# ggplot2 vs plotnine

## Key differences

- ggplot2 has 1.5× as many GitHub stars as plotnine (7K vs 4.8K).
- plotnine had more development activity over the last 12 months: 490 commits vs 86.
- Both are released under the MIT license.
- ggplot2 is written primarily in R, plotnine in Python.
- ggplot2 is the older project: its repository was created in 2008, plotnine's in 2017.

| | ggplot2 | plotnine |
|---|---|---|
| Description | A plotting system based on the grammar of graphics. | Grammar of graphics for Python, based on R's ggplot2. |
| GitHub stars | 7,005 | 4,770 |
| Commits (12 months) | 86 | 490 |
| Contributors | 354 | 104 |
| License | MIT | MIT |
| Language | R | Python |
| Status | Active | Active |
| Install | `install.packages("ggplot2")` | `pip install plotnine` |

Source: https://awesomedataviz.com/compare/ggplot2-vs-plotnine/ · Data updated 2026-10-05 · Content: CC BY 4.0, Awesome Dataviz (https://awesomedataviz.com).