MATLAB Report Generation

Generate structured, professional reports (PDF, Word, HTML) from MATLAB data and Simulink models.

When to Use

• Creating PDF, Word, or HTML reports from MATLAB data
• Building reports with chapters, title pages, tables of contents
• Adding auto-numbered figures and tables to documents
• Creating multipage HTML reports (separate HTML files with navigation)
• Documenting Simulink models with block diagrams, I/O tables, execution order
• Customizing report templates (styles, colors, fonts, headers, footers)
• Creating custom reporter classes with template holes and dynamic content
• Building multi-reporter packages with shared company styles
• Creating table variant reporters with different header colors
• Including HTML content in reports

When NOT to Use

• Simple file export (CSV, Excel) — use writetable, writematrix
• Live Scripts as reports — use MATLAB Live Editor export
• Interactive report building — use Report Explorer GUI
• Web views of Simulink models — use slreportgen.webview.* directly

API Selection

Always use the Report API (mlreportgen.report.*) as the foundation. It provides the Report container and reporters (Figure, BaseTable, FormalImage, Chapter, TitlePage, etc.) that handle auto-numbering, captions, and document structure.

Use both APIs together. Use the Report API to create the report and add content for which reporters exist. Use the DOM API (mlreportgen.dom.*) for styled paragraphs, custom tables, inline formatting, HTML inclusion, and images without captions. DOM objects append directly to Report, Chapter, or Section alongside reporters.

Critical rule: Report API reporters (Figure, BaseTable, FormalImage) can ONLY be appended to Report, Chapter, or Section objects — never to DOM objects like TableEntry. Use DOM objects inside TableEntry.

Simulink reports: Use slreportgen.report.Report (not mlreportgen.report.Report) — it extends the base with model compilation support required by SystemIO, ExecutionOrder, and other Simulink reporters.

Multipage HTML: Use mlreportgen.dom.Document with "html-multipage" type + HTMLPage objects. This is the only case where you use the DOM Document instead of the Report API Report.

Core Workflow: Standard Report

TitlePage, TableOfContents, ListOfFigures, and ListOfTables are optional — include only when the task requires them. The minimal report is just Report + content + close.

import mlreportgen.report.*
import mlreportgen.dom.*

rpt = Report("MyReport","pdf");
append(rpt,TitlePage(Title="Report Title",Author="Team"));  % optional
append(rpt,TableOfContents());   % optional
append(rpt,ListOfFigures());     % optional
append(rpt,ListOfTables());      % optional

ch = Chapter("Results");
append(ch,Paragraph("Analysis complete."));

% Auto-numbered table
data = FormalTable(["ID","Value"],[1 10; 2 20]);
bt = BaseTable(data);
bt.Title = "Measured values";
append(ch,bt);

% Auto-numbered figure
fig = figure("Visible","off");
plot([1 2],[10 20]);
rptFig = Figure(fig);
rptFig.Snapshot.Caption = "Value trend";
append(ch,rptFig);
close(fig);

append(rpt,ch);
close(rpt);
rptview(rpt);

Core Workflow: Simulink Report

load_system(modelName);

% MUST use slreportgen.report.Report for Simulink content
rpt = slreportgen.report.Report(outputPath,"pdf");
append(rpt,mlreportgen.report.TitlePage("Title","Model Report"));
append(rpt,mlreportgen.report.TableOfContents());

ch = mlreportgen.report.Chapter("Diagrams");

% Root diagram — direct reporter
rootDiag = slreportgen.report.Diagram(modelName);
rootDiag.Snapshot.ScaleToFit = true;
append(ch,rootDiag);

% Subsystems — finder pattern (iterator for memory efficiency)
finder = slreportgen.finder.SystemDiagramFinder(modelName);
finder.IncludeRoot = false;
finder.SortType = "alphabetical";

while finder.hasNext()
    result = finder.next();
    sec = mlreportgen.report.Section("Title",result.Name);
    append(sec,result);
    append(ch,sec);
end

append(rpt,ch);
close(rpt);
rptview(rpt);

Choosing Built-In vs Custom Reporters

Before writing code, analyze requirements against built-in reporter capabilities:

1. List all content/format requirements — title page fields, page borders, headers/footers, branded styling
2. Check built-in reporters. Built-in TitlePage has: Title, Subtitle, Author, Publisher, PubDate, Image. Built-in Chapter/Section provide headings, auto-numbering, and a Content hole.
3. If built-in reporters meet all requirements, use them directly
4. If any requirement is unmet, create custom reporters:
   • Single custom reporter — see references/custom-reporters.md
   • Multiple reporters sharing a visual identity — see references/report-package.md

Common triggers for custom reporters:

• Title page needs fields beyond the standard set (project name, facility, contract number)
• Page borders, watermarks, or custom page layout
• Page headers/footers with dynamic content (per-chapter images, tickers)
• Branded table variants with different header colors
• MATLAB-generated logos (geometric shapes drawn with plot/patch + exportgraphics)

Do NOT force-fit requirements into built-in properties (e.g., concatenating fields into Subtitle). Create a custom reporter instead.

Do NOT build custom title pages with raw DOM elements (Paragraphs, Images appended to a Chapter). Always use customizeReporter for template-based layout and format portability.

Decision Tree: What Reference Do I Need?

Key Functions

Common Mistakes

Conventions

• Always close(rpt) after appending all content — generates the output file
• Always rptview or docview to open DOCX — never winopen or open
• Use figure("Visible","off") for plots destined for reports
• Use exportgraphics (not print) when saving figures to files
• One Chapter = one numbering scope — figures/tables numbered Chapter-Sequence (e.g., "Figure 2-1")
• BaseTable wraps FormalTable — pass FormalTable(headers,body), not a MATLAB table()
• Cell-level styling: Use entry(t,row,col) after construction, not during
• Template styles use [] arrays; inline .Style properties use {}
• Reporters in @ClassName directories — each needs its own resources/templates/
• Scaffold ALL reporters before editing ANY — customizeReporter creates binary templates + overwrites classdef
• Fix unqualified class names after scaffolding — use package-qualified names
• Customize all output formats — PDF/Word/HTML templates are independent
• Simulink: Always slreportgen.report.Report; always Diagram.Snapshot.ScaleToFit = true
• Simulink finders: Use .Object handle (not path string) for get_param; use result.Name for titles
• JSON is single source of truth for multi-reporter packages — never hardcode style values

Viewing and Processing Reports

rptview(rpt);                           % Open in system viewer (updates DOCX fields)
rptview("MyReport.docx","pdf");         % Convert DOCX to PDF via Word
docview("Report.docx","updatefields","closedoc","closeapp");  % Update without display

Verification: Running without error does NOT confirm correctness. After close(rpt):

• Check isfile(rpt.OutputPath) and dir(rpt.OutputPath).bytes > 1000
• For PDF: call open(rpt), then set rpt.Document.RetainFO = true before appending content, search *_FO/*.fo files
• For DOCX: unzip and search word/document.xml
• Assert expected titles, headings, captions appear in output

See references/report-api-patterns.md for full verification patterns.

Required Toolbox

MATLAB Report Generator (verify with mcp__matlab__detect_matlab_toolboxes). Simulink Report Generator additionally required for Simulink model reports.

Copyright 2026 The MathWorks, Inc.