How to change line colors in Matplotlib
Onyejiaku Theophilus ChidaluOverview
Line colors in the Matplotlib library are used to beautify, differentiate, or give varying color presentations for plots in a single program.
In Matplotlib, colors are represented using short codes. Below are some of the various colors in Matplotlib library with their corresponding codes.
Color | Code |
red |
|
blue |
|
yellow |
|
white |
|
cyan |
|
black |
|
green |
|
How to use colors in a plot
The steps to take when using a specified color for a line of a plot are listed below:
-
Import the various modules and libraries you need for the plot: the Matplotlib library
matplot,numpy,pyplot. -
Create your data set(s) to be plotted.
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In the
plot()method, after declaring thecolorparameter, assign it to a color name in full, or you can simply use the code. Take a look at this code below:Using the full color name:
Pyplot.plot(x, y, color='red')Using the color code:
Pyplot.plot(x, y, colour='r')Use whichever one from the above is correct for your situation.
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Finally, use the
show()method to show your plot.
Example 1: Using the color names
Now, let’s use this to create a program with subplots of different colors using the color names.
import matplotlib.pyplot as plt
x = [1, 2, 3, 4, 5]
y = [2, 4, 6, 8, 10]
fig,axs = plt.subplots(2,2)
# using blue color
axs[0,0].scatter(x, y, color = 'blue')
axs[0,0].set_title('blue colour' )
# using the red color
axs[0,1].scatter(x, y, color = 'red')
axs[0,1].set_title('red colour' )
# using the devault yellow color
axs[1,0].scatter(x, y, color = 'yellow')
axs[1,0].set_title('yellow colour' )
# using the black color
axs[1,1].scatter(x, y, color = 'black')
axs[1,1].set_title('black colour' )
plt.tight_layout()
plt.show()Example 2: Using the color codes
Now, let’s use this to create a program with subplots of different colors using the color codes.
import matplotlib.pyplot as plt
x = [1, 2, 3, 4, 5]
y = [2, 4, 6, 8, 10]
fig,axs = plt.subplots(2,2)
# using blue color
axs[0,0].scatter(x, y, color = 'b')
axs[0,0].set_title('blue colour' )
# using the red color
axs[0,1].scatter(x, y, color = 'r')
axs[0,1].set_title('red colour' )
# using the yellow color
axs[1,0].scatter(x, y, color = 'y')
axs[1,0].set_title('yellow colour' )
# using the black color
axs[1,1].scatter(x, y, color = 'k')
axs[1,1].set_title('black colour' )
plt.tight_layout()
plt.show()Note: Use the word
colorand notcolourwhen writing the code. Also, the parameter,color, can be in their hexadecimal color values. For example,#4CAF50forgreen.
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