Numeric Ruler Properties

Control individual axis appearance and behavior

expand all in page

Numeric ruler properties control the appearance and behavior of the x-axis, y-axis, or z-axis. Each individual axis has its own numeric ruler object. By changing property values of the rulers, you can modify certain aspects of a specific axis.

Use dot notation to refer to a particular ruler and property. Access the numeric ruler objects through the XAxis, YAxis, and ZAxis properties for the axes.

ax = gca;
co = ax.XAxis.Color;
ax.XAxis.Color = 'blue';

Appearance

expand all

Color of the axis line and labels, specified as an RGB triplet, a character vector of a color name, or 'none'. If you set the color to 'none', then the axis is invisible.

Example: ax.XAxis.Color = 'red';

Example: ax.YAxis.Color = [0.1 0.7 0.8];

An RGB triplet is a three-element row vector whose elements specify the intensities of the red, green, and blue components of the color. The intensities must be in the range [0,1]; for example, [0.4 0.6 0.7]. This table lists the long and short color name options and the equivalent RGB triplet values.

Long NameShort NameRGB Triplet
'yellow''y'[1 1 0]
'magenta''m'[1 0 1]
'cyan''c'[0 1 1]
'red''r'[1 0 0]
'green''g'[0 1 0]
'blue''b'[0 0 1]
'white''w'[1 1 1]
'black''k'[0 0 0]

    Note:   The Color property for the ruler and the associated XColor, YColor, or ZColor property for the parent axes always have the same value. Setting one also sets the other.

Width of axis line and tick marks, specified as a positive value in point units. One point equals 1/72 inch.

Example: ax.XAxis.LineWidth = 2;

    Note:   Setting the LineWidth property for the parent axes sets the LineWidth property for the ruler to the same value. However, setting the ruler property does not set the axes property. To prevent the axes property value from overriding the ruler property value, set the axes value first, and then set the ruler value.

Axis label, which is a text object. To display text or change existing text, set the String property for the text object. Use other properties to change the text appearance, such as the font style or color.

ax = gca;
ax.XAxis.Label.String = 'X Axis';
ax.XAxis.Label.FontSize = 12;

For a full list of options, see Text Properties.

Alternatively, add or modify the axis labels using the xlabel, ylabel, and zlabel functions.

    Note:   The text object is not a child of the numeric ruler object, so it cannot be returned by findobj and it does not use the default text property values.

Axis visibility, specified as one of these values:

  • 'on' — Display the axis.

  • 'off' — Hide the axis without deleting it. You still can access properties of an invisible axis using the ruler object.

Example: ax.XAxis.Visible = 'off';

Scale and Direction

expand all

Minimum and maximum axis limits, specified as a two-element vector of the form [min max].

If you assign a value to this property, then MATLAB® sets the associated mode to 'manual'.

Alternatively, set the limits using the xlim, ylim, and zlim functions.

    Note:   The Limits property for the ruler and the associated XLim, YLim, or ZLim property for the parent axes always have the same value. Setting one also sets the other.

Example: ax.XAxis.Limits = [-10 10];

Selection mode for the Limits property, specified as one of these values:

  • 'auto' — Automatically select the axis limits based on the data plotted.

  • 'manual' — Use axis limit values that you specify. To specify the axis limits, set the Limits property.

    Note:   The LimitsMode property for the ruler and the associated XLimMode, YLimMode, or ZLimMode property for the parent axes always have the same value. Setting one also sets the other.

Scale of values along axis, specified as 'linear' or 'log'.

    Note:   The Scale property for the ruler and the associated XScale, YScale, or ZScale property for the parent axes always have the same value. Setting one also sets the other.

Example: ax.XAxis.Scale = 'log';

Direction of increasing values, specified as one of these values:

  • 'normal' — Values increase from left to right or bottom to top.

  • 'reverse' — Values increase from right to left or top to bottom.

    Note:   The Direction property for the ruler and the associated XDir, YDir, or ZDir property for the parent axes always have the same value. Setting one also sets the other.

