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D3.js vs Matplotlib

D3.js

d3js.org

Matplotlib

matplotlib.org

Side by side

FigureD3.jsMatplotlib
Price fromFreeFree
Free planYesYes
Free trial——
Open source——
WebYesYes
Windows—Yes
macOS—Yes
Linux—Yes
Self-hostedYesYes
Plans published11
Spec score · Data Visualization Libraries Software7.9 (#10)8.2 (#8)
Spec score · Data Visualization Software7.9 (#52)8.7 (#17)
Data sourcesCSV,JSONPython lists,NumPy arrays
Free planYesYes
Platformwebweb_and_desktop
PurposeD3 is a free, open-source JavaScript library for creating dynamic, data-driven visualizations.Matplotlib is a Python library for creating static, animated, and interactive visualizations.
SupportThe D3 community page recommends GitHub Discussions as the preferred place for support requests and community engagement.The project directs users to community help through Discourse, GitHub issues, and Stack Overflow.

Plans

D3.js

  • D3Free

D3.js pricing →

Matplotlib

  • MatplotlibFree

Matplotlib pricing →

In their own words

D3.js

D3.js has no write-up on Specifiction yet; its figures are above.

Visit d3js.org

Matplotlib

Matplotlib is a free Python library for creating static, animated, and interactive visualizations. The project says it can make publication-quality plots, and interactive figures can support zooming, panning, and updates. Users can customize visual style and figure layout, then export figures to many file formats. Matplotlib can be embedded in JupyterLab and graphical user interfaces. Third-party packages built on it include seaborn, HoloViews, plotnine, Cartopy, and WCSAxes. Official release wheels are available for Linux, macOS, and Windows, while documented runtime dependencies require Python 3.11 or newer. Additional dependencies may be needed for other GUI frameworks, LaTeX rendering, animation saving, and more file formats. The project describes its code as BSD-compatible and grants a royalty-free license subject to its license terms. Community help is available through Discourse, GitHub issues, and Stack Overflow. The project says Matplotlib began as a tool for EEG data and is now used in many fields. Its listed plan is Matplotlib at free.

Visit matplotlib.org