New Desktop
Customizable sidebars on the left, right, and bottom of the desktop provide quick access to desktop tools and panels. You can use the sidebars to create customized layouts that only include the panels you want for specific tasks. You can use themes (light, dark, system) to change colors for the MATLAB desktop, figures, and apps. And you can now use desktop search to directly launch apps, access settings, and search help, examples, and MATLAB Answers.
Panels for Coding and Software Development
The desktop introduces several new side panels for high-frequency coding and software development tasks: Debugger, Project, Source Control, Test Browser, Code Issues, and Code Outline. Each panel exposes information and functionality specific to that task.
Figure Container and Toolstrip
Figures now open as tabs docked in a figure container by default. You can customize the layout within this container by tiling multiple figures, rearranging tabs, or undocking figures. You can customize and annotate figures using the toolstrip of the figure container. All the MATLAB code necessary to reproduce your customizations is automatically generated.
See what's new in the latest release.
Explore More Features
- Save live scripts and functions using a plain text file format (.m).
- View sparklines and summary statistics for data in tables or timetables.
- Embed videos in live scripts.
- Use a screen reader and keyboard functionality to interact with the Command Window, navigate the desktop, and create and edit MATLAB code files.
See the release notes for more details.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes, you can customize individual colors in your MATLAB Appearance Settings, including the text and background colors, syntax highlighting colors, and output colors. For more information, see Change Desktop Color Theme.
You can undock figures by dragging the figure tab outside the figure container, right-clicking the tab and selecting Undock, or using the Document Actions menu. Return figures to the figure container using the Dock button.
The separate Source Control Panel is intended for users who want to implement source control to track changes without a project. The Project Panel features a new simplified interface and continues to support integration with source control.
No, the Simulink Editor does not have dark mode in R2025a.
You can search MATLAB Answers to see if other users have encountered a similar issue or contact MathWorks Technical Support.
MATLAB Copilot is a new product in the R2025a release of MATLAB. To learn more, see MATLAB Copilot product page.
Considerations Before Upgrading
The new desktop is built using web technologies. This change primarily impacts interactive workflows and graphics; there are no fundamental changes to language execution. Incompatibilities that have been introduced as part of this transition are documented in the release notes (Environment, Graphics, and App Building). For applications that have performance-critical workflows, review the guidance on graphics performance for optimizing your code.
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