Averages
Choosing the mode or the median
Both the mode and the median are averages. Read the problem carefully and pick the one that answers the question best.
When the mode helps
Use the mode when you want to know the most common choice — like the size or flavour that comes up most often.
When the median helps
Use the median when you want a typical value from the middle of the data, once it is put in order.
Worked examples
When the mode is best: which gloves to buy?
- A shop sold glove sizes: 1, 2, 3, 4, 1, 4, 4, 2, 4.
- The shopkeeper can restock only one size.
- They want the size people buy most — that is the mode.
- Size 4 was sold most often.
Answer: Use the mode: restock size 4.
When the median is best: a typical value
- Five friends scored 2, 8, 9, 9, 10 in a game.
- You want one value that sits in the middle of the results.
- Put them in order and take the middle one — that is the median.
Answer: Use the median: the middle score is 9.
Where you see this in real life
- A shop restocks the glove size it sells most often (mode).
- A restaurant chooses table sizes for the most common group size (mode).
- You describe a typical middle value in ordered data (median).
Key words
- Mode
- A type of average which is the value that occurs the most in a set of data.
- Median
- A type of average which is the middle value after the data has been arranged in order.
- Average
- A way to describe a set of data. It could be the most usual value or the middle value.