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Matplotlib Cheat Sheet by

Import Library

from matplotlib import pyplot as plt

Basic Line Plot

x_values
days = [0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6]
y_values1
money_spent = [10, 12, 12, 10, 14, 22, 24]
y_values2
money_spent_2 = [11, 14, 15, 15, 22, 21, 12]

assigend to one plot
plt.plot(days, money_spent)
plt.plot(days, money_spent_2)

plt.show()

Subplots

# Create subplots
plt.subplot(rows, columns, index_of_subplot)
# Example
# First Subplot
plt.subplot(1, 2, 1)
plt.plot(x, y, color='green')

# Second Subplot
plt.subplot(1, 2, 2)
plt.plot(x, y, color='steelblue')

# Format Subplots
plt.subplots_adjust(arguements)
left, right, top, bottom -margin
wspace, hspace horizontal/vertical margin between plots
The object that contains all subplots is called figure
Always put specific Attributes (color, markers, ...) for a subplot directly under plt.plot()

Linestyles

plt.pl­ot(x, y, style=" ")
Keywords to put in for style:
 
color= green, #AAAAAA
linestyle= dotted: :, dashed: -- or -.
marker= o, *, s, x, d, h
linewidth= 1, 2, ...
alpha= 0.1 - 1
 
Boiler­plate Styles:
plt.st­yle.use("fi­vet­hir­tye­igh­t")
plt.st­yle.use("gg­plo­t")
plt.st­yle.use("se­abo­rn")
plt.st­yle.use("de­fau­lt")

Legends

# Create Legend
plt.legend(["first_line", "second_line", loc=])

# loc Numbercode
1  upper left
2  upper right
3  lower left
4  lower right
5  right
6  center left
7  center right
8  lower center
9  upper center
10 center
loc specifies the legends location (if not specified: finds "­bes­t" location)

Figures

# Create Figure with custom size
plt.figure(figsize=(width, heigth)) 
plt.plot(x, y)
plt.savefig('tall_and_narrow.png/ .svg/ .pdf')
When we’re making lots of plots, it’s easy to end up with lines that have been plotted and not displayed. If we’re not careful, these “forgo­tten” lines will show up in your new plots. In order to be sure that you don’t have any stray lines, you can use the command plt.cl­ose­('all') to clear all existing plots before you plot a new one.

Modify Ticks

# Specify subplot to modify
ax1 = plt.subplot(row, column, index)
# Attributes
ax1.set_xticks([1, 2, 4])
ax1.set_yticks([0.1, 0.2, ...])

ax1.set_xticklabels(["Jan", "Feb", "Apr"], rotation=30)
# rotation=degrees rotates the labels 

ax1.set_yticklabels(["10%", "20%", ...])
We have to do it this way, even if we only have one plot

Axis and Labels

Zoom in or out of the plot:
plt.axis(x_min, x_max, y_min, y_max)
Labeling the Axes:
plt.xl­abe­l("str ")/ plt.yl­abel() / plt.ti­tle()

Add Text to Graph

plt.text(x_coord, y_coord, "text");
 

Simple Bar Chart

plt.ba­r(r­ang­e(l­en(­y_v­alu­es)), y_values)
We use range(­len­(y_­val­ues)) to get a tick for each value we want to represent in the Bar Chart

Scatter Plot

plt.scatter(x_values, y_values)

Side-B­y-Side Bars

# We have to specifiy the location of each Dataset in the Plot using this pattern:  

n = ?  # Number of specific dataset
t = ? # Number of datasets
d = ? # Number of sets of bars
w = 0.8 # Width of each bar

x_values1 = [t*element + w*n for element in range(d)]

# Get x_values in the middle of both bars
middle_x = [ (a + b) / 2.0 for a, b in zip(x_values1, x_values2)]

Stacked Bars

# We use the keyword bottom to do this
# The top bar will have bottom set as height

# First Bar
video_game_hours = [1, 2, 2, 1, 2]
plt.bar(range(len(video_game_hours)),
  video_game_hours) 

# Second Bar
book_hours = [2, 3, 4, 2, 1]
plt.bar(range(len(book_hours)),
  book_hours,
  bottom=video_game_hours)

# Get each bottom for 3+ bars
sport_hours = np.add(video_game_hours, book_hours)
If we want to compare "­dif­ferent sub-at­tri­butes from one attrib­ute­" we can use stacked bar charts. For example:
Attribute: Entert­ainment hours
Sub-At­tri­butes: Gaming, Reading, ...

Error Bars

# Use the keyword yerr to repersent the error range

values = [10, 13, 11, 15, 20]
yerr = [1, 3, 0.5, 2, 4] # singe value possible
plt.bar(y, x, yerr=yerr, capsize=10)
plt.show()
If we want to present an uncert­ainty Range within a Bar Chart we can use Error Bars

Fill Between (Line Plot)

x = range(3)
y = [10, 12, 13]

y_lower = [8, 10, 11]
y_upper = [i + 2 for i in y_values]

# Calculate a % deviation
y_lower_bound = [element - (element * error_in_decimal) for element in original_list_of_y_values]

#this is the shaded error
plt.fill_between(x, y_lower, y_upper, alpha=0.2)

#this is the line itself
plt.plot(x, y)

plt.show()
Returns a shaded are around the line

Pie Chart

payment_names = ["Card Swipe", "Cash", "Apple Pay", "Other"]
payment_freqs = [270, 77, 32, 11]

# Creating Pie Chart
plt.pie(payment_freqs)
plt.axis('equal')

# Two Methods for Labeling
# First Method
plt.legend(payment_names)
# Second Method (directly when creating)
plt.pie(payment_freqs, labels=payment_names)

Show percentages of total in each slice:
plt.pie(payment_freqs, labels=payment_names, autopct='%0.1f%%')
# autopct takes a string formatting instruction
# %d%% -> round to decimal

plt.show()

Histogram

# Create one Histogram
plt.hist(dataset, range=(0,100), bins=20)
# Specifiy number of bins (default = 10)

# Create multiple Histograms
plt.hist(a, alpha=0.5, normed=True)
plt.hist(b, histtype='step', linewidth=2 normed=True)
# Specify alpha for opacity or use histtype to draw just the outline
# Use linewidth to specifiy the linewidth of the outline
# Use the keyword normed to normalize the histograms

Normalize divides the x_values by a constat such that the area under the curve sums to 1
       
 

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