pgfplots aligning subplots causes misaligned y-tick labels

Question

Following the accepted solution by Peter Grill for this question, I added the following line to vertically align my subplots:

\pgfplotsset{yticklabel style={text width=3em,align=right}}

This solution works for fixing the slight misalignment between the two plots, but it also messes up the y-tick labels, making them overlap the plot.

MWE:

\documentclass{article}
\usepackage{pgfplots}
\usepackage{subfig}
\pgfplotsset{compat=1.17}
\begin{document}
\definecolor{bblue}{HTML}{4F81BD}
\definecolor{rred}{HTML}{C0504D}
\definecolor{ppurple}{HTML}{9F4C7C}
\pgfplotsset{yticklabel style={text width=3em,align=right}}
\begin{figure}[]
    \centering
    \subfloat[]{%
    \begin{tikzpicture}
        \begin{axis}[
            width = 0.9\textwidth,
            height = 8cm,
            xtick = data,
            enlarge x limits = 0.10,
            major x tick style = transparent,
            symbolic x coords = {2010,2011,2012,2013,2014,2015,2016,2017,2018,2019,2020},
            ymajorgrids = true,
            ylabel = {Gastos Totais (R$)},
            y coord trafo/.code = {\pgfmathparse{\pgfmathresult/1000000}},
            yticklabel = {\pgfmathprintnumber{\tick},mi},
            scaled y ticks = false,
            ybar = 2*\pgflinewidth,
            ymin = 0,
            bar width = 10pt,
            legend cell align = left,
            legend style = {
                at = {(1, 1.05)},
                anchor = south east,
                column sep = 1ex
            },
            /pgf/number format/.cd,
                1000 sep = {.}
            ]
            \addplot[style = {bblue, fill = bblue, mark = none}]
                coordinates {(2010, 134148978.40)
                             (2011, 163850342.64)
                             (2012, 189780916.97)
                             (2013, 226166578.45)
                             (2014, 246515645.81)
                             (2015, 313435568.42)
                             (2016, 321922725.99)
                             (2017, 351241496.32)
                             (2018, 348859916.86)
                             (2019, 464608106.68)
                             (2020, 316765254.56)};
            \addplot[style = {rred, fill = rred, mark = none}]
                coordinates {(2010, 584857230.67)
                             (2011, 633624150.04)
                             (2012, 675257494.54)
                             (2013, 730684305.39)
                             (2014, 837961674.33)
                             (2015, 890103343.15)
                             (2016, 937943259.40)
                             (2017, 988067801.53)
                             (2018, 1043622588.84)
                             (2019, 1264544768.36)
                             (2020, 844383399.89)};
            \legend{Defensoria Pública, Ministério Público}
        \end{axis}
    \end{tikzpicture}%
    }
\subfloat[]{%
\begin{tikzpicture}
    \begin{axis}[
        width = 0.9\textwidth,
        height = 6cm,
        grid = both,
        xtick = data,
        enlarge x limits = 0.10,
        symbolic x coords = {2010,2011,2012,2013,2014,2015,2016,2017,2018,2019,2020},
        ylabel = {Diferença (R\$)},
        y coord trafo/.code={\pgfmathparse{\pgfmathresult/1000000}},
        yticklabel = \pgfmathprintnumber{\tick}\,mi,
        scaled y ticks = false
        ]
        \addplot[style = {ppurple, mark = *}]
            coordinates {(2010, 450708252.27)
                         (2011, 469773807.40)
                         (2012, 485476577.57)
                         (2013, 504517726.94)
                         (2014, 591446028.52)
                         (2015, 576667774.73)
                         (2016, 616020533.41)
                         (2017, 636826305.21)
                         (2018, 694762671.98)
                         (2019, 799936661.68)
                         (2020, 527618145.33)};
    \end{axis}
\end{tikzpicture}%
}
\caption*{My Caption}
\label{fig:gastos-mpdp}

\end{figure}
\end{document}

Generates the following image:

Commenting out that light aligns the labels and misaligns the plots. I've tried using a table environment instead of figure and subfloats but I get the exact same behavior.

