorter Syntax
The line style can be written in a shorter syntax:

linestyle can be written as ls.

dotted can be written as :.

dashed can be written as --.

Example
Shorter syntax:

plt.plot(ypoints, ls = ':')

Result:

Line Styles
You can choose any of these styles:

Style Or

'solid' (default) '-' Try it »

'dotted' ':' Try it »

'dashed' '--' Try it »

 'dashdot' '-.' Try it »

'None' '' or ' ' Try it »

Line Color
You can use the keyword argument color or the shorter c to set the color of the line:

Example
Set the line color to red:

import matplotlib.pyplot as plt

import numpy as np

ypoints = np.array([3, 8, 1, 10])

plt.plot(ypoints, color = 'r')

plt.show()

Result:

You can also use Hexadecimal color values:

Example
Plot with a beautiful green line:

...
plt.plot(ypoints, c = '#4CAF50')
...
Result:

Or any of the 140 supported color names.

Example
Plot with the color named "hotpink":

...
plt.plot(ypoints, c = 'hotpink')
...

Result:
Line Width
You can use the keyword argument linewidth or the shorter lw to change the width of the line.

The value is a floating number, in points:

Example
Plot with a 20.5pt wide line:

import matplotlib.pyplot as plt

import numpy as np

ypoints = np.array([3, 8, 1, 10])

plt.plot(ypoints, linewidth = '20.5')

plt.show()

Result:

#New

Multiple Lines
You can plot as many lines as you like by simply adding more plt.plot() functions:

Example
Draw two lines by specifying a plt.plot() function for each line:

import matplotlib.pyplot as plt

import numpy as np

y1 = np.array([3, 8, 1, 10])
y2 = np.array([6, 2, 7, 11])
plt.plot(y1)
plt.plot(y2)

plt.show()

Result:

You can also plot many lines by adding the points for the x- and y-axis for each line in the
same plt.plot() function.

(In the examples above we only specified the points on the y-axis, meaning that the points on the x-axis got the the
default values (0, 1, 2, 3).)

The x- and y- values come in pairs:

Example
Draw two lines by specifiyng the x- and y-point values for both lines:

import matplotlib.pyplot as plt

import numpy as np

x1 = np.array([0, 1, 2, 3])
y1 = np.array([3, 8, 1, 10])
x2 = np.array([0, 1, 2, 3])
y2 = np.array([6, 2, 7, 11])

plt.plot(x1, y1, x2, y2)

plt.show()
Result:

Matplotlib Labels and Title

Create Labels for a Plot

With Pyplot, you can use the xlabel() and ylabel() functions to set a label for the x- and y-axis.

Example
Add labels to the x- and y-axis:

import numpy as np
import matplotlib.pyplot as plt

x = np.array([80, 85, 90, 95, 100, 105, 110, 115, 120, 125])
y = np.array([240, 250, 260, 270, 280, 290, 300, 310, 320, 330])

plt.plot(x, y)

plt.xlabel("Average Pulse")
plt.ylabel("Calorie Burnage")

plt.show()
Result:

Create a Title for a Plot

With Pyplot, you can use the title() function to set a title for the plot.

Example
Add a plot title and labels for the x- and y-axis:

import numpy as np
import matplotlib.pyplot as plt

x = np.array([80, 85, 90, 95, 100, 105, 110, 115, 120, 125])
y = np.array([240, 250, 260, 270, 280, 290, 300, 310, 320, 330])

plt.plot(x, y)

plt.title("Sports Watch Data")

plt.xlabel("Average Pulse")
plt.ylabel("Calorie Burnage")

plt.show()
Result:

Set Font Properties for Title and Labels

You can use the fontdict parameter in xlabel(), ylabel(), and title() to set font properties for the title and
labels.

Example
Set font properties for the title and labels:

import numpy as np
import matplotlib.pyplot as plt

x = np.array([80, 85, 90, 95, 100, 105, 110, 115, 120, 125])
y = np.array([240, 250, 260, 270, 280, 290, 300, 310, 320, 330])

font1 = {'family':'serif','color':'blue','size':20}
font2 = {'family':'serif','color':'darkred','size':15}

plt.title("Sports Watch Data", fontdict = font1)

plt.xlabel("Average Pulse", fontdict = font2)
plt.ylabel("Calorie Burnage", fontdict = font2)

plt.plot(x, y)
plt.show()
Result:

Position the Title

You can use the loc parameter in title() to position the title.

