What Is the Coefficient of Variation?
The coefficient of variation (CV) is the standard deviation divided by the mean, usually shown as a percentage. It tells you how large the spread is compared with the typical value. Because the units cancel, you can compare the consistency of things measured in different units, such as heights in centimetres and weights in kilograms, or of things on very different scales. It is sometimes called the coefficient of variance or the relative standard deviation; they all mean the same thing. All the examples on this page use the sample standard deviation; if you use the population version, say so, because the CV will be slightly smaller.