--- title: Algorithms/Community Detection Procedures url: https://nexyron.tech/docs/cypher/procedures/algorithms/community-detection description: This family is about partitioning, labeling, or evaluating graph structure so that users can reason about groups, roles, overlaps, or boundaries. The important point is that these --- # Algorithms/Community Detection Procedures This family is about partitioning, labeling, or evaluating graph structure so that users can reason about groups, roles, overlaps, or boundaries. The important point is that these procedures are not interchangeable. They answer different questions. ## Consumer View Ask yourself which question you are actually trying to answer: - `Which nodes belong together as one main partition?` Start with `leiden` or `louvain`. - `Do I need several resolution levels?` Use `hierarchical_leiden`. - `Do nodes belong to several groups at once?` Use `slpa`, `sllpa`, or `bigclam`. - `Is this graph really about roles and interaction patterns, not dense communities?` Use the stochastic block partition family. - `Is movement or flow the key idea?` Use `infomap`. - `Do I need to score a partition rather than create one?` Use `modularity_metric` or `conductance`. - `Am I solving a partitioning or constraint problem rather than community discovery?` Look at `k1coloring` and `maxkcut`. ## Conceptual Comparison | Family | Best when | Not ideal when | | --- | --- | --- | | `louvain` | you need a fast, practical baseline partition | you need the cleanest connected communities | | `leiden` | partition quality and internal connectedness matter | you only need the cheapest first-pass answer | | `hierarchical_leiden` | you need coarse and fine communities | one flat partition is enough | | `label_propagation` | speed and quick exploration matter | stability and defensibility matter | | `slpa` / `sllpa` / `bigclam` | overlap is real and one node can belong to several groups | downstream systems require one clean label only | | `infomap` | flow, movement, or communication is the real story | the graph is better understood as dense neighborhoods | | block partition variants | roles and interaction patterns matter more than dense communities | users expect communities in the everyday sense | | `modularity_metric` / `conductance` | you already have candidate communities and need validation | you still need the communities themselves | | `k1coloring` / `maxkcut` | you need separation, constraints, or cuts | you want cohesive communities | ## Real Selection Guidance - Choose `leiden` over `louvain` when the output will be used in product decisions, investigations, or dashboards where disconnected communities would damage trust. - Choose `louvain` when you need a strong practical baseline for a large graph and you are willing to inspect the results before operationalizing them. - Choose `label_propagation` when you need something cheap enough for interactive exploration or broad what-if comparisons. - Choose `slpa`, `sllpa`, or `bigclam` when forcing a single label would erase important multi-membership structure such as shared services, mixed-interest users, or bridge accounts. - Choose `infomap` when paths, flow, or traffic make more sense than density. Examples: clickstreams, mobility, message routes, or communication networks. - Choose block-model procedures when you care about roles like broker, sink, hub, supplier, coordinator, or consumer, not just “communities.” ## How To Use These Pages Each algorithm page in this folder gives: - a plain-language explanation - a conceptual explanation of the mathematical or structural idea - a comparison with nearby algorithms so users can make a real choice - a focused advanced example that combines graph, time, document, and vector-style features - concrete use cases and concrete limitations Pages: - [label\_propagation](https://nexyron.tech/docs/cypher/procedures/algorithms/community-detection/label-propagation) - [louvain](https://nexyron.tech/docs/cypher/procedures/algorithms/community-detection/louvain) - [leiden](https://nexyron.tech/docs/cypher/procedures/algorithms/community-detection/leiden) - [hierarchical\_leiden](https://nexyron.tech/docs/cypher/procedures/algorithms/community-detection/hierarchical-leiden) - [slpa](https://nexyron.tech/docs/cypher/procedures/algorithms/community-detection/slpa) - [sllpa](https://nexyron.tech/docs/cypher/procedures/algorithms/community-detection/sllpa) - [infomap](https://nexyron.tech/docs/cypher/procedures/algorithms/community-detection/infomap) - [bigclam](https://nexyron.tech/docs/cypher/procedures/algorithms/community-detection/bigclam) - [community\_analytics\_suite](https://nexyron.tech/docs/cypher/procedures/algorithms/community-detection/community-analytics-suite) - [graph\_quality](https://nexyron.tech/docs/cypher/procedures/algorithms/community-detection/graph-quality) - [modularity\_optimization](https://nexyron.tech/docs/cypher/procedures/algorithms/community-detection/modularity-optimization) - [stochastic\_block\_partition](https://nexyron.tech/docs/cypher/procedures/algorithms/community-detection/stochastic-block-partition) - [nested\_stochastic\_block\_partition](https://nexyron.tech/docs/cypher/procedures/algorithms/community-detection/nested-stochastic-block-partition) - [degree\_corrected\_stochastic\_block\_partition](https://nexyron.tech/docs/cypher/procedures/algorithms/community-detection/degree-corrected-stochastic-block-partition) - [degree\_corrected\_nested\_stochastic\_block\_partition](https://nexyron.tech/docs/cypher/procedures/algorithms/community-detection/degree-corrected-nested-stochastic-block-partition) - [modularity\_metric](https://nexyron.tech/docs/cypher/procedures/algorithms/community-detection/modularity-metric) - [conductance](https://nexyron.tech/docs/cypher/procedures/algorithms/community-detection/conductance) - [k1coloring](https://nexyron.tech/docs/cypher/procedures/algorithms/community-detection/k1coloring) - [maxkcut](https://nexyron.tech/docs/cypher/procedures/algorithms/community-detection/maxkcut)