Legal values are: 'left', 'right', and 'center'. Default value is 'center'.

Example
Position the title to the left:

import numpy as np
import matplotlib.pyplot as plt

x = np.array([80, 85, 90, 95, 100, 105, 110, 115, 120, 125])
y = np.array([240, 250, 260, 270, 280, 290, 300, 310, 320, 330])

plt.title("Sports Watch Data", loc = 'left')

plt.xlabel("Average Pulse")
plt.ylabel("Calorie Burnage")

plt.plot(x, y)
plt.show()
Result:
Matplotlib Adding Grid Lines

Add Grid Lines to a Plot

With Pyplot, you can use the grid() function to add grid lines to the plot.

Example
Add grid lines to the plot:

import numpy as np
import matplotlib.pyplot as plt

x = np.array([80, 85, 90, 95, 100, 105, 110, 115, 120, 125])
y = np.array([240, 250, 260, 270, 280, 290, 300, 310, 320, 330])

plt.title("Sports Watch Data")

plt.xlabel("Average Pulse")
plt.ylabel("Calorie Burnage")

plt.plot(x, y)

plt.grid()

plt.show()

Result:
Specify Which Grid Lines to Display
You can use the axis parameter in the grid() function to specify which grid lines to display.

Legal values are: 'x', 'y', and 'both'. Default value is 'both'.

Example
Display only grid lines for the x-axis:

import numpy as np
import matplotlib.pyplot as plt

x = np.array([80, 85, 90, 95, 100, 105, 110, 115, 120, 125])
y = np.array([240, 250, 260, 270, 280, 290, 300, 310, 320, 330])

plt.title("Sports Watch Data")

plt.xlabel("Average Pulse")
plt.ylabel("Calorie Burnage")

plt.plot(x, y)

plt.grid(axis = 'x')

plt.show()

Result:

Example
Display only grid lines for the y-axis:

import numpy as np
import matplotlib.pyplot as plt

x = np.array([80, 85, 90, 95, 100, 105, 110, 115, 120, 125])
y = np.array([240, 250, 260, 270, 280, 290, 300, 310, 320, 330])

plt.title("Sports Watch Data")

plt.xlabel("Average Pulse")
plt.ylabel("Calorie Burnage")

plt.plot(x, y)

plt.grid(axis = 'y')

plt.show()

Result:

Set Line Properties for the Grid

You can also set the line properties of the grid, like this: grid(color = 'color', linestyle = 'linestyle', linewidth
= number).

Example
Set the line properties of the grid:

import numpy as np
import matplotlib.pyplot as plt

x = np.array([80, 85, 90, 95, 100, 105, 110, 115, 120, 125])
y = np.array([240, 250, 260, 270, 280, 290, 300, 310, 320, 330])

plt.title("Sports Watch Data")

plt.xlabel("Average Pulse")
plt.ylabel("Calorie Burnage")

plt.plot(x, y)

plt.grid(color = 'green', linestyle = '--', linewidth = 0.5)

plt.show()

Result:

Matplotlib Subplots
Display Multiple Plots
With the subplots() function you can draw multiple plots in one figure:

Example
Draw 2 plots:

import matplotlib.pyplot as plt

import numpy as np

#plot 1:
x = np.array([0, 1, 2, 3])
y = np.array([3, 8, 1, 10])

plt.subplot(1, 2, 1)
plt.plot(x,y)

#plot 2:
x = np.array([0, 1, 2, 3])
y = np.array([10, 20, 30, 40])

plt.subplot(1, 2, 2)
plt.plot(x,y)

plt.show()
Result:

The subplots() Function

The subplots() function takes three arguments that describes the layout of the figure.

The layout is organized in rows and columns, which are represented by the first and second argument.

The third argument represents the index of the current plot.

plt.subplot(1, 2, 1)
#the figure has 1 row, 2 columns, and this plot is the first plot.

plt.subplot(1, 2, 2)
#the figure has 1 row, 2 columns, and this plot is the second plot.