3em in \pgfplotsset{yticklabel style={text width=3em,align=right}} is a suggestion that worked in the accepted answer. You can try e.g. \pgfplotsset{yticklabel style={text width=4em,align=right}}. — , Nov 12 '20 at 01:25

Zarko · Accepted Answer · 2020-11-12T16:22:21.953

If the problem is aligning diagrams, the use of tikzpicture option trim axis left can be solution:

\documentclass{article}
\usepackage{subfig}
\usepackage{pgfplots}
\pgfplotsset{compat=1.17}
\definecolor{bblue}{HTML}{4F81BD}
\definecolor{rred}{HTML}{C0504D}
\definecolor{ppurple}{HTML}{9F4C7C}
\begin{document}
\begin{figure}[]
\pgfplotsset{% common diagrams' options/parameters
    %yticklabel style={text width=3em,align=right},
    width = 0.9\textwidth,
    xtick = data,
    enlarge x limits = 0.10,
    symbolic x coords = {2010,2011,2012,2013,2014,2015,2016,2017,2018,2019,2020},
    yticklabel = \pgfmathprintnumber{\tick},mi,
    scaled y ticks = false,
    y coord trafo/.code = {\pgfmathparse{\pgfmathresult/1000000}},
    tick label style = {font=\footnotesize}
    /pgf/number format/.cd,1000 sep = {.}
            }
\centering
    \subfloat[]{%
    \begin{tikzpicture}[trim axis left]
        \begin{axis}[
            height = 8cm,
            major x tick style = transparent,
            ymajorgrids = true,
            ylabel = {Gastos Totais (R$)},
            ybar = 2*\pgflinewidth,
            bar width = 8pt,
            legend style = {at = {(1, 1.05)},
                            anchor = south east,
                            column sep = 1ex
                            },
            ]
            \addplot[style = {bblue, fill = bblue, mark = none}]
                coordinates {(2010, 134148978.40)
                             (2011, 163850342.64)
                             (2012, 189780916.97)
                             (2013, 226166578.45)
                             (2014, 246515645.81)
                             (2015, 313435568.42)
                             (2016, 321922725.99)
                             (2017, 351241496.32)
                             (2018, 348859916.86)
                             (2019, 464608106.68)
                             (2020, 316765254.56)};
            \addplot[style = {rred, fill = rred, mark = none}]
                coordinates {(2010, 584857230.67)
                             (2011, 633624150.04)
                             (2012, 675257494.54)
                             (2013, 730684305.39)
                             (2014, 837961674.33)
                             (2015, 890103343.15)
                             (2016, 937943259.40)
                             (2017, 988067801.53)
                             (2018, 1043622588.84)
                             (2019, 1264544768.36)
                             (2020, 844383399.89)};
            \legend{Defensoria Pública, Ministério Público}
        \end{axis}
    \end{tikzpicture}%
    }
\subfloat[]{%
\begin{tikzpicture}[trim axis left]
    \begin{axis}[
        height = 6cm,
        grid = both,
        ylabel = {Diferença (R\$)},
        ]
        \addplot[style = {ppurple, mark = *}]
            coordinates {(2010, 450708252.27)
                         (2011, 469773807.40)
                         (2012, 485476577.57)
                         (2013, 504517726.94)
                         (2014, 591446028.52)
                         (2015, 576667774.73)
                         (2016, 616020533.41)
                         (2017, 636826305.21)
                         (2018, 694762671.98)
                         (2019, 799936661.68)
                         (2020, 527618145.33)};
    \end{axis}
\end{tikzpicture}%
}
\caption*{My Caption}
\label{fig:gastos-mpdp}

\end{figure}
\end{document}

In comparison to your MWE the following changes has been done:

Added is figure position option (instead [], which throw warning No positions in optional float specifier is used [htp]).
Common options of both pictures are collected in \tikzset after \begin{figure}[htp]. By this is eliminated error dimension is to large.
Width of ybar is reduced to 8pt (for better visibilities of bar groups).
Font size of tick labels is reduced to \footnotesize.

If you more prefer that the distance between of y axis labels from diagram are equal at both images, than you need to uncomment yticklabel style=... in the common tikzset and remove tikzpicture options [trim axis left]

Works great, and also solved other issues I was looking at. Although I think you pasted in the wrong version of the solution because it appears to be missing [htp] and a comma next to {font=\footnotesize}. — Matheus Leão, Nov 12 '20 at 15:48

pgfplots aligning subplots causes misaligned y-tick labels

1 Answers1