format

Set output display format

Syntax

format(style)

fmt = format

fmt = format(style)

Description

format(style) changes the output display format to the format specified by style. For example, format("shortG") displays numeric values in a compact form with 5 total digits. Numeric formats affect only how numbers appear in the display, not how MATLAB^® computes or saves them.

When you specify the style by name, you can use command form without parentheses or quotes:

format shortG

You can set the format in either the Command Window or the Live Editor. Changing the format in one automatically updates it in both contexts.

fmt = format returns the current display format. (since R2021a)

fmt = format(style) stores the current display format in fmt and then changes the display format to the specified style. (since R2021a)

You cannot use command form when you request output or when you pass a variable as input. Enclose inputs in parentheses and include style names in quotes.

fmt = format("shortG");
format(fmt)

Examples

Long Format

Set the output format to the long fixed-decimal format and display the value of pi.

format long
pi

ans = 
   3.141592653589793

Hexadecimal Format

Display the maximum values for integers and real numbers in hexadecimal format.

format hex
intmax('uint64')

ans = uint64
   ffffffffffffffff

realmax

ans = 
   7fefffffffffffff

Short and Long Engineering Notation

Display the difference between shortEng and longEng formats.

Set the output format to shortEng.

format shortEng

Create a variable and increase its value by a multiple of 10 each time through a for loop.

A = 5.123456789;
for k = 1:10
   disp(A)
   A = A*10;
end

     5.1235e+000

    51.2346e+000

   512.3457e+000

     5.1235e+003

    51.2346e+003

   512.3457e+003

     5.1235e+006

    51.2346e+006

   512.3457e+006

     5.1235e+009

The values display with 4 digits after the decimal point and an exponent that is a multiple of 3.

Set the output format to the long engineering format and view the same values.

format longEng

A = 5.123456789;
for k = 1:10
   disp(A)
   A = A*10;
end

    5.12345678900000e+000

    51.2345678900000e+000

    512.345678900000e+000

    5.12345678900000e+003

    51.2345678900000e+003

    512.345678900000e+003

    5.12345678900000e+006

    51.2345678900000e+006

    512.345678900000e+006

    5.12345678900000e+009

The values display with 15 digits and an exponent that is a multiple of 3.

Large Data Range Format

Use the shortG format when some of the values in an array are short numbers and some have large exponents. The shortG format picks whichever short fixed-decimal format or short scientific notation has the most compact display.

Create a variable and display output in the short format, which is the default.

x = [25 56.31156 255.52675 9876899999];
format short
x

x = 1×4
109 ×

    0.0000    0.0000    0.0000    9.8769

Set the format to shortG and redisplay the values.

format shortG
x

x = 1×4

           25       56.312       255.53   9.8769e+09

Reset Format to Default

Set the output format to the short engineering format with compact line spacing.

format shortEng
format compact
x = rand(3)

x =
   814.7237e-003   913.3759e-003   278.4982e-003
   905.7919e-003   632.3592e-003   546.8815e-003
   126.9868e-003    97.5404e-003   957.5068e-003

Reset the display format to default and display the matrix again.

format default
x

x =

    0.8147    0.9134    0.2785
    0.9058    0.6324    0.5469
    0.1270    0.0975    0.9575

Before R2021a, reset the display format to default values using format by itself.

format

Get Current Format

Since R2021a

Get the current display format.

fmt = format

fmt = 
  DisplayFormatOptions with properties:

    NumericFormat: "short"
      LineSpacing: "loose"

Save and Restore Display Format

Since R2021a

Save the current display format and restore it at a later time.