So, if we want a figure with 2 rows an 1 column (meaning that the two plots will be displayed on top of each other
instead of side-by-side), we can write the syntax like this:

Example
Draw 2 plots on top of each other:

import matplotlib.pyplot as plt

import numpy as np

#plot 1:
x = np.array([0, 1, 2, 3])
y = np.array([3, 8, 1, 10])
plt.subplot(2, 1, 1)
plt.plot(x,y)

#plot 2:
x = np.array([0, 1, 2, 3])
y = np.array([10, 20, 30, 40])

plt.subplot(2, 1, 2)
plt.plot(x,y)

plt.show()

Result:

#New

You can draw as many plots you like on one figure, just descibe the number of rows, columns, and the index of the
plot.

Example
Draw 6 plots:

import matplotlib.pyplot as plt

import numpy as np

x = np.array([0, 1, 2, 3])
y = np.array([3, 8, 1, 10])

plt.subplot(2, 3, 1)
plt.plot(x,y)

x = np.array([0, 1, 2, 3])
y = np.array([10, 20, 30, 40])

plt.subplot(2, 3, 2)
plt.plot(x,y)

x = np.array([0, 1, 2, 3])
y = np.array([3, 8, 1, 10])

plt.subplot(2, 3, 3)
plt.plot(x,y)
x = np.array([0, 1, 2, 3])
y = np.array([10, 20, 30, 40])

plt.subplot(2, 3, 4)
plt.plot(x,y)

x = np.array([0, 1, 2, 3])
y = np.array([3, 8, 1, 10])

plt.subplot(2, 3, 5)
plt.plot(x,y)

x = np.array([0, 1, 2, 3])
y = np.array([10, 20, 30, 40])

plt.subplot(2, 3, 6)
plt.plot(x,y)

plt.show()

Result:

Title
You can add a title to each plot with the title() function:

Example
2 plots, with titles:

import matplotlib.pyplot as plt

import numpy as np

#plot 1:
x = np.array([0, 1, 2, 3])
y = np.array([3, 8, 1, 10])
plt.subplot(1, 2, 1)
plt.plot(x,y)
plt.title("SALES")

#plot 2:
x = np.array([0, 1, 2, 3])
y = np.array([10, 20, 30, 40])

plt.subplot(1, 2, 2)
plt.plot(x,y)
plt.title("INCOME")

plt.show()

Result:

#New

Super Title
You can add a title to the entire figure with the suptitle() function:

Example
Add a title for the entire figure:

import matplotlib.pyplot as plt

import numpy as np

#plot 1:
x = np.array([0, 1, 2, 3])
y = np.array([3, 8, 1, 10])

plt.subplot(1, 2, 1)
plt.plot(x,y)
plt.title("SALES")

#plot 2:
x = np.array([0, 1, 2, 3])
y = np.array([10, 20, 30, 40])

plt.subplot(1, 2, 2)
plt.plot(x,y)
plt.title("INCOME")

plt.suptitle("MY SHOP")
plt.show()

Result:

Creating Scatter Plots

With Pyplot, you can use the scatter() function to draw a scatter plot.

The scatter() function plots one dot for each observation. It needs two arrays of the same length, one for the
values of the x-axis, and one for values on the y-axis:

Example
A simple scatter plot:
import matplotlib.pyplot as plt
import numpy as np

x = np.array([5,7,8,7,2,17,2,9,4,11,12,9,6])
y = np.array([99,86,87,88,111,86,103,87,94,78,77,85,86])

plt.scatter(x, y)
plt.show()

Result:

#New

The observation in the example above is the result of 13 cars passing by.

The X-axis shows how old the car is.

The Y-axis shows the speed of the car when it passes.

Are there any relationships between the observations?

It seems that the newer the car, the faster it drives, but that could be a coincidence, after all we only registered 13
cars.
Compare Plots
In the example above, there seems to be a relationship between speed and age, but what if we plot the
observations from another day as well? Will the scatter plot tell us something else?

Example
Draw two plots on the same figure:

import matplotlib.pyplot as plt

import numpy as np

#day one, the age and speed of 13 cars:

x = np.array([5,7,8,7,2,17,2,9,4,11,12,9,6])
y = np.array([99,86,87,88,111,86,103,87,94,78,77,85,86])
plt.scatter(x, y)

#day two, the age and speed of 15 cars:

x = np.array([2,2,8,1,15,8,12,9,7,3,11,4,7,14,12])
y = np.array([100,105,84,105,90,99,90,95,94,100,79,112,91,80,85])
plt.scatter(x, y)

plt.show()
Result:

#New

Note: The two plots are plotted with two different colors, by default blue and orange, you will learn how to change
colors later in this chapter.

