What is a median?

The median is the middle number of a data set once the values are arranged from smallest to largest. If there are two middle numbers (an even count), the median is the value halfway between them. It is a type of average that isn't thrown off by one very large or small value.

Examples

• 3, 5, 8 → median 5.
• 2, 4, 6, 10 → median (4+6)/2 = 5.
• Median of 1, 1, 9 is 1.

Quick facts

• Always put the numbers in order first.
• Unlike the mean, the median ignores how extreme the outer values are.