The three averages, side by side
Mean, median, and mode each describe the center of a data set in a different way, and they can disagree sharply. This calculator takes a list of numbers and returns all three, plus the range, count, sum, minimum, and maximum — a full descriptive snapshot from one paste.
What each one means
The mean is the sum divided by how many values there are — the everyday average. The median is the middle value once the numbers are sorted, splitting the set in half. The mode is the value that appears most often; a set can have one mode, several, or none.
When they differ
On a symmetric set the three roughly coincide. But a few extreme values pull the mean toward them while leaving the median steady, which is why incomes and house prices are usually reported by median rather than mean.
Related tools
For spread around the mean, use the standard deviation calculator; to weight some values more than others, the weighted average calculator.
Worked example
For 4, 8, 15, 16, 23, 42: the sum is 108 over 6 values, so the mean is 18. The two middle values 15 and 16 average to a median of 15.5, every value is unique so there is no mode, and the range is 42 minus 4 = 38.
FAQ
What if there is no repeated value?
Then there is no mode — every value appears once. The calculator reports this rather than inventing one.
How is the median found for an even count?
With an even number of values, the median is the average of the two middle ones after sorting.