By comparing the two plots, I think it is safe to say that they both gives us the same conclusion: the newer the car,
the faster it drives.

Colors
You can set your own color for each scatter plot with the color or the c argument:

Example
Set your own color of the markers:
import matplotlib.pyplot as plt
import numpy as np

x = np.array([5,7,8,7,2,17,2,9,4,11,12,9,6])
y = np.array([99,86,87,88,111,86,103,87,94,78,77,85,86])
plt.scatter(x, y, color = 'hotpink')

x = np.array([2,2,8,1,15,8,12,9,7,3,11,4,7,14,12])
y = np.array([100,105,84,105,90,99,90,95,94,100,79,112,91,80,85])
plt.scatter(x, y, color = '#88c999')

plt.show()

Result:

#New

Color Each Dot

You can even set a specific color for each dot by using an array of colors as value for the c argument:
Note: You cannot use the color argument for this, only the c argument.

Example
Set your own color of the markers:

import matplotlib.pyplot as plt

import numpy as np

x = np.array([5,7,8,7,2,17,2,9,4,11,12,9,6])
y = np.array([99,86,87,88,111,86,103,87,94,78,77,85,86])
colors =
np.array(["red","green","blue","yellow","pink","black","orange","purple","beige","brown","gray","
cyan","magenta"])

plt.scatter(x, y, c=colors)

plt.show()

Result:

#New
ColorMap
The Matplotlib module has a number of available colormaps.

A colormap is like a list of colors, where each color has a value that ranges from 0 to 100.

Here is an example of a colormap:

This colormap is called 'viridis' and as you can see it ranges from 0, which is a purple color, and up to 100, which is
a yellow color.

How to Use the ColorMap

You can specify the colormap with the keyword argument cmap with the value of the colormap, in this
case 'viridis' which is one of the built-in colormaps available in Matplotlib.

In addition you have to create an array with values (from 0 to 100), one value for each of the point in the scatter
plot:

Example
Create a color array, and specify a colormap in the scatter plot:

import matplotlib.pyplot as plt

import numpy as np
x = np.array([5,7,8,7,2,17,2,9,4,11,12,9,6])
y = np.array([99,86,87,88,111,86,103,87,94,78,77,85,86])
colors = np.array([0, 10, 20, 30, 40, 45, 50, 55, 60, 70, 80, 90, 100])

plt.scatter(x, y, c=colors, cmap='viridis')

plt.show()

Result:

#New

You can include the colormap in the drawing by including the plt.colorbar() statement:

Example
Include the actual colormap:

import matplotlib.pyplot as plt

import numpy as np

x = np.array([5,7,8,7,2,17,2,9,4,11,12,9,6])
y = np.array([99,86,87,88,111,86,103,87,94,78,77,85,86])
colors = np.array([0, 10, 20, 30, 40, 45, 50, 55, 60, 70, 80, 90, 100])

plt.scatter(x, y, c=colors, cmap='viridis')

plt.colorbar()

plt.show()

Result:

Size
You can change the size of the dots with the s argument.

Just like colors, make sure the array for sizes has the same length as the arrays for the x- and y-axis:

Example
Set your own size for the markers:

import matplotlib.pyplot as plt

import numpy as np

x = np.array([5,7,8,7,2,17,2,9,4,11,12,9,6])
y = np.array([99,86,87,88,111,86,103,87,94,78,77,85,86])
sizes = np.array([20,50,100,200,500,1000,60,90,10,300,600,800,75])

plt.scatter(x, y, s=sizes)

plt.show()
Result:

Alpha
You can adjust the transparency of the dots with the alpha argument.

