pypubfigs 1.1.3

Colorblind-friendly color palettes and themes for publication-quality scientific figures using matplotlib and seaborn.

pypubfigs is a Python package for creating publication-ready figures with colorblind-friendly palettes and themes for matplotlib/seaborn.

If you found pypubfigs helpful, please cite: ggpubfigs: Colorblind-Friendly Color Palettes and ggplot2 Graphic System Extensions for Publication-Quality Scientific Figures. DOI: 10.1128/MRA.00871-21

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Guide

Install
Quick Start
Color Palettes
Table of Hex Codes
Themes
FAQ
Change Log
Versioning
Acknowledgements

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Install

pip install pypubfigs

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Quick Start

These quick-start examples demonstrate theme and palette usage.

import seaborn as sns
import matplotlib.pyplot as plt
from pypubfigs import friendly_pal, theme_big_simple

# Apply theme and palette
theme_big_simple()
sns.set_palette(friendly_pal("ito_seven"))

# Plot
tips = sns.load_dataset("tips")
sns.barplot(x="day", y="total_bill", hue="sex", data=tips)
plt.show()

import matplotlib.pyplot as plt
from pypubfigs import friendly_pal, theme_big_grid

theme_big_grid()
palette = friendly_pal("bright_seven")

x = [1, 2, 3, 4]
y1 = [10, 20, 25, 30]
y2 = [30, 23, 15, 5]

plt.bar(x, y1, color=palette[0], label="Group 1")
plt.bar(x, y2, bottom=y1, color=palette[1], label="Group 2")
plt.legend()
plt.show()

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Color Palettes

All palettes are colorblind-friendly.

from pypubfigs import friendly_pal

# Discrete
friendly_pal("contrast_three")

# Continuous
friendly_pal("contrast_three", n=50, type="continuous")

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Table of Hex Codes

Palettes	Colors used
bright_seven	#4477AA, #228833, #AA3377, #BBBBBB, #66CCEE, #CCBB44, #EE6677
contrast_three	#004488, #BB5566, #DDAA33
vibrant_seven	#0077BB, #EE7733, #33BBEE, #CC3311, #009988, #EE3377, #BBBBBB
muted_nine	#332288, #117733, #CC6677, #88CCEE, #999933, #882255, #44AA99, #DDCC77, #AA4499
nickel_five	#648FFF, #FE6100, #785EF0, #FFB000, #DC267F
ito_seven	#0072B2, #D55E00, #009E73, #CC79A7, #56B4E9, #E69F00, #F0E442
ibm_five	#648FFF, #785EF0, #DC267F, #FE6100, #FFB000
wong_eight	#E69F00, #56B4E9, #009E73, #F0E442, #0072B2, #D55E00, #CC79A7, #000000
tol_eight	#332288, #117733, #44AA99, #88CCEE, #DDCC77, #CC6677, #AA4499, #882255
zesty_four	#F5793A, #A95AA1, #85C0F9, #0F2080
retro_four	#601A4A, #EE442F, #63ACBE, #F9F4EC
tableau_ten	#4E79A7, #F28E2B, #E15759, #76B7B2, #59A14F, #EDC948, #B07AA1, #FF9DA7, #9C755F, #BAB0AC
glasbey_twelve	#0000FF, #FF0000, #00FF00, #000033, #FF00B6, #005300, #FFD300, #009FFF, #9A4D42, #00FFBE, #783FC1, #1F9698
viridis_eight	#440154, #46337E, #365C8D, #277F8E, #1FA187, #4AC16D, #9FDA3A, #FDE725
cividis_eight	#00204D, #16396D, #4B546C, #6C6E72, #8E8A79, #B3A772, #DBC761, #FFEA46

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Themes

Publication-ready themes

• theme_simple()
• theme_big_simple()
• theme_grid()
• theme_big_grid()
• theme_grey()

Presentation-ready themes

• theme_black()
• theme_blue()
• theme_red()

import seaborn as sns
import matplotlib.pyplot as plt
from pypubfigs import friendly_pal, theme_black

theme_black()
sns.set_palette(friendly_pal("bright_seven"))

tips = sns.load_dataset("tips")
sns.scatterplot(data=tips, x="total_bill", y="tip", hue="day")
plt.title("Seaborn example with theme_black()")
plt.show()

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FAQ

Can I submit color palettes or themes to be incorporated into pypubfigs?
Yes. Submissions are encouraged. Please reach out via Bluesky or contact information.

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Change Log

1.1.3 (2026-02-24)

• Added new palettes: tableau_ten, glasbey_twelve, viridis_eight, and cividis_eight.
• Updated README palette table and usage examples.
• Added tests for palette and theme behavior.

1.1.2

• Strengthened theme/grid behavior consistency.
• Expanded automated tests.

1.1.1 and earlier

• Initial release series for Python parity with ggpubfigs themes and palettes.

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Acknowledgements

• This package is the Python counterpart of ggpubfigs.
• Palette and theme design are based on the original ggpubfigs publication and implementation.