When MATLAB opens, it presents several panels arranged around the screen, plus a toolbar (called the Toolstrip) across the top. Each panel has a specific job, and knowing what each one is for will help you navigate MATLAB quickly. This page walks through the default layout.

The MATLAB Help Center has a Desktop Basics page with more details and screenshots of the current layout.

Toolstrip

The Toolstrip runs along the top of the window and is organized into tabs, starting with Home. The Home tab contains the most commonly used buttons: creating a new script, opening an existing file, saving your work, and importing data. Other tabs, such as Plots and Apps, appear depending on what you’re doing - for example, the Plots tab becomes useful once you’ve selected a variable in the Workspace that you want to visualize.

Command Window

The Command Window is the center panel and the most important one for getting started. It works like a calculator: type a command or expression, press Enter, and MATLAB executes it immediately.

>> 2 + 2

ans =

     4

Anything you can put in a script can also be typed directly into the Command Window. This makes it a convenient place to test a single line of code or check the value of a variable, but for anything longer than a few lines you should write a script instead so your work is saved and repeatable.

Workspace

The Workspace panel, typically on the right, lists every variable currently defined - its name, value, size, and data type. It updates automatically as you run commands or scripts. Double-clicking a variable opens the Variable Editor, a spreadsheet-like view that lets you inspect or manually edit its contents.

The Workspace only shows variables that currently exist. Running the clear command, or closing MATLAB, removes them. See Variables for more on creating, displaying, and clearing variables.

Current Folder

The Current Folder panel, typically on the left, is a file browser scoped to MATLAB’s current working directory. It shows the scripts, functions, data files, and other files in that folder. Double-clicking a .m file here opens it in the Editor.

The current folder matters because MATLAB looks there first when you type the name of a script or function. If a file isn’t in the current folder (or on MATLAB’s search path), MATLAB won’t be able to find it, even if the file exists somewhere else on your computer.

Editor

The Editor opens whenever you create or open a script or function file (.m). Unlike the Command Window, code typed in the Editor is not run line-by-line as you type it - you write the whole file, save it, then run it as a script. The Editor includes syntax highlighting and basic error checking, flagging likely mistakes before you even run the code.

Command History

MATLAB keeps a log of every command you’ve run in the Command Window, available in the Command History panel. This can be useful for finding a command you ran earlier but forgot to save into a script. Double-clicking an entry in the Command History re-runs it.

Reading Questions

  1. Which panel would you use to check the current value of a variable named x?
  2. Which panel would you use to see the contents of a script before opening it?
  3. What is the difference between typing a command in the Command Window versus in the Editor?
  4. Why does it matter whether a file is in MATLAB’s current folder?
  5. How would you re-run a command you typed 10 minutes ago without retyping it?