In Excel or Google Sheets, median for the sample data is =MEDIAN(C2:C31). It returns 32.
Median = The middle value when the values are sorted (the average of the two middle values when there is an even number)
Step by step
- Download daily.csv below and open it in Excel (File → Open) or Google Sheets (File → Import). Columns: A day, B ad_spend, C website_orders, D app_orders, E avg_basket; data in rows 2 to 31.
- Click an empty cell and enter =MEDIAN(C2:C31).
- Check the result against 32. If it differs, check that the ranges cover rows 2 to 31 and that no cell holds text instead of a number.
The formula
=MEDIAN(C2:C31)Expected result on the sample data: 32.
What the result means
With 30 days, the median is the average of the 15th and 16th values after sorting. The one-day sale on day 17 barely moves it, while it lifts the mean.
Notes for Excel
- Google Sheets supports the same function names. In locales that use a comma as the decimal separator, separate arguments with semicolons.
- Excel functions skip blank cells and text but include zeros. A missing day typed as 0 changes the answer; leave it blank if it is unknown.
Where median misleads
- The median of several group medians is not the overall median. Compute it from all the rows.
- It ignores how far the extremes are. For totals and budgets you still need the mean.
- For small samples the median jumps between values; with a handful of rows, show the values themselves.
The plain-language explanation is on the Median page.
The data
| day | website_orders |
|---|---|
| 1 | 24 |
| 2 | 27 |
| 3 | 22 |
| 4 | 30 |
| 5 | 28 |
| 6 | 25 |
| 7 | 31 |
| 8 | 29 |
| 9 | 26 |
| 10 | 33 |
| 11 | 30 |
| 12 | 28 |
| 13 | 35 |
| 14 | 32 |
| 15 | 29 |
| 16 | 34 |
| 17 | 61 |
| 18 | 31 |
| 19 | 36 |
| 20 | 33 |
| 21 | 30 |
| 22 | 37 |
| 23 | 35 |
| 24 | 32 |
| 25 | 38 |
| 26 | 36 |
| 27 | 34 |
| 28 | 40 |
| 29 | 37 |
| 30 | 39 |
Same method, other tools
Related methods
Learn more about Excel
About the data on this page
The figures come from a small made-up dataset, printed above in full so you can check every number by hand. Download it as daily.csv. The results are computed from those rows when the page is built, and the Excel formulas, SQL and Python on these pages are run against the same rows before publishing, so the code and the answers agree.
To get these numbers from your own data without writing formulas, try AnalyzeIt: ask in plain words and it shows the working behind every figure.
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