Example: ax.XAxis.Direction = 'reverse';

Tick Values and Labels

expand all

Tick mark locations along the axis, specified as a vector of increasing values.

Example: ax.XAxis.TickValues = [2 4 6 8 10];

Example: ax.XAxis.TickValues = 0:10:100;

If you assign a value to this property, then MATLAB sets the TickValuesMode property to 'manual'.

Alternatively, use the xticks, yticks, and zticks functions.

    Note:   The TickValues property for the ruler and the associated XTick, YTick, or ZTick property for the parent axes always have the same value. Setting one also sets the other.

Selection mode for the TickValues property, specified as one of these values:

  • 'auto' — Automatically select the tick values based on the data plotted.

  • 'manual' — Use tick values that you specify. To specify the values, set the TickValues property.

    Note:   The TickValuesMode property for the ruler and the associated XTickMode, YTickMode, or ZTickMode property for the parent axes always have the same value. Setting one also sets the other.

Exponential notation common to all tick values, specified as an integer value. The axis displays an exponent label showing the base and exponent value, for example:

The base value is always 10. However, you can change the exponent value by setting the Exponent property. For example, change the exponent to 2.

ax = gca;
ax.YAxis.Exponent = 2;

If the exponent value is 0, then the exponent label does not display.

If you assign a value to this property, then MATLAB sets the ExponentMode property to 'manual'.

Selection mode for the Exponent property, specified as one of these values:

  • 'auto' — Automatically select the exponent value based on the axis limits.

  • 'manual' — Use an exponent value that you specify. To specify the value, set the Exponent property.

Tick mark labels, specified as a cell array of character vectors or a string array. If you do not specify enough labels for all of the tick values, then the labels repeat. The labels support TeX and LaTeX markup. See the TickLabelInterpreter property for more information.

Example: ax.XAxis.TickLabels = {'January','February','March','April','May'}';

Example: ax.YAxis.TickLabels = {'\pi','2\pi','3\pi'}'

If you set this property, then MATLAB sets the TickLabelsMode property to 'manual'.

Alternatively, specify the tick labels using the xticklabels, yticklabels, and zticklabels functions.

    Note:   The TickLabels property for the ruler and the associated XTickLabel, YTickLabel, or ZTickLabel property for the parent axes always have the same value. Setting one also sets the other.

Data Types: char | string

Selection mode for the TickLabels property, specified as one of these values:

  • 'auto' — Automatically select the tick labels.

  • 'manual' — Use tick labels that you specify. To specify the labels, set the TickLabels property.

    Note:   The TickLabelsMode property for the ruler and the associated XTickLabelMode, YTickLabelMode, or ZTickLabelMode property for the parent axes always have the same value. Setting one also sets the other.

Interpretation of tick label characters, specified as one of these values:

  • 'tex' — Interpret characters using a subset of TeX markup.

  • 'latex' — Interpret characters using LaTeX markup.

  • 'none' — Display literal characters.

    Note:   Setting the TickLabelInterpreter property for the parent axes sets the TickLabelInterpreter property for the ruler to the same value. However, setting the ruler property does not set the axes property. To prevent the axes property value from overriding the ruler property value, set the axes value first, and then set the ruler value.

Example: ax.XAxis.TickLabelInterpreter = 'latex';

TeX Markup

By default, MATLAB supports a subset of TeX markup. Use TeX markup to add superscripts and subscripts, modify the text type and color, and include special characters in the text.

This table lists the supported modifiers with the TickLabelInterpreter property set to 'tex'. Modifiers remain in effect until the end of the text. Superscripts and subscripts are an exception because they only modify the next character or the text within the curly braces {}.

ModifierDescriptionExample
^{ }Superscript'text^{superscript}'
_{ }Subscript'text_{subscript}'
\bfBold font'\bf text'
\itItalic font'\it text'
\slOblique font (rarely available)'\sl text'
\rmNormal font'\rm text'
\fontname{specifier}Set specifier as the name of a font family to change the font style. You can use this in combination with other modifiers.'\fontname{Courier} text'
\fontsize{specifier}Set specifier as a scalar numeric value to change the font size.'\fontsize{15} text'
\color{specifier}Set specifer as one of these colors: red, green, yellow, magenta, blue, black, white, gray, darkGreen, orange, or lightBlue.'\color{magenta} text'
\color[rgb]{specifier}Set specifier as a three-element RGB triplet to change the font color.'\color[rgb]{0,0.5,0.5} text'

This table lists the supported special characters with the Interpreter property set to 'tex'.

