Instructions:
  • Enter your data values separated by commas in the "Enter Data" field.
  • Select the calculation type (Sample or Population) using the radio buttons.
  • Click "Calculate" to calculate the variance.
  • View the results, mean (average), data visualization, calculation history, and calculation steps below.
  • Click "Clear" to reset the tool and enter new data.
  • Click "Copy Results" to copy the calculated variance to the clipboard.
Mean (Average):
Data Visualization:
Calculation History:
    Calculation Steps:

      Variance is a statistical measure that describes how much the data in a set varies from the mean value. It is an important concept in statistics and probability theory. The variance calculator is a tool that helps calculate the variance of a set of data. In this article, we will discuss the concepts, formulae, benefits, interesting facts, and use cases of the variance calculator.

      Concepts

      The variance of a set of data is calculated by taking the average of the squared differences between each data point and the mean value. The formula for calculating variance is as follows:

      calculating variance

      where:

      • σ2 is the variance
      • xi​ is the value of the i-th data point
      • μ is the mean value of all data points
      • n is the total number of data points
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      The variance tells us how spread out the data is from the mean value. A high variance indicates that the data points are far from the mean value, while a low variance indicates that the data points are close to the mean value.

      Formulae

      The variance calculator uses two different formulae for calculating variance depending on whether you have data from a whole population or a sample.

      Population Variance

      When you have collected data from every member of the population that you’re interested in, you can get an exact value for population variance. The population variance formula looks like this:

      population variance

      where:

      • σ2 is the population variance
      • xi​ is the value of the i-th data point
      • μ is the mean value of all data points in the population
      • N is the total number of data points in the population

      Sample Variance

      When you collect data from a sample, you use sample variance to make estimates or inferences about population variance. The sample variance formula looks like this:

      sample variance

      where:

      • s2 is the sample variance
      • xi​ is the value of the i-th data point
      • xˉ is the mean value of all data points in the sample
      • n is the total number of data points in the sample

      Benefits

      The variance calculator has several benefits:

      1. It helps to identify how spread out a set of data is.
      2. It provides an estimate of how much variation there is in a set of data.
      3. It helps to identify outliers in a set of data.
      4. It helps to identify patterns in a set of data.
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      Interesting Facts

      Here are some interesting facts about variance:

      1. Variance was first introduced by Ronald Fisher in 1918.
      2. Variance can be used to calculate standard deviation.
      3. Variance can be used to calculate covariance.

      Use Cases

      Here are some use cases for variance:

      1. In finance, it can be used to measure risk.
      2. In physics, it can be used to measure uncertainty.
      3. In biology, it can be used to measure genetic variation.
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      By Emma Smith

      Emma Smith holds an MA degree in English from Irvine Valley College. She has been a Journalist since 2002, writing articles on the English language, Sports, and Law. Read more about me on her bio page.