Standard Deviation Calculator (3 values) Formula
Understand the math behind the standard deviation calculator (3 values). Each variable explained with a worked example.
Formulas Used
Mean
mean = mean_valVariance
variance = (pow(x1 - mean_val, 2) + pow(x2 - mean_val, 2) + pow(x3 - mean_val, 2)) / 3Std Dev
std_dev = sqrt((pow(x1 - mean_val, 2) + pow(x2 - mean_val, 2) + pow(x3 - mean_val, 2)) / 3)Sample Std
sample_std = sqrt((pow(x1 - mean_val, 2) + pow(x2 - mean_val, 2) + pow(x3 - mean_val, 2)) / 2)Variables
| Variable | Description | Default |
|---|---|---|
x1 | Value 1 | 10 |
x2 | Value 2 | 20 |
x3 | Value 3 | 30 |
mean_val | Derived value= (x1 + x2 + x3) / 3 | calculated |
How It Works
Standard Deviation
Formula
Population SD = sqrt(sum of (xᵢ - mean)² / N)
Sample SD = sqrt(sum of (xᵢ - mean)² / (N-1))
Steps
1. Calculate the mean (average) 2. Find each value's deviation from the mean 3. Square each deviation 4. Average the squared deviations (divide by N for population, N-1 for sample) 5. Take the square root
Worked Example
Find the standard deviation of 10, 20, 30.
x1 = 10x2 = 20x3 = 30
- 01Mean = (10+20+30)/3 = 20
- 02Deviations: -10, 0, +10
- 03Squared: 100, 0, 100
- 04Variance = (100+0+100)/3 ≈ 66.67
- 05Std Dev = √66.67 ≈ 8.1650
Ready to run the numbers?
Open Standard Deviation Calculator (3 values)