How can I query the default automatic axis limits chosen by MATLAB in advance of plotting?

I know that I can query the xlim values that Matlab uses for a plot, e.g. as in the code below.

xvals = [1.13 2 3 4.5];

yvals = [1 2 3 4];

plot(xvals, yvals, 'o')

xlim tickaligned % set the intented mode, other: tight or padded

forLaterUse = xlim; % get the limits for later use; here 1.0 4.5

How can I query these limits without executing the plot-command? I need something like:

forLaterUse = xlim(xvals, 'tickaligned');

Answer 1

[Walter Roberson]

xlim auto is not calculated until the plot is made visible, such as by drawnow(). It needs to have all of the XData for all objects in the axes in order to be able to find min and max. If you have not plotted yet you could only query the current settings, or set the xlim manually according to what you know about the span of data to plot

[Walter Roberson]

Note that xlim auto is not updated as you add new items to the axes, not until it is time to render the plot.

There is no documented way to ask what the limits would be if you were to render now: you have to force a render (possibly followed by making the graphics objects invisible again if you are not ready for them to show up.)

[Jürgen]

I understand the answers and different options and know how to work around or to code my own niceAxisLimits(xVals, mode)-function. I judge the answer as accepted but still kind of suggestion for improvment because there is further use of such and related functionality in plotting-topics (e.g. adding second functionally aligned axis...).