histplot

Histplot is a plotting function in the Seaborn library for Python that is used to visualize the distribution of a numeric variable through histograms. It draws rectangular bars whose heights represent the frequency, density, or probability of observations within each bin. The function supports grouping by a categorical variable, enabling comparisons of distributions across subgroups, and it integrates with Seaborn’s aesthetic styles and color palettes.

The tool offers control over binning and the summary statistic used to define bar heights. Users can adjust the number of bins, bin width, or bin edges, and choose how the heights are calculated (for example, counts or densities). Histplot can also show cumulative distributions and can be combined with additional features such as log scaling on axes. By using hue and other parameters, multiple distributions can be visualized in a single plot or as layered overlays.

Histplot originated as a modern alternative to the older distplot function, which combined histograms with kernel density estimates. In newer versions of Seaborn, distplot has been deprecated in favor of histplot for histograms and kdeplot for KDE visuals, providing a clearer and more modular API.

Example usage includes: sns.histplot(data=df, x='income', bins=20); sns.histplot(data=df, x='income', hue='region', multiple='stack', bins=30). Like all histograms, the interpretation of histplot results can be influenced by bin choice and sample size, and it may be complemented by kernel density estimates or rug plots for a fuller view of the distribution.