Matplotlib User Survey

Information about user's experience with Matplotlib Python library to benefit documentation.

Welcome, and thank you for taking the time to participate in our survey! The Matplotlib team is conducting this survey to improve our community documentation. This survey should take approximately 15 minutes to complete. Your answers are completely confidential, and your participation is entirely voluntary. We value your feedback as it will enable us to make meaningful improvements.

How often do you use the Matplotlib library?

Linear scale

1 - Never (do not or have not used Matplotlib)
5 - Very often (~daily)

How long have you been using the Matplotlib library?

Checkboxes

0 years - I'm new to Matplotlib and haven't used it yet.
Less than 1 year - I've been using Matplotlib recently, within the last few months.
Between 1 and 3 years - I've used Matplotlib for a while, at least a few years.
More than 3 years - I've been using Matplotlib for many years.
Other

How helpful has Matplotlib documentation been for your use case and tasks?

Linear scale

1 - Not helpful at all (never use documentation)
5 - Very helpful (frequently and regularly use documentation)

Select the best descriptions for how you value and use the Matplotlib documentation.

Checkboxes

I use the docs to help me develop software.
I read the docs to help me learn about Python, data science, and visualization.
I read the docs to study for course work for an academic discipline (e.g. mathematics, economics, biology, history, etc.)
I use the docs to support my work in research projects (for example, industry, science, digital humanities, etc.)
I contribute to the docs and work with the community with other scientific Python projects.
Other

How do you read Matplotlib API documentation or docstrings? Rank the following options from most likely to least likely.

Multiple choice grid, response required in each row

Rows
- Most likely
- Neutral
- Least likely
Columns
- In a shell, raw text only
- In an IDE with basic docstring rendering
- On the Matplotlib documentation website

How would you organize the importance of the following Matplotlib documentation categories?

Multiple choice grid, response required in each row

Rows
- Plot types (Data and distribution types)
- User guide (Quickstart, FAQS, fundamentals, etc.)
- Tutorials (Pyplot, image, lifecycle, etc.)
- Examples (Demos and features)
- Reference (API reference content)
Columns
- Highest
- Higher
- Neutral
- Lower
- Lowest

How would you rank the following Matplotlib documentation categories in terms of understandability?

Multiple choice grid, response required in each row

Rows
- Plot types (Data and distribution types)
- User guide (Quickstart, FAQS, fundamentals, etc.)
- Tutorials (Pyplot, image, lifecycle, etc.)
- Examples (Demos and features)
- Reference (API reference content)
Columns
- Easiest
- Easier
- Neutral
- More difficult
- Most difficult

What resources do you use to supplement your experience with Matplotlib documentation? Rank the choices from most preferred to least preferred.

Multiple choice grid, response required in each row

Rows
- Official documentation site
- Short form videos (e.g. TikTok, YouTube Shorts, etc.)
- Long form videos (e.g. Youtube videos, presentations, etc.)
- Third party documentation
- AI tools (e.g. ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, etc.)
Columns
- Most preferred
- More preferred
- Neutral
- Less preferred
- Least preferred

When you arrive at a Matplotlib documentation page, how likely are you to go to another?

Linear scale

1 - Least likely (I have never thought about going to other pages.)
5 - Most likely (I regularly navigate to other pages.)

Given your response to the previous question, select the following reason(s) for your decision.

Checkboxes

I found the information I needed.
I want to learn more about something.
Navigating documentation isn't for me.
Other

What would you like to see change in Matplotlib's documentation?

Multiple choice grid

Rows
- Number of examples
- Real-world data in content
- Expositional language
- Visual aids and graphics
- Links to topics and resources
- Update scheduling
Columns
- Less/fewer
- More
- No change

Thank you for completing the survey! Any additional feedback is welcome!

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