Multiple modes
A dataset can have no meaningful single mode if every value appears once, or multiple modes if several values tie for highest frequency.
Example
For 2, 4, 4, 6 and 9, the mode is 4 because it appears twice while the other values appear once.
Mode vs mean and median
Mode shows what appears most often. Mean shows the arithmetic average, and median shows the middle value after sorting.
Common mistakes
Do not force a single mode when values tie. If every value occurs once, the dataset may have no useful mode.
Last reviewed: 2026-05-17