termplotlib
Python plotting for the command line
Decision gist · record as of 2026-08-14
Yes, if you need lightweight terminal plotting for one-off analysis or educational purposes and can accept the copyleft license. No, if you require active maintenance, security updates, or plan to use this in production or proprietary code—the package is abandoned and GPL-licensed, making it unsuitable for closed-source projects.AI-flagged interpretation of the facts on this page — verify before relying
Before you install
- gnuplot must be installed on your system for line plots to work
- Low install friction with a single runtime dependency (numpy).
- However, the package is abandoned—last commit was 2021-12-09 and no releases since 2021-09-23.
License · maintenance · safety
GPL-3.0-or-later (copyleft) — Licensed under GPL-3.0-or-later (copyleft). Any derivative work or distribution must also be licensed under GPL-3.0 or a compatible later version; proprietary or closed-source projects cannot use this package without separate licensing.
last release 2021-09-23 (1786 days) · last repo commit 2021-12-09 · 723 stars
0 known vulnerabilities (OSV.dev, 2026-08-14) · 78,736 downloads/mo, #14,412 on PyPI
Alternatives
Verify before relying
pip install termplotlib
import termplotlib as tpl
import numpy as np
x = np.linspace(0, 2 * np.pi, 10)
y = np.sin(x)
fig = tpl.figure()
fig.plot(x, y, label="data", width=50, height=15)
fig.show()- Whether gnuplot must be pre-installed on the system or if termplotlib can install it as a dependency
- Current compatibility with Python versions beyond 3.10 given the package's abandoned status
What it is and what it does
termplotlib is a Python library that generates plots and charts as text-based visualizations for display in the terminal. It provides a matplotlib-like interface with support for line plots (via gnuplot), histograms, and horizontal bar charts, rendering them using ASCII or Unicode box-drawing characters. The library depends only on numpy for numerical operations.
The package is in Beta status and has been abandoned since late 2021, with no updates or maintenance since then. While it remains functional for basic terminal plotting tasks, it receives no bug fixes, security updates, or feature development. Users should be aware that compatibility with newer Python versions or changes in terminal environments is not guaranteed.
Use it for
- Quick data visualization in SSH sessions or remote servers where graphical displays are unavailable
- Embedding plots in terminal-based dashboards or monitoring tools that run in the console
- Generating simple histograms and bar charts for log analysis or data summaries in scripts
- Educational demonstrations of plotting concepts without requiring a full graphical environment
- Prototyping visualizations in notebooks or REPL sessions before moving to a full plotting library
Worth the install?
AI-flagged interpretation of the facts on this page. Verify before relying on it.
Yes, if you need lightweight terminal plotting for one-off analysis or educational purposes and can accept the copyleft license.
No, if you require active maintenance, security updates, or plan to use this in production or proprietary code—the package is abandoned and GPL-licensed, making it unsuitable for closed-source projects.
Install
termplotlib on PyPI
Before you install
Low install friction with a single runtime dependency (numpy). However, the package is abandoned—last commit was 2021-12-09 and no releases since 2021-09-23. Line plots require gnuplot to be installed separately on your system.
gnuplot must be installed on your system for line plots to work
License in practice
Licensed under GPL-3.0-or-later (copyleft). Any derivative work or distribution must also be licensed under GPL-3.0 or a compatible later version; proprietary or closed-source projects cannot use this package without separate licensing.
Quickstart
pip install termplotlib
import termplotlib as tpl
import numpy as np
x = np.linspace(0, 2 * np.pi, 10)
y = np.sin(x)
fig = tpl.figure()
fig.plot(x, y, label="data", width=50, height=15)
fig.show()Verify before relying
- Whether gnuplot must be pre-installed on the system or if termplotlib can install it as a dependency
- Current compatibility with Python versions beyond 3.10 given the package's abandoned status
Package facts
| License | GPL-3.0-or-later copyleft |
| Python support | Supports the current Python release >=3.7 |
| Install friction | Low. Pure-Python wheel |
| Runtime dependencies | 1 packagenumpy |
| Maintenance | Abandoned 1,786 days since the last release |
| Last repo commit | |
| First released | |
| Downloads | 78,736 / month, #14,412 on PyPI 30-day window, as of 2026-08-14 |
| Known vulnerabilities | None known OSV.dev, checked 2026-08-14 |
| Classifiers | Development Status :: 4 - BetaEnvironment :: ConsoleIntended Audience :: DevelopersLicense :: OSI Approved :: GNU General Public License v3 or later (GPLv3+)Operating System :: OS IndependentProgramming Language :: PythonProgramming Language :: Python :: 3Programming Language :: Python :: 3.10Programming Language :: Python :: 3.7Programming Language :: Python :: 3.8Programming Language :: Python :: 3.9Topic :: Multimedia :: GraphicsTopic :: System :: Shells |
Evidence: termplotlib-0.3.9-py3-none-any.whl
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