Averages and Percentiles

Averages and percentiles are tools to understand data. The average (or mean) sums all values and divides by the number of data points, giving a central value. It indicates what’s typical, but can be affected by extremely high or low numbers. Percentiles show how a specific value compares to the entire data set. For example, being at the 90th percentile means you scored better than 90% of all data points. Percentiles help identify relative standing, while averages provide a general central tendency. Both are useful for analyzing and interpreting data in various contexts.