Just like colors, make sure the array for sizes has the same length as the arrays for the x- and y-axis:

Example
Set your own size for the markers:

import matplotlib.pyplot as plt

import numpy as np

x = np.array([5,7,8,7,2,17,2,9,4,11,12,9,6])
y = np.array([99,86,87,88,111,86,103,87,94,78,77,85,86])
sizes = np.array([20,50,100,200,500,1000,60,90,10,300,600,800,75])

plt.scatter(x, y, s=sizes, alpha=0.5)

plt.show()
Result:

Combine Color Size and Alpha

You can combine a colormap with different sizes on the dots. This is best visualized if the dots are transparent:

Example
Create random arrays with 100 values for x-points, y-points, colors and sizes:

import matplotlib.pyplot as plt

import numpy as np

x = np.random.randint(100, size=(100))
y = np.random.randint(100, size=(100))
colors = np.random.randint(100, size=(100))
sizes = 10 * np.random.randint(100, size=(100))

plt.scatter(x, y, c=colors, s=sizes, alpha=0.5, cmap='nipy_spectral')

plt.colorbar()

plt.show()
Result:
Matplotlib Bars
Creating Bars
With Pyplot, you can use the bar() function to draw bar graphs:

Example
Draw 4 bars:

import matplotlib.pyplot as plt

import numpy as np

x = np.array(["A", "B", "C", "D"])

y = np.array([3, 8, 1, 10])

plt.bar(x,y)
plt.show()

Result:

#New
The bar() function takes arguments that describes the layout of the bars.

The categories and their values represented by the first and second argument as arrays.

Example
x = ["APPLES", "BANANAS"]
y = [400, 350]
plt.bar(x, y)

#New

Horizontal Bars
If you want the bars to be displayed horizontally instead of vertically, use the barh() function:

Example
Draw 4 horizontal bars:

import matplotlib.pyplot as plt

import numpy as np

x = np.array(["A", "B", "C", "D"])

y = np.array([3, 8, 1, 10])

plt.barh(x, y)
plt.show()
Result:

#New

Bar Color
The bar() and barh() takes the keyword argument color to set the color of the bars:

Example
Draw 4 red bars:

import matplotlib.pyplot as plt

import numpy as np

x = np.array(["A", "B", "C", "D"])

y = np.array([3, 8, 1, 10])

plt.bar(x, y, color = "red")

plt.show()
Result:

#New

Color Names

You can use any of the 140 supported color names.

Example
Draw 4 "hot pink" bars:

import matplotlib.pyplot as plt

import numpy as np

x = np.array(["A", "B", "C", "D"])

y = np.array([3, 8, 1, 10])

plt.bar(x, y, color = "hotpink")

plt.show()
Result:

#New

Color Hex

Or you can use Hexadecimal color values:

Example
Draw 4 bars with a beautiful green color:

import matplotlib.pyplot as plt

import numpy as np

x = np.array(["A", "B", "C", "D"])

y = np.array([3, 8, 1, 10])

plt.bar(x, y, color = "#4CAF50")

plt.show()
Result:

#New

Bar Width
The bar() takes the keyword argument width to set the width of the bars:

Example
Draw 4 very thin bars:

import matplotlib.pyplot as plt

import numpy as np

x = np.array(["A", "B", "C", "D"])

y = np.array([3, 8, 1, 10])

plt.bar(x, y, width = 0.1)

plt.show()
Result:

#New

The default width value is 0.8

Note: For horizontal bars, use height instead of width.

Bar Height
The barh() takes the keyword argument height to set the height of the bars:

Example
Draw 4 very thin bars:

import matplotlib.pyplot as plt

import numpy as np

x = np.array(["A", "B", "C", "D"])

y = np.array([3, 8, 1, 10])

plt.barh(x, y, height = 0.1)

plt.show()
Result:

Matplotlib Histograms
❮ PreviousNext ❯

Histogram
A histogram is a graph showing frequency distributions.

It is a graph showing the number of observations within each given interval.

Example: Say you ask for the height of 250 people, you might end up with a histogram like this:
You can read from the histogram that there are approximately:

2 people from 140 to 145cm

5 people from 145 to 150cm
15 people from 151 to 156cm
31 people from 157 to 162cm
46 people from 163 to 168cm
53 people from 168 to 173cm
45 people from 173 to 178cm
28 people from 179 to 184cm
21 people from 185 to 190cm
4 people from 190 to 195cm

Create Histogram
In Matplotlib, we use the hist() function to create histograms.

