What is the average of a single number

Each measure of central tendency has its own strengths and weaknesses, so the one you choose to use may depend largely on the unique situation and how you are trying to express your data. Imagine a situation where a real estate agent wants a measure of the central tendency of homes she has sold in the last year. She makes a list of all of the totals:. Which would you say is the best measure of central tendency of the set of sales numbers? If they want the highest number, the mean is clearly the best option even though the total is skewed by the two very high numbers.

The mode, however, would not be a good choice because it is disproportionately low and not a good representation of her sales for the year. The median, on the other hand, seems to be a fairly good indicator of the "typical" sales prices of her real estate listings.

Ever wonder what your personality type means? Sign up to find out more in our Healthy Mind newsletter. Introduction to Mathematical Statistics. Boston: Pearson; Laerd Statistics. Measures of Central Tendency. Your Privacy Rights. To change or withdraw your consent choices for VerywellMind. At any time, you can update your settings through the "EU Privacy" link at the bottom of any page. These choices will be signaled globally to our partners and will not affect browsing data. We and our partners process data to: Actively scan device characteristics for identification.

I Accept Show Purposes. Table of Contents View All. Table of Contents. Calculating Mean. Calculating Median. Calculating Mode. Using a Frequency Distribution. Related questions How do the different measures of center compare? What is the difference between the sample mean and the population mean?

How do you find the median of a set of values when there is an even number of values? What is the median for the following data set: 10 8 16 2. What is the median for the following data set: 10 8 16 2 We say that the median is a resistant measure, whereas the mean is not a resistant measure.

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