Separate values with commas, spaces or new lines.
Find the middle value in a set of numbers. Enter your values and this calculator will sort them, calculate the median and show useful details about the list.
About This Tool
The median is the middle value of a set of numbers after the values have been arranged from smallest to largest. Unlike the arithmetic mean, the median is based on position rather than the total of all values.
If the list contains an odd number of values, the median is the single value in the middle. If the list contains an even number of values, there are two middle values, so the median is their average.
The median can be especially useful when a list contains unusually high or low values. Those extremes can have a strong effect on the arithmetic mean, while the median still describes the center of the ordered data.
How to Use
- Enter one or more numbers in the box. Separate the values with commas, spaces or new lines.
- Select Calculate Median. The calculator will sort the values from smallest to largest and identify the middle value. If there are two middle values, it will average those two numbers.
- The result also includes the number of values, the smallest value, the largest value and the complete sorted list. Negative numbers and decimal values are supported.
Example
For the numbers 7, 2, 10, 4 and 9, first sort the list: 2, 4, 7, 9, 10. There are five values, so the third value is in the middle. The median is 7.
For an even-sized list such as 2, 4, 8 and 10, the two middle values are 4 and 8. Their average is 6, so the median is 6.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the median?
The median is the middle value in a list after the numbers are sorted from smallest to largest. It divides the ordered data so that half the values are on each side of the center.
How do you calculate the median with an odd number of values?
Sort the numbers and select the single value in the middle. For example, the sorted list 2, 4, 7, 9, 10 has a median of 7.
How do you calculate the median with an even number of values?
Sort the numbers, find the two middle values, add them together and divide by two. For 2, 4, 8 and 10, the middle values are 4 and 8, so the median is 6.
Is median the same as average?
Not usually. The median is based on the middle position of sorted values. The arithmetic mean is found by adding all values and dividing by the number of values.
Can the median be a number that is not in the original list?
Yes. When there is an even number of values, the median is the average of the two middle values, so the result may not appear in the original list.
When is median more useful than the arithmetic mean?
The median can be useful when the data contains unusually high or low values because those extremes can strongly affect the arithmetic mean while having less effect on the median.