Range

Difference between the largest and smallest value — the simplest measure of dispersion.

Also known as: span, R

The range is the difference between the maximum and minimum of a sample.

It is intuitive and quick to compute but extremely sensitive to outliers: a single extreme value can double the range without changing the actual spread of the bulk of the data. For robust estimates prefer the standard deviation or the interquartile range.

See also

Used in

In the Algorithm Lab

Sources

  • Montgomery, D.C.: Introduction to Statistical Quality Control, 8th ed., Wiley, 2020 — Kap. 6
  • AIAG: Statistical Process Control (SPC) Reference Manual, 2nd ed., 2005