StATS: What is a mode?

The mode is the most frequently occurring value in the data set. Sometimes there is a bit of ambiguity in the selection of the mode. For example, two different values may both be tied for the most frequently occurring value. In this case, both values will be considered a mode of the data set.

Another situation where the mode is ambiguous is when no value in the data set occurs more than once. In this situation, any (and every) value is considered a mode.

A related statistics is the modal class. this is the most frequently occurring category when the data are classified into groups. The modal class, of course, will change depending on how wide or narrow your classifications are.

This page was written by Steve Simon while working at Children's Mercy Hospital. Although I do not hold the copyright for this material, I am reproducing it here as a service, as it is no longer available on the Children's Mercy Hospital website. Need more information? I have a page with general help resources. You can also browse for pages similar to this one at Category: Definitions, Category: Descriptive statistics.