Matplotlib - Subplot with two rows and two columns

Matplotlib - Subplot with two rows and two columns

First let us see the syntax of subplot() function, and then using this information, we shall create subplot with two rows and two columns.

The syntax of subplot function is

subplot(crows, cols, index, **kwargs)

where

ParameterDescription
nrowsNumber of rows of subplots.
ncolsNumber of columns of subplots.
indexInteger or tuple representing the index of the current subplot. Starts from 1.
**kwargsAdditional keyword arguments passed to the `add_subplot` call (optional).

Therefore, to create subplot with two rows and two columns,

  • The first subplot should be plt.subplot(2, 2, 1) where the first argument 2 specifies that there are two rows, the second argument 2 specifies that there are two columns, and the third argument 1 specifies that this subplot is the first.
  • The second subplot should be plt.subplot(2, 2, 2) where the first argument 2 specifies that there are two rows, the second argument 2 specifies that there are two columns, and the third argument 2 specifies that this subplot is the second.
  • Similarly, the third subplot should be plt.subplot(2, 2, 3) where the third argument 3 specifies that this subplot is the third.
  • And, the fourth subplot should be plt.subplot(2, 2, 4) where the third argument 4 specifies that this subplot is the fourth.

For example, consider the following program where we create subplot with two rows and two columns.

Python Program

import matplotlib.pyplot as plt

# Example data
x1 = [1, 2, 3, 4, 5]
y1 = [10, 20, 25, 55, 40]

x2 = [1, 2, 3, 4, 5]
y2 = [10, 5, 15, 20, 40]

x3 = [1, 2, 3, 4, 5]
y3 = [0.8, 5.5, 1.5, 2.1, 0.7]

x4 = [1, 2, 3, 4, 5]
y4 = [4, 6, 5, 2, 4]

# Create a figure with two subplots (1 row, 2 columns)
plt.figure(figsize=(10, 4))

# Subplot 1
plt.subplot(2, 2, 1)
plt.plot(x1, y1)
plt.title('Data 1 Graph')
plt.xlabel('Data 1 X-axis')
plt.ylabel('Data 1 Y-axis')

# Subplot 2
plt.subplot(2, 2, 2)
plt.plot(x2, y2)
plt.title('Data 2 Graph')
plt.xlabel('Data 2 X-axis')
plt.ylabel('Data 2 Y-axis')

# Subplot 3
plt.subplot(2, 2, 3)
plt.plot(x3, y3)
plt.title('Data 3 Graph')
plt.xlabel('Data 3 X-axis')
plt.ylabel('Data 3 Y-axis')

# Subplot 4
plt.subplot(2, 2, 4)
plt.plot(x4, y4)
plt.title('Data 4 Graph')
plt.xlabel('Data 4 X-axis')
plt.ylabel('Data 4 Y-axis')

# Adjust layout for better spacing
plt.tight_layout()

# Show the plot
plt.show()

Output

Matplotlib - Subplot with two rows and two columns