Box Plot Maker: Box and Whisker Plot From Data
This box plot maker draws a box and whisker plot from your numbers and shows the five-number summary: minimum, first quartile (Q1), median, third quartile (Q3) and maximum. Paste one data set, or several on separate lines with an optional name and a colon (for example “Class A: 72, 85, 90”), to compare groups side by side on the same scale. Outliers more than 1.5 × IQR beyond the quartiles are drawn as dots, and the whiskers stop at the last value inside the fences, the same rule taught in US middle school, high school and AP Statistics. Choose horizontal or vertical, add a title, and download a PNG for homework or reports.
Box Plot Maker
Paste one or more data sets to draw box and whisker plots with the five-number summary and outliers.
How to use the Box Plot Maker
- Type one data set per line. Add a name and a colon to label it.
- Pick horizontal or vertical and whether to show outliers.
- Read the five-number summary, IQR and outliers in the table.
- Download the box plot as a PNG.
Features
- Five-number summary
- IQR, fences and outliers (1.5 × IQR)
- Compare up to 8 groups
- Horizontal or vertical layout
- Mean marker option
- PNG download
Frequently asked questions
How do you make a box plot?
Sort the data, find the minimum, Q1, median, Q3 and maximum, draw a box from Q1 to Q3 with a line at the median, then draw whiskers out to the smallest and largest non-outlier values.
How are quartiles calculated here?
Q1 is the median of the lower half and Q3 is the median of the upper half, leaving out the overall median when the count is odd. This matches TI-84 calculators and most US textbooks.
What counts as an outlier on a box plot?
Any value below Q1 − 1.5 × IQR or above Q3 + 1.5 × IQR. They are shown as separate dots.
What does a box plot tell you?
The box holds the middle 50% of the data. A longer side or whisker shows skew, and comparing boxes shows which group is higher or more spread out.
What is the difference between a box plot and a histogram?
A histogram shows the full shape of the distribution with bars. A box plot summarizes it in five numbers and makes comparing groups easy.