Set the numeric display to shortE and display a 2-by-2 matrix of numeric values.

format shortE
m = [9638573934 37467; 236 574638295]

m = 2×2

   9.6386e+09   3.7467e+04
   2.3600e+02   5.7464e+08

Save the current display format in oldFmt and change the numeric format to longE.

oldFmt = format("longE")

oldFmt = 
  DisplayFormatOptions with properties:

    NumericFormat: "shortE"
      LineSpacing: "loose"

Confirm that the numeric format is now long, scientific notation by redisplaying matrix m.

m

m = 2×2

     9.638573934000000e+09     3.746700000000000e+04
     2.360000000000000e+02     5.746382950000000e+08

Restore the format to its previous state. Redisplay m to confirm that the numeric format is now short, scientific format.

format(oldFmt)
m

m = 2×2

   9.6386e+09   3.7467e+04
   2.3600e+02   5.7464e+08

Input Arguments

style — Format to apply

character vector | string scalar | DisplayFormatOptions object

Format to apply, specified as a character vector, string scalar, or DisplayFormatOptions object.

Character vectors or string scalars must be one of the listed style names or default.

Default

default restores the default display format, which is short for numeric format and loose for line spacing. (since R2021a)

Numeric Format

These styles control the output display format for numeric variables.

Style	Result	Example
short	Short, fixed-decimal format with 4 digits after the decimal point. This is the default numeric setting.	3.1416
long	Long, fixed-decimal format with 15 digits after the decimal point for double values, and 7 digits after the decimal point for single values.	3.141592653589793
shortE	Short scientific notation with 4 digits after the decimal point.	3.1416e+00
longE	Long scientific notation with 15 digits after the decimal point for double values, and 7 digits after the decimal point for single values.	3.141592653589793e+00
shortG	Short, fixed-decimal format or scientific notation, whichever is more compact, with a total of 5 digits.	3.1416
longG	Long, fixed-decimal format or scientific notation, whichever is more compact, with a total of 15 digits for double values, and 7 digits for single values.	3.14159265358979
shortEng	Short engineering notation (exponent is a multiple of 3) with 4 digits after the decimal point.	3.1416e+000
longEng	Long engineering notation (exponent is a multiple of 3) with 15 significant digits.	3.14159265358979e+000
+	Positive/Negative format with +, -, and blank characters displayed for positive, negative, and zero elements.	+
bank	Currency format with 2 digits after the decimal point.	3.14
hex	Hexadecimal representation of a binary double-precision number.	400921fb54442d18
rational	Ratio of small integers.	355/113

Line Spacing Format

Style	Result	Example
compact	Suppress excess blank lines to show more output on a single screen.	theta = pi/2 theta =   1.5708
loose	Add blank lines to make output more readable. This is the default setting for line spacing.	theta = pi/2 theta =   1.5708

The DisplayFormatOptions object has two properties, NumericFormat and LineSpacing. The options for character vector and string scalar inputs are also the valid property values. For an example of using a DisplayFormatOptions object, see Save and Restore Display Format.

Output Arguments

fmt — Current display format

DisplayFormatOptions object

Current display format, returned as a DisplayFormatOptions object with these properties:

• NumericFormat

• LineSpacing

For valid property values, see the style argument.

Note

Property values reflect the state of the display format when the object is created. The properties do not automatically change when the display format changes. See Save and Restore Display Format for an example.

Tips

• The specified format applies only to the current MATLAB session. To maintain a format across sessions, choose a Numeric format or Line spacing option in the Command Window preferences.

• You can specify short or long and the presentation type separately, such as format short E or format("short E").

• MATLAB always displays integer data types to the appropriate number of digits for the data type. For example, MATLAB uses 3 digits to display int8 data types (for instance, -128:127). Setting the output format to short or long does not affect the display of integer-type variables.

• Integer-valued, floating-point numbers with a maximum of 9 digits do not display in scientific notation.

• If you are displaying a matrix with a wide range of values, consider using shortG. See Large Data Range Format.

Extended Capabilities

Thread-Based Environment

Run code in the background using MATLAB® backgroundPool or accelerate code with Parallel Computing Toolbox™ ThreadPool.

This function fully supports thread-based environments. For more information, see Run MATLAB Functions in Thread-Based Environment.

Version History

Introduced before R2006a

R2021a: format with no arguments is not recommended

The format command, by itself, resets the output display format to the default, which is the short, fixed-decimal format for floating-point notation and loose line spacing for all output lines.

format

For clearer code, explicitly specify the default style (since R2021a).

format default