For being such a simple word, data is quite a complicated topic. Like “love” or “news.

There is structured and unstructured data. Then you have qualitative and quantitative data.
Now let's explore two more data types (discrete and continuous) and help you understand
the difference.

When looking at a set of numbers, they're typically discrete (countable) variables or

continuous (measurable) variables. How you study this data should differ based on which
group it falls into. This will certainly affect how it's measured as well.

The more you understand these unique data types, the more you identify opportunities
where each might come in handy. You can leverage this information to benefit your brand,
whether you’re a data scientist, data analyst, data engineer, or just a fan of numbers.

Organizations use statistical analysis software to uncover insights from both types of data
and simplify complex data analysis.

What is the difference between discrete

and continuous data?
Discrete data is a numerical type of data that includes whole, concrete numbers with
specific and fixed data values determined by counting. Continuous data includes complex
numbers and varying data values that are measured over a specific time interval.

A simple way to describe the difference between the two is to visualize a scatter plot graph
vs. a line graph.
When you collect a set of round, defined numbers, they'll appear on the graph similar to
those on the left. Discrete data refers to individual and countable items (discrete variables).

When measuring a certain data stream with a complex result range, the findings are shown
with a line as a data range (see: graphs on the right). Continuous data refers to change over
time, involving concepts that are not simply countable but require detailed measurements
(continuous variables).

Some synonyms for the word discrete are disconnected, separate, and distinct. These
synonyms could easily be used to learn more about discrete data.

What is discrete data?

We collect data to find relationships, trends, and other concepts. For example, if you track
the number of push-ups you do each day for a month, an underlying goal is to evaluate your
progress and the rate of improvement.

With that said, your daily tally is a discrete, isolated number. There is no clear-cut range as
to how many push-ups you can do in a day, so the relationship remains undefined. The
more information you collect over time, the more insights you can deduce.
Tip: In many cases, discrete data can be prefixed with “the number of.”

For example, the average number of push-ups you did last week was 15 per day, which
was five more per day than the week before. Meanwhile, the number of push-ups is a
whole, round number that can't be broken down into smaller parts.

Examples of discrete data

Some examples of discrete data one might gather:

 The number of customers who bought different items

 The number of computers in each department
 The number of items you buy at the grocery store each week

Discrete data can also be qualitative. The nationality you select on a form is a piece
of discrete data. The nationalities of everyone in your workplace, when grouped, can be
valuable information in evaluating your hiring practices.

The national census consists of discrete data, both qualitative and quantitative. Counting
and collecting this identifying information deepens our understanding of the population. It
helps us make predictions while documenting history. This is a great example of discrete
data's power.

Key characteristics of discrete data

Discrete data is often used in simple statistical analysis because it's easy to summarize and
compute. Let's look at some of the other key characteristics of discrete data.

 Discrete data includes discrete variables that are finite, numeric, countable, and non-
negative integers (5, 10, 15, and so on).
  Discrete data can be easily visualized and demonstrated using simple statistical
methods such as bar charts, line charts, or pie charts.
 Discrete data can also be categorical - contain a finite number of data values, such
as the gender of a person.
 Discrete data is distributed discretely in terms of time and space. Discrete
distributions make analyzing discrete values more practical.

Want to learn more about Statistical Analysis Software? Explore Statistical

Analysis products.

What is continuous data?

Continuous data is a type of numerical data that refers to the unspecified number of
possible measurements between two realistic points.

These numbers are not always clean and tidy like those in discrete data, as they're usually
collected from precise measurements. Over time, measuring a particular subject allows us
to create a defined range, where we can reasonably expect to collect more data.

Continuous data is all about accuracy. Variables in these data sets often
carry decimal points, with the number to the right stretched out as far as possible. This level
of detail is paramount for scientists, doctors, and manufacturers, to name a few.

Examples of continuous data

Some examples of continuous data include:

 The weight of newborn babies

  The daily wind speed
 The temperature of a freezer

When you think of experiments or studies involving constant measurements, they're likely to
be continuous variables to some extent. If you have a number like “2.86290” anywhere on a
spreadsheet, it's not a number you could have quickly arrived at yourself — think
measurement devices like stopwatches, scales, thermometers, and the like.

A task involving these tools probably applies to continuous data. For example, if we’re
clocking every runner in the Olympics, the times will be shown on a graph along an
applicable line. Although our athletes get faster and stronger over the years, there should
never be an outlier that skews the rest of the data. Even Usain Bolt is only a few seconds
faster than the historical field when it comes down to it.

There are infinite possibilities along this line (for example, 5.77 seconds, 5.772 seconds,
5.7699 seconds, etc.), but every new measurement is always somewhere within the range.

Not every example of continuous data falls neatly into a straight line. Still, over time a range
becomes more apparent, and you can bet on new data points sticking inside those
parameters.

Key characteristics of continuous data

Unlike discrete data, continuous data can be either numeric or distributed over date and
time. This data type uses advanced statistical analysis methods taking into account
the infinite number of possible values. Key characteristics of continuous data are:

 Continuous data changes over time and can have different values at different time
intervals.
 Continuous data is made up of random variables, which may or may not be whole
numbers.
 Continuous data is measured using data analysis methods such as line graphs,
skews, and so on.
 Regression analysis is one of the most common types of continuous data analysis.

Discrete vs continuous data

Both data types are important for statistical analysis. However, there are some notable
differences between the two that need to be understood before drawing any conclusions or
making assumptions about the data type at hand.
Discrete data Continuous data
Takes any measured value within a specific
Takes specific countable values
range
Some common examples of discrete data are the Some common examples of continuous data
number of students, the number of children, the are height, weight, length, time, temperature,
shoe size, and so on age, and so on
Ordinal data values and integer values represent Decimal numbers and fractions represent
discrete data continuous data
Easily counted on something as simple as a Requires more in-depth measurement tools and
number line methods like curves and skews
Discrete data remains constant over a specific Continuous data varies over time and can have
time interval separate values at any given point

The importance of continuous and discrete data

Just because we threw a “versus” in the title doesn't mean it’s a competition (though we
won’t stop you from making “Team Discrete” or “Team Continuous” t-shirts).

The fact is, both types of data are equally valuable to data collectors, and you'll encounter
moments every day that lead to measurements that could contribute to either data type. Any
well-rounded research is formed by combining these two unique sets of data.

Now that you know how to identify discrete and continuous data, we hope you enjoy
demonstrating these skills, whether naming them with your peers or using this knowledge to
inform your research.

Learn more about the difference between structured and unstructured data, two other
important data types used in statistical analysis.