The hist() function will use an array of numbers to create a histogram, the array is sent into the function as an
argument.
For simplicity we use NumPy to randomly generate an array with 250 values, where the values will concentrate
around 170, and the standard deviation is 10. Learn more about Normal Data Distribution in our Machine Learning
Tutorial.

Example
A Normal Data Distribution by NumPy:

import numpy as np

x = np.random.normal(170, 10, 250)

print(x)

Result:

This will generate a random result, and could look like this:

[167.62255766 175.32495609 152.84661337 165.50264047 163.17457988

162.29867872 172.83638413 168.67303667 164.57361342 180.81120541
170.57782187 167.53075749 176.15356275 176.95378312 158.4125473
187.8842668 159.03730075 166.69284332 160.73882029 152.22378865
164.01255164 163.95288674 176.58146832 173.19849526 169.40206527
166.88861903 149.90348576 148.39039643 177.90349066 166.72462233
177.44776004 170.93335636 173.26312881 174.76534435 162.28791953
166.77301551 160.53785202 170.67972019 159.11594186 165.36992993
178.38979253 171.52158489 173.32636678 159.63894401 151.95735707
175.71274153 165.00458544 164.80607211 177.50988211 149.28106703
179.43586267 181.98365273 170.98196794 179.1093176 176.91855744
168.32092784 162.33939782 165.18364866 160.52300507 174.14316386
163.01947601 172.01767945 173.33491959 169.75842718 198.04834503
192.82490521 164.54557943 206.36247244 165.47748898 195.26377975
164.37569092 156.15175531 162.15564208 179.34100362 167.22138242
147.23667125 162.86940215 167.84986671 172.99302505 166.77279814
196.6137667 159.79012341 166.5840824 170.68645637 165.62204521
174.5559345 165.0079216 187.92545129 166.86186393 179.78383824
161.0973573 167.44890343 157.38075812 151.35412246 171.3107829
162.57149341 182.49985133 163.24700057 168.72639903 169.05309467
167.19232875 161.06405208 176.87667712 165.48750185 179.68799986
158.7913483 170.22465411 182.66432721 173.5675715 176.85646836
157.31299754 174.88959677 183.78323508 174.36814558 182.55474697
180.03359793 180.53094948 161.09560099 172.29179934 161.22665588
171.88382477 159.04626132 169.43886536 163.75793589 157.73710983
174.68921523 176.19843414 167.39315397 181.17128255 174.2674597
186.05053154 177.06516302 171.78523683 166.14875436 163.31607668
174.01429569 194.98819875 169.75129209 164.25748789 180.25773528
170.44784934 157.81966006 171.33315907 174.71390637 160.55423274
163.92896899 177.29159542 168.30674234 165.42853878 176.46256226
162.61719142 166.60810831 165.83648812 184.83238352 188.99833856
161.3054697 175.30396693 175.28109026 171.54765201 162.08762813
164.53011089 189.86213299 170.83784593 163.25869004 198.68079225
166.95154328 152.03381334 152.25444225 149.75522816 161.79200594
162.13535052 183.37298831 165.40405341 155.59224806 172.68678385
179.35359654 174.19668349 163.46176882 168.26621173 162.97527574
192.80170974 151.29673582 178.65251432 163.17266558 165.11172588
183.11107905 169.69556831 166.35149789 178.74419135 166.28562032
169.96465166 178.24368042 175.3035525 170.16496554 158.80682882
187.10006553 178.90542991 171.65790645 183.19289193 168.17446717
155.84544031 177.96091745 186.28887898 187.89867406 163.26716924
169.71242393 152.9410412 158.68101969 171.12655559 178.1482624
187.45272185 173.02872935 163.8047623 169.95676819 179.36887054
157.01955088 185.58143864 170.19037101 157.221245 168.90639755
178.7045601 168.64074373 172.37416382 165.61890535 163.40873027
168.98683006 149.48186389 172.20815568 172.82947206 173.71584064
189.42642762 172.79575803 177.00005573 169.24498561 171.55576698
 161.36400372 176.47928342 163.02642822 165.09656415 186.70951892
153.27990317 165.59289527 180.34566865 189.19506385 183.10723435
173.48070474 170.28701875 157.24642079 157.9096498 176.4248199 ]

#New

The hist() function will read the array and produce a histogram:

Example
A simple histogram:

import matplotlib.pyplot as plt

import numpy as np

x = np.random.normal(170, 10, 250)

plt.hist(x)
plt.show()

Result:
Matplotlib Pie Charts
❮ PreviousNext ❯

Creating Pie Charts

With Pyplot, you can use the pie() function to draw pie charts:

Example
A simple pie chart:

import matplotlib.pyplot as plt

import numpy as np

y = np.array([35, 25, 25, 15])

plt.pie(y)
plt.show()
Result:

#New

As you can see the pie chart draws one piece (called a wedge) for each value in the array (in this case [35, 25, 25,
15]).

