`summary`

Prints a statistical summary of the variables of a table.

Category: Language Fundamentals > Data Types

Syntax

summary(T)

Shows the type and main statistics of every variable in T.

S = summary(T)

Returns the summary as a value instead of printing it.

Description

For each variable summary reports its size and class. Numeric variables also show the minimum, median and maximum; categorical ones show the count per category. It gives a quick overview of an unknown dataset before analysis.

Use height, width and varfun when you need individual numbers, not a report.

Input arguments

T: Table or timetable (also categorical arrays).

Output arguments

S: The summary, when an output is requested.

Example

Summary of a table

T = table([1;2;3], [4;5;9], 'VariableNames', {'a','b'});
summary(T)

Output

ans = 
    'Variables:
     
         a: 3×1 double
             Min: 1   Median: 2   Max: 3
         b: 3×1 double
             Min: 4   Median: 5   Max: 9
     '

Notes

The report is returned as a block of text with the minimum, median and maximum of numeric variables; its layout is simpler than MATLAB's.

summary