Why is the median used for house prices?

A few very expensive sales can raise the mean sharply, while the median stays close to a typical sale.

Can the mean be bigger than most of the values?

Yes, when a few very large values pull it up, as in the income example.

Is the mode always a number?

No. Because it is the most frequent value, it can also describe categories such as colours or brands.

Mean, Median or Mode: Which Average Should You Use?

When someone says 'the average', they usually mean the mean. But a single extreme value can make it a poor description of the typical case.

By Editorial Team · Updated September 19, 2026 · 2 min read

The word "average" hides a choice. The three main options, mean, median and mode, are each a valid way of describing the centre of a set of numbers, and they can give quite different answers.

The same data, three answers

Six people report their annual income, in thousands: 30, 32, 35, 38, 40 and 250.

Mean: the sum is 425, and 425 ÷ 6 = 70.8.
Median: the middle two values are 35 and 38, so the median is 36.5.
Mode: no value repeats, so there is no mode.

The mean of 70.8 is higher than five of the six values. One very large income pulled it up. The median of 36.5 is much closer to what a typical person in this group earns.

When each one is the right choice

Use the mean when the data is fairly symmetric and has no extreme values, and when you want every value to count. Examples are test scores in a class, or daily temperatures over a month. It is also the average you need for totals: mean multiplied by count gives the sum.

Use the median when the data is skewed or has outliers. Incomes, house prices and waiting times are typical cases, because a few very large values distort the mean. The median is the value that half the data sits above and half below.

Use the mode when you want the most common value, especially for categories that cannot be averaged. The most popular shoe size or the most frequent answer in a survey is a mode.

Spotting skew

If the mean and median are far apart, the data is skewed. When the mean is higher than the median, there is a long tail of large values. When the mean is lower, the tail is on the low side. Reporting both is often the honest choice.

Other ways to describe the middle

A weighted mean gives some values more importance, as GPA does with credit hours.
A trimmed mean drops a fixed share of the highest and lowest values before averaging, which reduces the effect of outliers.

Averages do not describe spread

Two groups can share the same mean and look nothing alike. Standard deviation and the range describe how spread out the values are, and they are worth reporting alongside an average.

To compute all three at once, paste your numbers into the average calculator. For the step-by-step method, read how to calculate the average.

Frequently asked questions

Why is the median used for house prices?: A few very expensive sales can raise the mean sharply, while the median stays close to a typical sale.
Can the mean be bigger than most of the values?: Yes, when a few very large values pull it up, as in the income example.
Is the mode always a number?: No. Because it is the most frequent value, it can also describe categories such as colours or brands.

About the author

Editorial Team. The Editorial Team writes, checks and maintains every tool and guide on this site. The calculation logic behind the calculators is covered by automated tests, examples are worked out and re-checked before publishing, and pages are updated when we find a mistake or a rule changes. Corrections are welcome through the contact page.

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