Character SequenceSymbolCharacter SequenceSymbolCharacter SequenceSymbol

\alpha

α

\upsilon

υ

\sim

~

\angle

∠

\phi

Φ

\leq

≤

\ast

*

\chi

χ

\infty

∞

\beta

β

\psi

ψ

\clubsuit

♣

\gamma

γ

\omega

ω

\diamondsuit

♦

\delta

δ

\Gamma

Γ

\heartsuit

♥

\epsilon

ɛ

\Delta

Δ

\spadesuit

♠

\zeta

ζ

\Theta

Θ

\leftrightarrow

↔

\eta

η

\Lambda

Λ

\leftarrow

←

\theta

Θ

\Xi

Ξ

\Leftarrow

⇐

\vartheta

ϑ

\Pi

Π

\uparrow

↑

\iota

ι

\Sigma

Σ

\rightarrow

→

\kappa

κ

\Upsilon

ϒ

\Rightarrow

⇒

\lambda

λ

\Phi

Φ

\downarrow

↓

\mu

µ

\Psi

Ψ

\circ

º

\nu

ν

\Omega

Ω

\pm

±

\xi

ξ

\forall

∀

\geq

≥

\pi

π

\exists

∃

\propto

∝

\rho

ρ

\ni

∍

\partial

∂

\sigma

σ

\cong

≅

\bullet

•

\varsigma

ς

\approx

≈

\div

÷

\tau

τ

\Re

ℜ

\neq

≠

\equiv

≡

\oplus

⊕

\aleph

ℵ

\Im

ℑ

\cup

∪

\wp

℘

\otimes

⊗

\subseteq

⊆

\oslash

∅

\cap

∩

\in

∈

\supseteq

⊇

\supset

⊃

\lceil

⌈

\subset

⊂

\int

∫

\cdot

·

\o

ο

\rfloor

⌋

\neg

¬

\nabla

∇

\lfloor

⌊

\times

x

\ldots

...

\perp

⊥

\surd

√

\prime

´

\wedge

∧

\varpi

ϖ

\0

∅

\rceil

⌉

\rangle

〉

\mid

|

\vee

∨

\langle

〈

\copyright

©

LaTeX Markup

To use LaTeX markup, set the TickLabelInterpreter property to 'latex'. Use dollar symbols around the labels, for example, use '$\int_1^{20} x^2 dx$' for inline mode or '$$\int_1^{20} x^2 dx$$' for display mode.

The displayed text uses the default LaTeX font style. The FontName, FontWeight, and FontAngle properties do not have an effect. To change the font style, use LaTeX markup within the text. The maximum size of the text that you can use with the LaTeX interpreter is 1200 characters. For multiline text, this is reduced by about 10 characters per line.

For more information about the LaTeX system, see The LaTeX Project website at http://www.latex-project.org/.

Tick label format and decimal precision, specified as a character vector of numeric format. For example, you can display the tick labels in a currency format, control the number of decimals that appear in each label, or add text after all the labels.

Example: ax.XAxis.TickLabelFormat = '%g%%'; displays a percent sign after all the tick labels.

This table lists some common formats and the associated character vector.

Common FormatCharacter Vector to UseExamples of Resulting Format
Currency — Display dollar sign before values, use two decimal places, and use commas.'$%,.2f'
$0.01
$1.00
$1,000.00
Temperatures — Display degree symbol after values.'%g\\circ'
0.01o
1o
1000o
Percentages — Display percent sign after values.'%g%%'
0.01%
1%
1000%
Commas — Display commas in the thousandth place.'%,g'
0.01
1
1,000

Alternatively, specify the tick label format using the xtickformat, ytickformat, and ztickformat functions.

