YouTip

* * Matplotlib Reference Documentation](#) Matplotlib provides a set of functions for setting chart titles, axis labels, and super titles, which are the foundation for making charts complete and readable. ## Related Functions | Function | Description | Corresponding Axes Method | | --- | --- | --- | | title() | Set Axes title | ax.set_title() | | xlabel() / ylabel() | Set x/y axis labels | ax.set_xlabel() / ax.set_ylabel() | | suptitle() | Set Figure super title | fig.suptitle() | | supxlabel() / supylabel() | Set Figure-level x/y axis labels | fig.supxlabel() / fig.supylabel() | ## Function Definitions matplotlib.pyplot.title(label, fontdict=None, loc=None, pad=None, *, y=None, **kwargs) matplotlib.pyplot.xlabel(xlabel, fontdict=None, labelpad=None, *, loc=None, **kwargs) matplotlib.pyplot.ylabel(ylabel, fontdict=None, labelpad=None, *, loc=None, **kwargs) matplotlib.pyplot.suptitle(t, **kwargs) matplotlib.pyplot.supxlabel(t, **kwargs) matplotlib.pyplot.supylabel(t, **kwargs) ## Common Parameters | Parameter | Description | | --- | --- | | label / xlabel / ylabel / t | Text content (required) | | fontsize / size | Font size, e.g., 14, 'large', 'x-large' | | fontweight / weight | Font weight: 'normal', 'bold', 'light' | | color | Text color | | fontdict | Font properties dictionary, e.g., {'fontsize':14, 'color':'blue'} | | loc | Alignment position: 'center' (default), 'left', 'right' | | pad / labelpad | Spacing between text and axis/chart edge (in points) | | y (for title) | Vertical position of title (Axes coordinate, 1.0 is top) | > `Axes` object methods are named with `set_` prefix, such as `ax.set_title()`, `ax.set_xlabel()`, which is the recommended approach for the object-oriented interface. * * * ## Usage Examples ### Example 1: Basic Title and Labels ## Example import matplotlib.pyplot as plt import numpy as np x = np.linspace(0,10,100) y = np.sin(x) * np.exp(-x/5) fig, ax = plt.subplots(figsize=(8,4), layout='constrained') ax.plot(x, y,'steelblue', linewidth=2) # Set title (Axes level) ax.set_title('Damped Sine Wave', fontsize=14, fontweight='bold') # Set axis labels ax.set_xlabel('Time (seconds)', fontsize=12) ax.set_ylabel('Amplitude (V)', fontsize=12) ax.grid(True, alpha=0.3) plt.show() ### Example 2: Figure Super Title + Axis Labels ## Example import matplotlib.pyplot as plt import numpy as np x = np.linspace(0,10,100) fig, axes = plt.subplots(2,2, figsize=(10,8), layout='constrained') # Each subplot has its own title axes[0,0].plot(x, np.sin(x)); axes[0,0].set_title('sin(x)') axes[0,1].plot(x, np.cos(x)); axes[0,1].set_title('cos(x)') axes[1,0].plot(x, np.sin(2*x)); axes[1,0].set_title('sin(2x)') axes[1,1].plot(x, np.cos(2*x)); axes[1,1].set_title('cos(2x)') # Figure-level super title fig.suptitle('Trigonometric Functions Overview', fontsize=16, fontweight='bold', y=1.02) # Figure-level axis labels (centered across all subplots) fig.supxlabel('x (radians)', fontsize=13) fig.supylabel('Amplitude', fontsize=13) plt.show() ### Example 3: Title Position and Style ## Example import matplotlib.pyplot as plt import numpy as np x = np.linspace(0,10,100) fig,(ax1, ax2)= plt.subplots(1,2, figsize=(10,4), layout='constrained') # Left plot: left-aligned title ax1.plot(x, np.sin(x),'steelblue') ax1.set_title('Left-aligned Title', loc='left',# Left aligned fontsize=12, color='steelblue') ax1.set_xlabel('X-axis', fontsize=10, color='gray') # Right plot: right-aligned title ax2.plot(x, np.cos(x),'coral') ax2.set_title('Right-aligned Title', loc='right',# Right aligned fontsize=12, color='coral', fontstyle='italic') ax2.set_ylabel('Y-axis', fontsize=10, color='gray', rotation=0, labelpad=20)# Label not rotated plt.show() ### Example 4: LaTeX Math Formula Titles ## Example import matplotlib.pyplot as plt import numpy as np x = np.linspace(-5,5,200) fig,(ax1, ax2)= plt.subplots(1,2, figsize=(10,4), layout='constrained') # Gaussian distribution sigma, mu =1.0,0.0 y1 =1/(sigma * np.sqrt(2*np.pi)) * np.exp(-(x-mu)**2/(2*sigma**2)) ax1.plot(x, y1,'steelblue', linewidth=2) # Use LaTeX formula as title ax1.set_title( r'$f(x) = frac{1}{sigmasqrt{2pi}}' r'expleft(-frac{(x-mu)^2}{2sigma^2}right)$', fontsize=12) # Polynomial y2 = x**3 - 3*x ax2.plot(x, y2,'coral', linewidth=2) ax2.set_title(r'$f(x) = x^3 - 3x$', fontsize=14) ax2.axhline(y=0, color='gray', linewidth=0.5) for ax in[ax1, ax2]: ax.set_xlabel('x') ax.grid(True, alpha=0.3) fig.suptitle('Functions with LaTeX Titles', fontsize=14, fontweight='bold') plt.show() print("tutorial: LaTeX titles displayed") * * * ## Common Questions ### What's the difference between title() and suptitle()? `title()` (or `ax.set_title()`): Sets the title above a single Axes. `suptitle()` (or `fig.suptitle()`): Sets the super title at the top of the entire Figure, spanning all subplots. ### How to make titles support Chinese? Set the font: `plt.rcParams['font.sans-serif'] = ['SimHe