Differences between Mean, Median and Mode

Mean, median, and mode are measures of central tendency in statistics.

Feature	Mean	Median	Mode
Definition	Mean is the average of all values.	Median is the middle value when data is sorted.	Mode is the most frequently occurring value in the dataset.
Sensitivity	Mean is sensitive to outliers.	Median is not sensitive to outliers .	Mode is not sensitive to outliers.
Calculation	Calculated by adding up all values of a dataset and dividing them by the total number of values in dataset.	Calculated by finding the middle value in a list of data.	Calculated by finding which value occurs more number of times in a dataset.
Representation	Value of mean may or may not be in dataset.	Value of median is always a value from the dataset.	Value of mode is also always a value from the dataset.

Difference Between Mean and Average

Aspect	Mean	Average
Definition	The sum of all values divided by the count	The sum of all values divided by the count
Formula	x̄=∑ x/n	Same as the mean formula
Importance	Commonly used in statistics and mathematics	Often used interchangeably with “mean.”
Sensitivity	Affected by outliers	Can be less sensitive to outliers.
Application	Used for analyzing data sets	Commonly used in everyday language and contexts.
Representation	Usually represented symbolically as μ	Often referred to simply as “average” or “avg.”
Context	Often used in research and analysis	Informally used in everyday conversation.

The terms “mean” and “average” are frequently used in mathematics and statistics, often interchangeably. However, they possess subtle distinctions in their meanings and applications.

Mean, in statistical terms, represents the arithmetic average of a dataset. It is calculated by summing up all the values in the dataset and dividing the sum by the total number of values. For instance, if you have the numbers 2, 4, 6, 8, and 10, the mean would be (2 + 4 + 6 + 8 + 10) / 5 = 6.

On the other hand, “Average” is a broader term that can refer to various measures of central tendency, including mean, median, and mode. In common usage, however, “average” often specifically denotes the mean. Like the mean, it involves summing up a set of values and dividing by the number of values to obtain a representative value.

Read More: Difference between Mean and Average.

How does Mean Median Mode link to Real Life?

In our daily life we came across various instances where we have to use the concept of mean, median and mode. There are various application of mean, median and mode, here’s how they link to real life:

Mean: Mean, or average, is used in everyday situations to understand typical values. For example, if you want to know the average income of people in a city, you would calculate the mean income.

Median: Median is in household income data, the median income provides a better representation of the typical income than the mean when there are extreme values. In real estate, the median house price is often used to gauge the affordability of homes in a particular area.

Mode: Mode represents the most frequently occurring value in a dataset and is used in scenarios where identifying the most common value is important. For example, in manufacturing, the mode may be used to identify the most common defect in a production line to prioritize quality control efforts

People Also Read:
Statistics Formulas	Shortcut method for Arithmetic Mean
Calculation of Median of Discrete Series	Calculation of Mode in Discrete Series

Mean, Median and Mode

Mean, Median, and Mode are measures of the central tendency. These values are used to define the various parameters of the given data set. The measure of central tendency (Mean, Median, and Mode) gives useful insights about the data studied, these are used to study any type of data such as the average salary of employees in an organization, the median age of any class, the number of people who plays cricket in a sports club, etc.

Let’s learn more about the Mean, Median, and Mode Formulas, Examples, and FAQs in this article.

Table of Content

Measures of Central Tendency
What are Mean, Median, and Mode?
What is Mean?
What is Median?
What is Mode?

Symbol of Mode