Calculating Averages Made Easy: An Overview of 5 Python Methods
The Python ´mean()´ Function
The simplest method to calculate the average of a list is to use the statistics.mean() function. This function is available in Python 3 within the “statistics” module and accepts a list, tuple, or dataset containing numeric values as input.
Here is an example:
from statistics import mean
inp_lst = [12, 45, 78, 36, 45, 237.11, -1, 88]
list_avg = mean(inp_lst)
print("Average value of the list:\n")
print(list_avg)
print("Average value of the list rounded to 3 decimal places:\n")
print(round(list_avg,3))
Using the Python ´sum()´ Function
Another method to calculate the average is to use the statistics.sum() function and the length of the list.
Here is an example:
from statistics import mean
inp_lst = [12, 45, 78, 36, 45, 237.11, -1, 88]
sum_lst = sum(inp_lst)
lst_avg = sum_lst / len(inp_lst)
print("Average value of the list:\n")
print(lst_avg)
print("Average value of the list rounded to 3 decimal places:\n")
print(round(lst_avg,3))
Using Python ´reduce()´ and ´lambda()´
Another method to calculate the average of a list is to use the Python reduce() function in combination with the lambda() function.
Here is an example:
from functools import reduce
inp_lst = [12, 45, 78, 36, 45, 237.11, -1, 88]
lst_len= len(inp_lst)
lst_avg = reduce(lambda x, y: x + y, inp_lst) / lst_len
print("Average value of the list:\n")
print(lst_avg)
print("Average value of the list rounded to 3 decimal places:\n")
print(round(lst_avg,3))
Using the Python ´operator.add()´ Function
Another way to calculate the average using the operator module is to use the operator.add() function.
Here is an example:
from functools import reduce
import operator
inp_lst = [12, 45, 78, 36, 45, 237.11, -1, 88]
lst_len = len(inp_lst)
lst_avg = reduce(operator.add, inp_lst) / lst_len
print("Average value of the list:\n")
print(lst_avg)
print("Average value of the list rounded to 3 decimal places:\n")
print(round(lst_avg,3))
Using the NumPy ´average()´ Method
Finally, Python’s NumPy module provides a built-in numpy.average() method to calculate the average/mean of the data items present in the dataset or list.
Here is an example:
import numpy
inp_lst = [12, 45, 78, 36, 45, 237.11, -1, 88]
lst_avg = numpy.average(inp_lst)
print("Average value of the list:\n")
print(lst_avg)
print("Average value of the list rounded to 3 decimal places:\n")
print(round(lst_avg,3))
Conclusion
Python provides multiple methods for calculating the average, each with its own advantages depending on the use case. While statistics.mean() is ideal for simple calculations, numpy.average() is particularly efficient for handling large datasets. The choice of the appropriate method depends on your specific requirements.