Custom Format

If none of the formats mentioned in the table gives your desired format, then create a custom character vector of identifiers.

Identifiers are optional, except the percent sign and conversion character. Construct the format in this order:

  • One or more flags — Options such as adding a plus sign before positive values. For a full list of options, see the table of Optional Flags.

  • Field width — Minimum number of characters to print in the tick label. Specify the field width as an integer value. If the number of significant digits in the tick value is smaller than the field width, then the label is padded with spaces.

  • Precision — Number of digits to the right of the decimal point or the number of significant digits, depending on the conversion character. Specify the precision as an integer value.

  • Conversion character — Value type. For a full list of options, see the table of Conversion Characters. If you specify a conversion that does not fit the data, MATLAB overrides the specified conversion and uses %e.

Also, you can specify literal text at the beginning or end of the format. To print a single quotation mark, use ''. To print a percent character, use %%.

  • '$%.2f' — Display a dollar sign before each value and use fixed-point notation with two decimal values.

  • '%.3f Million' — Display Million after each value and use fixed-point notation with three decimal values.

Optional Flags

IdentifierDescriptionExample of Numeric Format
,Display commas every three digits, such as '1,000'.'%,4.4g'
+Print the sign character (+) for positive values, such as '+100'.'%+4.4g'
0Pad the field width with leading zeros instead of spaces, such as '0100'.'%04.4g'
–Left-justify, which pads the end of the value with spaces instead of the beginning. For example, if the field width is 4, then this flag formats the label as '100 ' instead of ' 100'.'%-4.4g'
#

For the %f, %e, and %g conversion characters, print the decimal point even when the precision is 0, such as '100.'. For %g, do not remove trailing zeros.

'%#4.4g'

Conversion Characters

IdentifierDescriptionExample
d or iSigned integer with base 10. The precision value indicates the number of significant digits. '%.4d' displays π as 0003.
fFixed-point notation. The precision value indicates the number of decimal places.'%.4f' displays π as 3.1416.
eExponential notation. The precision value indicates the number of decimal places.'%.4e' displays π as 3.1416x100.
gThe more compact version of e or f, with no trailing zeros. The precision value indicates the maximum number of decimal places.'%.4g' displays π as 3.1416.

Rotation of tick labels, specified as a scalar value in degrees. Positive values give counterclockwise rotation. Negative values give clockwise rotation.

Alternatively, you can rotate the tick labels using the xtickangle, ytickangle, and ztickangle functions.

    Note:   The TickLabelRotation property for the ruler and the associated XTickLabelRotation, YTickLabelRotation, or ZTickLabelRotation property for the parent axes always have the same value. Setting one also sets the other.

Example: ax.XAxis.TickLabelRotation = 45;

Example: ax.YAxis.TickLabelRotation = -45;

Tick mark direction, specified as one of these values:

  • 'in' — Direct the tick marks inward from the axis lines. This is the default for 2-D views.

  • 'out' — Direct the tick marks outward from the axis lines. This is the default for 3-D views.

  • 'both' — Center the tick marks over the axis lines.

If you assign a value to this property, then MATLAB sets the TickDirectionMode property to 'manual'.

    Note:   Setting the TickDir property for the parent axes sets the TickDirection property for the ruler to the same value. However, setting the ruler property does not set the axes property. To prevent the axes property value from overriding the ruler property value, set the axes value first, and then set the ruler value.

Example: ax.YAxis.TickDirection = 'out';

Selection mode for the TickDirection property, specified as one of these values:

  • 'auto' — Automatically select the tick direction.

  • 'manual' — Use a tick direction that you specify. To specify the tick direction, set the TickDirection property.

Tick mark length, specified as a two-element vector of the form [2Dlength 3Dlength]. The first element is the tick mark length in 2-D views. The second element is the tick mark length in 3-D views. Specify the values in units normalized relative to the longest axes dimension.

    Note:   Setting the TickLength property for the parent axes sets the TickLength property for the ruler to the same value. However, setting the ruler property does not set the axes property. To prevent the axes property value from overriding the ruler property value, set the axes value first, and then set the ruler value.

