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Use ax.tick_params() to style tick marks, tick labels, and gridlines on a Matplotlib Axes. By default, it applies to both axes and major ticks; set axis and which to target a narrower group. Unspecified properties stay as they are unless you pass reset=True.
Basic syntax and defaults
Call the method on the axes you want to format:
ax.tick_params(axis='both', which='major', direction='out', length=6, width=2)In the Matplotlib 3.11.2 API, axis accepts 'x', 'y', or 'both', with 'both' as the default. The which argument accepts 'major', 'minor', or 'both', and defaults to 'major'. The method changes appearance; it does not configure the data or locations of ticks. See the Matplotlib 3.11.2 Axes.tick_params reference.
Choose which ticks to style
Use axis to limit a change to the horizontal or vertical axis, and which to select major ticks, minor ticks, or both. For example, this changes label size for both major and minor ticks on the x-axis:
ax.tick_params(axis='x', which='both', labelsize=10)The argument values can be combined with any applicable styling options; the example is an illustration of that combination.
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Customize tick marks and labels
The 3.11.2 API documents options for tick direction, dimensions, color, label spacing, typography, rotation, side visibility, and drawing order. Length and width are measured in points. Use the option that corresponds to the element you want to change.
| Purpose | Parameters | Effect |
|---|---|---|
| Tick mark shape and size | direction, length, width |
Choose 'in', 'out', or 'inout' direction and set length and width in points. |
| Tick and label colors | color, labelcolor, colors |
color sets tick color; labelcolor sets label color; colors sets both together. |
| Label spacing and typography | pad, labelsize, labelfontfamily |
Adjust spacing between ticks and labels, label size, and label font family. |
| Label orientation | labelrotation, labelrotation_mode |
Set rotation in degrees and choose a rotation mode: 'default', 'anchor', 'xtick', or 'ytick'. |
| Visible sides | bottom, top, left, right |
Control tick visibility on each side; corresponding labelbottom, labeltop, labelleft, and labelright options control labels. |
| Drawing order | zorder |
Set the drawing order of ticks and labels. |
Style gridlines with tick parameters
Grid appearance can be set through grid_color, grid_alpha, grid_linewidth, and grid_linestyle. For instance, the official reference shows:
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ax.tick_params(
direction='out', length=6, width=2, colors='r',
grid_color='r', grid_alpha=0.5
)In that documented example, major ticks point outward and are red, 6 points long, and 2 points wide. Tick labels also become red, while gridlines are red with 0.5 alpha. These are demonstration values, not universal style recommendations. Grid styling through this method does not itself enable a grid.
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Preserve existing styling or reset it
By default, properties you do not specify remain unchanged. This makes successive calls useful when you want to adjust only one aspect, such as label size, without replacing other tick settings. Passing reset=True resets tick parameters before applying the supplied updates. The Matplotlib 3.11.2 reference states: “Tick properties that are not explicitly set using the keyword arguments remain unchanged unless reset is True.”
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Set tick and label colors together or separately
Use colors when tick marks and labels should share a color. To give them different colors, set color and labelcolor separately. These options control appearance; choose axis and which as needed to scope the change.
Version scope
The option names and behavior described here follow the Matplotlib 3.11.2 API reference. The reference establishes these options for that version; it does not establish a complete compatibility history across older releases.
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