About the Average Calculator
This average calculator finds the arithmetic mean of any list of numbers — test scores, prices, daily step counts, monthly bills or lab readings. Paste or type the values separated by commas, spaces or new lines and the average updates as you type, together with the sum and the count it was built from.
Because the mean alone can mislead when a list has outliers, the tool also reports the median (middle value), the mode (most common value) and the range (largest minus smallest). For growth rates and ratios it adds the geometric mean, and for rates such as speeds or prices per unit it adds the harmonic mean.
It is useful for students checking homework, teachers averaging grades, shoppers comparing prices and anyone summarising a set of measurements. Non-numeric text is ignored, so you can paste a column straight from a spreadsheet. Geometric and harmonic means are only shown when every value is positive, since they are undefined otherwise.
With the default inputs, the average (mean) is 86.2857. Change any value above to recalculate instantly.
How to use the average calculator
- 1Type or paste your numbers, separated by commas, spaces or line breaks.
- 2Choose how many decimals to round the results to.
- 3Read the average (mean) at the top of the results.
- 4Compare it with the median and mode to spot outliers.
- 5Use the chart to see which values sit above or below the average.
Formula and method
The arithmetic mean adds every value and divides by how many values there are. The median sorts the list and takes the middle value (or the mean of the two middle values when the count is even), and the mode is the value that appears most often.
The geometric mean multiplies the n values and takes the nth root, which is the right average for growth factors such as 1 + each year’s return. The harmonic mean divides n by the sum of reciprocals and is the right average for rates, such as the average speed over equal distances.
- xᵢ
- Each value in your list
- n
- How many values there are
- Σxᵢ
- Sum of all values
Worked examples
Average of seven test scores
The scores add up to 604. Dividing by 7 gives an average of about 86.29. Sorted, the middle score is 88, and the spread from the lowest (76) to the highest (95) is 19 points.
List with a repeated value
The five values sum to 48.5, so the mean is 48.5 ÷ 5 = 9.7. The median and mode are both 7, lower than the mean because 19 pulls the average up.
Geometric and harmonic mean of 2 and 8
The arithmetic mean is (2 + 8) ÷ 2 = 5. The geometric mean is √(2 × 8) = 4, and the harmonic mean is 2 ÷ (1/2 + 1/8) = 3.2 — always in the order arithmetic ≥ geometric ≥ harmonic.
Frequently asked questions
How do you calculate the average of numbers?+
Add all the numbers together, then divide the total by how many numbers there are. For 4, 8 and 9 the sum is 21 and the average is 21 ÷ 3 = 7.
Is average the same as mean?+
In everyday use “average” means the arithmetic mean. Strictly, median and mode are also kinds of average, which is why this calculator shows all three side by side.
When should I use the median instead of the mean?+
Use the median when the data has outliers or is skewed, such as house prices or incomes. One very large value can drag the mean far away from what is typical, while the median barely moves.
How do I average percentages?+
If every percentage is based on the same size group, a simple mean works. If the groups differ in size, weight each percentage by its group size — use the weighted average calculator for that.
What is the geometric mean used for?+
The geometric mean is the correct average for values that multiply together, such as yearly growth factors. For returns of +10% and −5%, average the factors 1.10 and 0.95 (≈ 1.0223, or 2.23% a year) rather than the percentages. It is never larger than the arithmetic mean.