Example: ax.YAxis.TickLength = [0.02 0.035];

Minor tick mark display, specified as one of these values:

  • 'off' — Do not display minor tick marks. This is the default value for an axis with a linear scale.

  • 'on' — Display minor tick marks between the major tick marks on the axis. This is the default value for an axis with a log scale. The space between the major tick marks determines the number of minor tick marks. If the MinorTickValues property is set to empty [], then no minor tick marks appear. Specify the tick mark locations by setting the MinorTickValues property.

    Note:   The MinorTick property for the ruler and the associated XMinorTick, YMinorTick, or ZMinorTick property for the parent axes always have the same value. Setting one also sets the other.

Example: ax.XAxis.MinorTick = 'on';

Minor tick mark locations, specified as a vector of increasing values.

Example: ax.XAxis.MinorTickValues = [0 0.5 1 1.5 2 2.5];

Example: ax.YAxis.MinorTickValues = 0:5:100;

If you assign values to this property, then MATLAB sets the MinorTickValuesMode property to 'manual'.

Selection mode for the MinorTickValues property, specified as one of these values:

  • 'auto' — Use automatically calculated minor tick values.

  • 'manual' — Use minor tick values that you specify. To specify the values, set the MinorTickValues property.

Font

expand all

Font name, specified as a system supported font name or 'FixedWidth'. The default font depends on the specific system and locale. To use a fixed-width font that renders well, specify 'FixedWidth'. The actual fixed-width font used depends on the FixedWidthFontName property of the root object.

    Note:   Setting the FontName property for the parent axes sets the FontName property for the ruler to the same value. However, setting the ruler property does not set the axes property. To prevent the axes property value from overriding the ruler property value, set the axes value first, and then set the ruler value.

Example: ax.XAxis.FontName = 'Cambria';

Font size, specified as a scalar numeric value.

    Note:   Setting the FontSize property for the parent axes sets the FontSize property for the ruler to the same value. However, setting the ruler property does not set the axes property. To prevent the axes property value from overriding the ruler property value, set the axes value first, and then set the ruler value.

Example: ax.XAxis.FontSize = 12;

Thickness of the text characters, specified as one of these values:

  • 'normal' — Default weight as defined by the particular font.

  • 'bold' — Thicker character outlines than normal.

MATLAB uses the FontWeight property to select a font from those available on your system. Not all fonts have a bold font weight. Therefore, specifying a bold font weight still can result in the normal font weight.

    Note:   Setting the FontWeight property for the parent axes sets the FontWeight property for the ruler to the same value. However, setting the ruler property does not set the axes property. To prevent the axes property value from overriding the ruler property value, set the axes value first, and then set the ruler value.

Example: ax.XAxis.FontWeight = 'bold';

Character slant, specified as 'normal' or 'italic'. Not all fonts have both font styles. Therefore, the italic font can look the same as the normal font.

    Note:   Setting the FontAngle property for the parent axes sets the FontAngle property for the ruler to the same value. However, setting the ruler property does not set the axes property. To prevent the axes property value from overriding the ruler property value, set the axes value first, and then set the ruler value.

Example: ax.XAxis.FontAngle = 'italic';

Text smoothing, specified as one of these values:

  • 'on' — Enable text antialiasing to reduce the jagged appearance of text characters and make the text easier to read. In certain cases, smoothed text blends against the background color and can make the text appear blurry.

  • 'off' — Disable text antialiasing. Use this setting if the text seems blurry.

    Note:   Setting the FontSmoothing property for the parent axes sets the FontSmoothing property for the ruler to the same value. However, setting the ruler property does not set the axes property. To prevent the axes property value from overriding the ruler property value, set the axes value first, and then set the ruler value.

Example: ax.XAxis.FontSmoothing = 'off';

Parent/Child

expand all

Parent of the numeric ruler, specified as an axes object.

    Note:   Ruler objects are not listed in the Children property of the parent axes object.

The numeric ruler has no children. You cannot set this property.

See Also

Introduced in R2015b

Was this topic helpful?
MATLAB Documentation
Other Documentation
Support