How to Calculate Descriptive Statistics Using Analysis ToolPak
Descriptive statistics is a branch of statistics that organizes and summarizes the information for a given set of data. Descriptive statistics include statistics functions such as mean, median, standard error, standard deviation, sample variance and others.
Each of these functions requires its own formula and complex calculations. However, there is a simple tool in Excel called Analysis ToolPak for easy calculations of these functions. With the Analysis ToolPak, 13 different descriptive statistics can be calculated with ease and without using any complex formulas. These 13 descriptive statistics are mean, standard error, mode, median, standard deviation, sample variance, kurtosis, skewness, range, minimum value, maximum value, sum and count. With this simple tool you can calculate all 13 functions in less than two minutes with a few simple clicks.
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Instructions
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1
Open Excel 2007 and add the numbers for which you want to calculate descriptive statistics in the first column. For example, add the numbers 210, 110, 50, 50, 70 and 80 in A2, A3, A4, A5, A6 and A7 cells of Excel.
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Click on the "A9" cell. This is the cell where you will calculate the descriptive statistics using Analysis ToolPak. Please note, you don't have to select "A9" cell for the descriptive statistics calculation; any cell under your chosen values can be selected.
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Click on the "Data" tab and then "Data Analysis" found on the top right-hand side of the Excel spreadsheet. A window titled "Data Analysis" will pop open.
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Click on the "Descriptive Statistics." A window titled "Descriptive Statistics" will pop open. In the Input Range of window, select and drag from A2 to A7 cells. In the Output Range of Window, select A9 cell.
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Click on the "Summary Statistics" of the window. A check mark will appear next to Summary Statistics. Click "OK."
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Thirteen descriptive statistics have been successfully calculated starting from "A9" cells. In this example, the following will appear as your calculated values.
Mean 96.66666667
Standard Error 24.17528582
Median 75
Mode 50
Standard Deviation 59.21711464
Sample Variance 3506.666667
Kurtosis 3.549458572
Skewness 1.854360629
Range 160
Minimum 50
Maximum 210
Sum 580
Count 6
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Tips & Warnings
Ensure Analysis ToolPak is added on your Excel 2007
Always calculate twice for accuracy. Since it takes only a few clicks to calculate descriptive statistics, checking two or three times will not take a lot of time.
