Mean and median absolute deviation calculator
Calculate mean absolute deviation or median absolute deviation (MAD). Compare methods and inspect each distance from the centre.
Method reference: NIST — Measures of Scale
Calculation details
| Value | Centre | Absolute distance |
|---|---|---|
| Fill in the fields above — the result is computed on this page. | ||
How do I use this page?
- Enter your data or use the example.
- Choose the method or precision and press Calculate.
- Review the result, explanation and details; you can copy the calculation.
What this page does not do: MAD is the raw median of distances, without the 1.4826 scaling factor. It is not standard deviation or a prediction. A single value or identical values give 0. Method: NIST, Measures of Scale.
Further reading
Theory — how does MAD differ from standard deviation?
Mean absolute deviation and median absolute deviation (MAD) both measure the typical distance of values from the centre of a dataset, but they define the centre and average the distances differently. For 1, 2, 3, 4, 10 the mean is 4, the distances are 3, 2, 1, 0, 6, and their average is 2.4. With the median method the centre is 3, distances are 2, 1, 0, 1, 7, and their median is 1. Switching methods therefore changes both the reference point and the final result.
Frequently asked questions
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