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Comparison · Analytics

ggsurvfit vs maplegend

A side-by-side editorial comparison of ggsurvfit and maplegend — release velocity, themes, recent moves, and the top alternatives to consider.

ggsurvfit vs maplegend: at a glance

Featureggsurvfitmaplegend
SectorAnalyticsAnalytics
Velocity score2.50.0
Sparks · 30d00
Top themessurvival-analysis, ggplot2, competing-risks, clinical-plotscartography, legends, base-graphics, spatial
Last editorial update3h ago57m ago
WebsiteVisit →Visit →

What is ggsurvfit?

ggsurvfit is in correctness-and-compatibility mode, not feature mode.

The package draws survival and cumulative-incidence curves on a ggplot2 grammar, with risk tables, p-values and quantile annotations. Recent releases are entirely fixes and upstream tracking: ggplot2 v4.0.0 compatibility in 2025, and a 2026 patch correcting a Gray-test p-value that could be reported for the wrong competing event.

Read the full ggsurvfit trajectory →

What is maplegend?

The legend engine mapsf spun out, now covering legend types the parent map package can draw.

maplegend draws the legends for base-R thematic maps, extracted from mapsf so both packages could evolve the legend vocabulary independently. It has been catching up to the map types it has to serve: 0.6.0 added choro_point, choro_line, and choro_symb for choropleth legends rendered on circles, lines, and symbols, following the histogram legend type in 0.4.0. Considerable effort has gone into behaving correctly when the plot aspect ratio is not 1, which required refactoring most of the package in 0.4.0 and still produced a proportional-symbol segment sizing fix in 0.6.3.

Read the full maplegend trajectory →

ggsurvfit vs maplegend: editorial side-by-side

G
ggsurvfit
ANALYTICS
2.5

ggsurvfit is in correctness-and-compatibility mode, not feature mode.

◆ Current state

The package draws survival and cumulative-incidence curves on a ggplot2 grammar, with risk tables, p-values and quantile annotations. Recent releases are entirely fixes and upstream tracking: ggplot2 v4.0.0 compatibility in 2025, and a 2026 patch correcting a Gray-test p-value that could be reported for the wrong competing event.

◆ Where it's heading

The feature surface settled around 1.0.0, when risk-table alignment was exported and colour and linetype defaults became configurable. Since then the work is keeping pace with survival, ggplot2 and tidycmprsk changes, and closing cases where the plotted curve and the annotation disagreed — the p-value matched by position rather than name, confidence limits swapped for multi-state models, quantiles read off a plateau.

◆ Prediction

Expect the next release to track upstream survival or ggplot2 changes rather than add plotting features; the CDISC censoring convention adopted in Surv_CNSR() suggests further alignment with clinical data standards is the likelier direction.

M
maplegend
ANALYTICS
0.0

The legend engine mapsf spun out, now covering legend types the parent map package can draw.

◆ Current state

maplegend draws the legends for base-R thematic maps, extracted from mapsf so both packages could evolve the legend vocabulary independently. It has been catching up to the map types it has to serve: 0.6.0 added choro_point, choro_line, and choro_symb for choropleth legends rendered on circles, lines, and symbols, following the histogram legend type in 0.4.0. Considerable effort has gone into behaving correctly when the plot aspect ratio is not 1, which required refactoring most of the package in 0.4.0 and still produced a proportional-symbol segment sizing fix in 0.6.3.

◆ Where it's heading

This is a support library whose backlog is defined by its caller. Every legend type mapsf can produce needs a matching legend renderer, and the release notes are dominated by spacing, offset, and border details — box_cex for symbol spacing, NA box placement in horizontal choropleth legends, text overflow when no_data is set. The shared vocabulary with mapsf is being maintained deliberately, with val_rnd, val_big, and val_dec propagating through legend types release by release. Version numbering is not monotonic in this feed, with 0.4.0 published seconds after 0.5.0.

◆ Prediction

Expect the remaining combined map types to acquire matching legends and the val_* formatting arguments to reach the types that still lack them.

Alternatives to ggsurvfit and maplegend

Other Analytics products tracked by Sparkpulse, ranked by recent ship velocity. Each card links to a full editorial trajectory and lets you pivot into a head-to-head comparison with either ggsurvfit or maplegend.

See all ggsurvfit alternatives → · See all maplegend alternatives →

Recent activity from ggsurvfit and maplegend

Latest ship moves from both products, interleaved chronologically. ⚡ = editorial spark.

  1. 20d agoggsurvfitGray-test p-values matched to the plotted outcome by name
  2. 2mo agomaplegendContinuous legend formatting and aspect-ratio segment fix
  3. 4mo agomaplegendChoropleth legends on points, lines and symbols
  4. 7mo agomaplegendPackage-wide refactor for non-unity aspect ratios, histogram legends
  5. 7mo agomaplegendSingle-modality legends allowed for typo, symb and prop_line
  6. 10mo agoggsurvfitggplot2 v4.0.0 compatibility and multi-state CI label fix
  7. 1y agomaplegendAlpha transparency and redraw on device resize
  8. 1y agomaplegendOffset and symbol sizing aligned with mapsf
  9. 2y agoggsurvfitNegative follow-up times and a cloglog transformation
  10. 2y agoggsurvfitAesthetic defaults become switchable and alignment is exported
  11. 2y agoggsurvfitConfidence limits corrected for monotonicity-reversing transforms
  12. 3y agoggsurvfitGlue syntax in risk tables and coxph model support

Frequently asked questions

What is the difference between ggsurvfit and maplegend?

They serve adjacent needs but don't currently overlap on shipped themes. ggsurvfit is currently shipping more aggressively (velocity 2.5 vs 0.0), with 0 editorial sparks in the last 30 days against 0. See the at-a-glance table above for a side-by-side breakdown of velocity, recent sparks, and editorial themes.

Is ggsurvfit better than maplegend?

Sparkpulse doesn't pick a winner — we score release velocity, not feature parity. ggsurvfit is currently shipping more aggressively (velocity 2.5 vs 0.0), with 0 editorial sparks in the last 30 days against 0. For your specific use case, the alternatives sections above list other Analytics products to evaluate alongside.

What are the best alternatives to ggsurvfit?

Top ggsurvfit alternatives in Analytics are ranked by recent ship velocity. Browse the "ggsurvfit alternatives" section above for the current picks, or visit /alternatives/ggsurvfit for the full list with editorial commentary on each.

What are the best alternatives to maplegend?

Top maplegend alternatives in Analytics are ranked by recent ship velocity. Browse the "maplegend alternatives" section above for the current picks, or visit /alternatives/maplegend for the full list with editorial commentary on each.