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About AMPL

AMPL is a sophisticated modeling tool that optimizes highly complex decisions

AMPL IDE on a desktop computer

What is AMPL?

AMPL is A Mathematical Programming Language for solving optimization problems that integrates three main components. All three languages use the same concepts and syntax for streamlined application-building.

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A modeling language for describing optimization data, variables, objectives and constraints

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A command language for browsing models and analyzing results

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A scripting language for gathering and manipulating data and for implementing iterative optimization schemes.

Powerful modeling language features

AMPL’s intuitive syntax allows for clean model creation – defined in the way you think about your optimization problems.

Broad support for sets and set operators

AMPL models can use sets of pairs, triples, and longer tuples; collections of sets indexed over sets; unordered, ordered, and circular sets of objects; and sets of numbers. 

General and natural syntax

General and natural syntax for arithmetic, logical, and conditional expressions; familiar conventions for summations and other iterated operators.

Automatic handling

Automatic handling of linear and convex quadratic problems in continuous and integer variables.

Nonlinear programming features

Nonlinear programming features such as initial primal and dual values, user-defined functions, fast automatic differentiation, and automatic elimination of “defined” variables.

Convenient alternative notations

Convenient alternative notations for network flows, piecewise-linearities, complementary conditions, and logical implications.

Valuable modeling support features

Interactive command environment

An IDE with batch processing options. Powerful display commands let you view any model component or expression, browsing on-screen or writing to a file, using automatic formatting or your own preferences. 

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Powerful scripting language

Powerful scripting language including looping and if-then-else commands. Programs in the AMPL command language can define iterative schemes that process input data, repeatedly adjust and solve instances of multiple models, and prepare results for analysis.

Separation of model and data

AMPL models remain concise even as sets and data tables grow. Models may incorporate many kinds of conditions for validity of the data. 

Data input and output connections

Concise statements relate the model data and results to the contents of relational data tables. 

An intelligent ecosystem of optimization

AMPL Optimization Inc. is dedicated to helping you meet the challenges of building, maintaining, and deploying complex, custom-designed optimal decision models. 

The AMPL modeling language and system have been adopted by companies and organizations worldwide to bring optimization to a broad range of business and research applications, and to support teaching in the many fields that employ optimization as a modeling paradigm. 

Data connection

Use AMPL’s data handlers to read and write data in the external formats of spreadsheets in .xlsx format, CSV files and database using ODBC.

Solvers

To provide the fastest run times and greatest reliability, we offer a selection of top commercial solvers interfaced to AMPL.

Presolve

AMPL’s presolve dramatically reduces a problem’s size before sending it to the solver. This makes your solver’s task much easier – assisting its own presolve – for a faster result, using less memory.

APIs

Our APIs ensure that you have a reliable and maintainable implementation as you embed your optimization models into applications.

Extended Function Library

This library extends AMPL with over 300 functions from the GNU Scientific Library. Included are scientific, statistical, and utility functions of many kinds, and a variety of random number generators.

Logic & Constraint Programming Extensions

This library extends AMPL with over 300 functions from the GNU Scientific Library. Included are scientific, statistical, and utility functions of many kinds, and a variety of random number generators.

Why AMPL?

AMPL gives modelers the tools and technology to build better.

Extensive documentation

Our documentation and extensive libraries contain the support you need to build a custom model in a fraction of the time.

Thriving partnerships

Our collaborative partners in solvers and deployment offers a complete system of optimization beyond the AMPL capability.

Broad availability and integration

Available solvers include the most popular and powerful optimization engines for linear and quadratic, nonlinear, and more general problems.

Support teaching and education

The AMPL book is the best-recognized introduction to practical algebraic modeling and contains numerous examples with accurate life models and data sets. Our licensing and pricing options make AMPL accessible to students, and academic researchers.

Adding optimization to your applications

In this INFORMS webinar, learn the fundamentals of AMPL’s model-based approach to building optimization applications quickly and reliably.

Understand the optimization modeling lifecycle and the components of the modern optimization toolchain.

Our documentation and extensive libraries contain the support you need to build a custom model in a fraction of the time. 

See case studies of successful model-based optimization applications across a variety of business types.

We make it easy to get started.

Configurations and pricing for every user, every situation, every budget.

Pay based on your projects needs

AMPL and solvers for commercial use can be priced on a single-user, multi-user, or floating basis. Choose conventional perpetual licensing with annual maintenance fee, or our new subscription offering.

FREE Community Edition Licenses

AMPL’s new Community Edition is full-sized, full-featured, perpetual, and free with open source solvers for personal, academic, and commercial prototyping use. Add 30-day trials of commercial solvers anytime. 

Custom Offerings

Commercial consultants and charitable organizations can qualify for a free AMPL license to use with purchased commercial solvers. 

Academic Discounts

Qualifying academic researchers can purchase AMPL at 10% of the commercial prices, and qualify for select solvers’ free academic programs. Teachers can use AMPL for Courses bundled with a dozen popular solvers. 

Ready to get started?

Explore our licenses and offerings or create an account to get started right away. You can also contact us to design the right solution to meet your business needs.