How to Create Histogram in MATLAB: Syntax and Example

Use the histogram function in MATLAB to create a histogram from your data. Call histogram(data) where data is a numeric vector, and MATLAB will display the histogram automatically.

Syntax

The basic syntax to create a histogram in MATLAB is:

• histogram(data): Creates a histogram of the numeric vector data.
• histogram(data, nbins): Creates a histogram with nbins number of bins.
• histogram(data, 'BinEdges', edges): Creates a histogram with custom bin edges defined by edges.

The function automatically plots the histogram in a figure window.

matlab

histogram(data)
histogram(data, nbins)
histogram(data, 'BinEdges', edges)

Example

This example shows how to create a histogram of 1000 random numbers from a normal distribution with 20 bins.

matlab

data = randn(1000,1);
histogram(data, 20);
title('Histogram of Normally Distributed Data');
xlabel('Data Values');
ylabel('Frequency');

Output

A figure window opens showing a histogram with 20 bars representing the frequency of data values.

Common Pitfalls

Common mistakes when creating histograms in MATLAB include:

• Passing non-numeric data or empty arrays causes errors.
• Using too few or too many bins can make the histogram unclear.
• Not labeling axes or title makes the plot hard to understand.

Always check your data and choose bin sizes that reveal meaningful patterns.

matlab

% Wrong: Non-numeric data
% histogram({'a', 'b', 'c'}) % This will cause an error

% Right: Numeric data
histogram([1,2,3,4,5])

Quick Reference

Summary tips for creating histograms in MATLAB:

• Use histogram(data) for default bins.
• Specify number of bins with histogram(data, nbins).
• Customize bins with 'BinEdges' option.
• Label your plot with title, xlabel, and ylabel.
• Check data type and size before plotting.

Key Takeaways

Use the histogram function with numeric data to create histograms in MATLAB.

Adjust the number of bins to control the histogram's detail level.

Label your histogram plot for clarity and better understanding.

Avoid passing non-numeric or empty data to the histogram function.

Customize bin edges for more control over histogram grouping.