Overlapping Histograms — Seaborn

Overlapping histograms display multiple distributions on the same axes using semi-transparent bars, enabling direct visual comparison between groups. This technique reveals differences in central tendency, spread, and shape across categories while maintaining the familiar histogram format. The transparency allows viewers to see where distributions overlap and diverge.

Overlapping Histograms rendered with Seaborn

Python source (Seaborn)

""" anyplot.ai
histogram-overlapping: Overlapping Histograms
Library: seaborn 0.13.2 | Python 3.13.13
Quality: 91/100 | Updated: 2026-05-08
"""

import os

import matplotlib.pyplot as plt
import numpy as np
import seaborn as sns


# Theme tokens
THEME = os.getenv("ANYPLOT_THEME", "light")
PAGE_BG = "#FAF8F1" if THEME == "light" else "#1A1A17"
ELEVATED_BG = "#FFFDF6" if THEME == "light" else "#242420"
INK = "#1A1A17" if THEME == "light" else "#F0EFE8"
INK_SOFT = "#4A4A44" if THEME == "light" else "#B8B7B0"

# Okabe-Ito palette
IMPRINT = ["#009E73", "#C475FD", "#4467A3"]

# Data - employee response times (ms) by department
np.random.seed(42)
engineering = np.random.normal(450, 80, 200)
marketing = np.random.normal(520, 100, 180)
sales = np.random.normal(480, 60, 160)

# Create plot
fig, ax = plt.subplots(figsize=(16, 9), facecolor=PAGE_BG)
ax.set_facecolor(PAGE_BG)

# Plot overlapping histograms
sns.histplot(
    engineering, bins=25, alpha=0.5, color=IMPRINT[0], label="Engineering", edgecolor=PAGE_BG, linewidth=0.5, ax=ax
)
sns.histplot(
    marketing, bins=25, alpha=0.5, color=IMPRINT[1], label="Marketing", edgecolor=PAGE_BG, linewidth=0.5, ax=ax
)
sns.histplot(sales, bins=25, alpha=0.5, color=IMPRINT[2], label="Sales", edgecolor=PAGE_BG, linewidth=0.5, ax=ax)

# Labels and styling
ax.set_xlabel("Response Time (ms)", fontsize=20, color=INK)
ax.set_ylabel("Count", fontsize=20, color=INK)
ax.set_title("histogram-overlapping · seaborn · anyplot.ai", fontsize=24, color=INK)
ax.tick_params(axis="both", labelsize=16, colors=INK_SOFT)

# Spines
ax.spines["top"].set_visible(False)
ax.spines["right"].set_visible(False)
for spine in ("left", "bottom"):
    ax.spines[spine].set_color(INK_SOFT)

# Grid
ax.yaxis.grid(True, alpha=0.10, linewidth=0.8, color=INK)

# Legend
legend = ax.legend(fontsize=16, loc="upper right", framealpha=1)
legend.get_frame().set_facecolor(ELEVATED_BG)
legend.get_frame().set_edgecolor(INK_SOFT)
for text in legend.get_texts():
    text.set_color(INK)

plt.tight_layout()
plt.savefig(f"plot-{THEME}.png", dpi=300, bbox_inches="tight", facecolor=PAGE_BG)

Part of Overlapping Histograms on anyplot.ai.

Other implementations