By default the plotting of the first wedge starts from the x-axis and move counterclockwise:
Note: The size of each wedge is determined by comparing the value with all the other values, by using this
formula:

The value divided by the sum of all values: x/sum(x)

Labels
Add labels to the pie chart with the label parameter.

The label parameter must be an array with one label for each wedge:

Example
A simple pie chart:

import matplotlib.pyplot as plt

import numpy as np
y = np.array([35, 25, 25, 15])
mylabels = ["Apples", "Bananas", "Cherries", "Dates"]

plt.pie(y, labels = mylabels)

plt.show()

Result:

#New

Start Angle
As mentioned the default start angle is at the x-axis, but you can change the start angle by specifying
a startangle parameter.

The startangle parameter is defined with an angle in degrees, default angle is 0:

Example
Start the first wedge at 90 degrees:

import matplotlib.pyplot as plt

import numpy as np

y = np.array([35, 25, 25, 15])

mylabels = ["Apples", "Bananas", "Cherries", "Dates"]

plt.pie(y, labels = mylabels, startangle = 90)

plt.show()
Result:

#New

Explode
Maybe you want one of the wedges to stand out? The explode parameter allows you to do that.

The explode parameter, if specified, and not None, must be an array with one value for each wedge.

Each value represents how far from the center each wedge is displayed:

Example
Pull the "Apples" wedge 0.2 from the center of the pie:

import matplotlib.pyplot as plt

import numpy as np

y = np.array([35, 25, 25, 15])

mylabels = ["Apples", "Bananas", "Cherries", "Dates"]
myexplode = [0.2, 0, 0, 0]

plt.pie(y, labels = mylabels, explode = myexplode)

plt.show()

Result:

#New

Shadow
Add a shadow to the pie chart by setting the shadows parameter to True:

Example
Add a shadow:

import matplotlib.pyplot as plt

import numpy as np
y = np.array([35, 25, 25, 15])
mylabels = ["Apples", "Bananas", "Cherries", "Dates"]
myexplode = [0.2, 0, 0, 0]

plt.pie(y, labels = mylabels, explode = myexplode, shadow = True)

plt.show()

Result:

#New

Colors
You can set the color of each wedge with the colors parameter.

The colors parameter, if specified, must be an array with one value for each wedge:
Example
Specify a new color for each wedge:

import matplotlib.pyplot as plt

import numpy as np

y = np.array([35, 25, 25, 15])

mylabels = ["Apples", "Bananas", "Cherries", "Dates"]
mycolors = ["black", "hotpink", "b", "#4CAF50"]

plt.pie(y, labels = mylabels, colors = mycolors)

plt.show()

Result:

#New

You can use Hexadecimal color values, any of the 140 supported color names, or one of these shortcuts:

'r' - Red
'g' - Green
'b' - Blue
'c' - Cyan
'm' - Magenta
'y' - Yellow
'k' - Black
'w' - White

Legend
To add a list of explanation for each wedge, use the legend() function:

Example
Add a legend:

import matplotlib.pyplot as plt

import numpy as np

y = np.array([35, 25, 25, 15])

mylabels = ["Apples", "Bananas", "Cherries", "Dates"]

plt.pie(y, labels = mylabels)

plt.legend()
plt.show()
Result:

#New

Legend With Header

To add a header to the legend, add the title parameter to the legend function.

Example
Add a legend with a header:

import matplotlib.pyplot as plt

import numpy as np

y = np.array([35, 25, 25, 15])

mylabels = ["Apples", "Bananas", "Cherries", "Dates"]

plt.pie(y, labels = mylabels)

plt.legend(title = "Four Fruits:")
plt.show()
Result: