Three kinds of average
| Average | How to find it | Memory hook |
|---|---|---|
| Mode | the value that appears most often | Mode = most |
| Median | put the values in order, then find the middle one | Median = middle (like the middle of a road) |
| Mean | add them all up, then divide by how many there are | the “mean” one: it’s the most work! |
And the range tells you how spread out the data is: biggest − smallest.
Worked example
Scores: 4, 7, 2, 7, 5
- Mode: 7 appears twice → 7
- Median: in order 2, 4, 5, 7, 7 → the middle one is 5
- Mean: 4 + 7 + 2 + 7 + 5 = 25, and 25 ÷ 5 = 5
- Range: 7 − 2 = 5
When there’s an even number of values
The median is halfway between the two middle numbers. 2, 4, 6, 8, 9, 11 → halfway between 6 and 8 is 7.
Watch out! You must put the numbers in order before finding the median. The middle of the jumbled list is usually wrong.
Top tip: want more practice with the mean? Try the Mean page in the Number topic.
🔢 Find the median
Put these scores in order, from smallest to largest.
Tap the first one…
🎮 Average detectiveQuestion 1 of 5