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Da VIP Academy / GED / Math / Data, Statistics & Probability

Mean, Median, Mode & Range

Compute and compare measures of center and spread, and choose the right one.

Practice this skillAll Math skills

How it works

The four measures

Mean is the average. Median is the middle value in order. Mode is the most frequent value. Range is largest minus smallest.

Outliers pull the mean

One very large value drags the mean up but barely moves the median, so median is a better center for skewed data like incomes.

Worked examples

  1. For 4, 7, 7, 9, 13 find mean, median, and range.

    1. Sum = 40, so mean = 40 ÷ 5 = 8.
    2. Middle value = 7.
    3. Range = 13 − 4 = 9.

Words to know

Outlier
A value far from the rest of the data.

Test-day tips

  • • Always sort the list before taking a median.
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