# Difference between percentage and percentile with table

We explain the difference between percentage and percentile with table. Percent and percentile may seem to mean the same thing, but they are strikingly different. It is clear in our minds that both terms relate to mathematics and solve questions related to mathematics. A percentage is a mathematical quantity, while the percentile is defined by the percentage value under a ranking system.

## What is meant by percentage?

A percentage can be understood by using denominators to calculate mathematical value systems of 100. The percentage is denoted by using a %
symbol.

A percentage is important to standardize different amounts, marks, numbers, ratios, and proportions. Also, the percentage can be written in factions or decimals.

Example : If a student scored 68 out of a score of 100, the student scored 68% on his math test.

## What is meant by percentile?

The percentile is a concept that is based on percentage understanding. It is important to know the percentile score. A simple percentile tells you how many people are at or below you.

A percentile is the percentage of values ​​found. These values ​​are often used in a classification system. The values ​​are further divided into the normal distribution of values. The percentile cannot be displayed as decimals as the ranking system does not allow it.

For example, there are 40 students who appeared as an example including you. He was ranked fourth on that exam. So there are 36 behind you. Now let’s say you are also equal to the score of 36.

Therefore, 36/40 * 100: your percentile is 90.

## Percentage vs percentile

The difference in percentage and percentile is that the percentage can have quartiles while the percentile has no quartiles. Another aspect is that the percentage is always shown at a value of 100. The percentile shows the value of that percentage in a given ranking of a given group. Percentage directly presents the data of numbers based on the division of 100 and gives information on ratio, decimal and proportions.

The percentile is relative to statistical use to denote a comparison of many percentages based on a quantity, a set of people, or a trend.

## Comparison table between percentage and percentile

Percentile Comparison Percentage Parameters

 Sense Based on a case Based on a comparison of many cases Distribution Not related to any distribution between people Rest in the normal distribution of people. Position Value position over 100 Found below the percentage value Rank Not Yes Decimal Yes Not Quartiles Not Yes Proportion Yes Not Symbol % th

## Main differences between percentage and percentile

### Meaning and distribution

A percentage is a measurement tool that calculates numbers out of 100.

The percentile is the mathematical value of the percentage to find the numerical value scored above or below a percentage

The distribution of a percentage is very specific to a person and unique to them and cannot be distributed evenly among the masses.

The percentile is a comparison of various percentages in a given situation in an environment.

Therefore, it can be said that a percentile is distributed among people, while the percentage is not.

### Rank and symbol

The percent symbol is fairly easy to know and write down. We work hard to get good scores on our tests. Well, a figure or percentage number is indicated as ‘%’.

There is no particular symbol as such to connote percentile, but it is denoted by an annotated value. As if the representation of a percentile were something like nth.

Here ‘n’ is any numerical rank of a percentile.

For example, if a student received the 80th percentile based on the ranking, that means that 80% of the students received less than 80% of the grades.

The percentage has no range and is factual mathematical numerical data.

### Ratio and decimal

A percentage can have decimals and you sure have a reason for deriving an answer.

The range cannot be 1.4 or 1.5. We can’t say that I stopped, 1.7 in my class.

The percentile would be 1st or 2nd, right?

To give an example, we can easily derive a percentage of the ratings we obtained, but we cannot weigh the ratings received.

But at the same time; All grades received in the class by all students can be weighted in the percentile ranking.

This will also reveal your ranking based on students who scored the same or lower than you.

### Quartiles and position

The percentage does not refer to quartiles. The quartiles are similar to what is implied when we say a fourth.

For example, the 25th percentile is called the first quartile, the 50th is called the second quartile, the 75th is the third quartile, and the 100th is the fourth quartile.

The percentage is specific to a mathematical value that is unique to one person.

The percentile takes the aggregate of a complete group of people. Therefore, the percentage position is always 100.

The percentile position is at or below the received score against a well distributed group.

1. What is the percentile in simple words?

In the simplest words, a percentile refers to the number of people in any unit that is below your particular score.

Understanding this with a simple example:
If a person achieves a 96th percentile on the CAT exam, this means that they have obtained more than 96% of the total applicants and are below only 4% of the applicants.

2. Can the percentile be less than the percent?

Yes, the percentile can definitely be less than the percentage. We can understand this with an example: suppose that in a test of 100 points you get 91.

So the percentage is 91%. But 100 people showed up for the test and their score is less than 12 people. So your percentile will be 88.

3. Are 100 percentiles possible?

The 100th percentile is theoretically not possible.

For example, a person appears in an exam where the total number of candidates is 3 lakhs. He gets eighth place on that exam.

This means that your percentile is around 99.99998, which is roughly equal to 100 percentiles. So in real life, every year around 8-10 people get 100 percentiles on the CAT exam.

4. Can you convert the percentile to a percentage?

The formula for calculating the percentage is (your marks / total marks) x100. Suppose a person scored a 98th percentile on a test. But, his score was 78 out of 100.

So your percentage is 78% and the percentile is 98. Here, we have to understand that the percentage is calculated only for one person, but the percentile is a relative score that depends on the other candidates.

5. Is there a 0 percentile?

Reaching the 0th percentile and the 100th percentile is almost impossible. This is because to obtain the 0 percentile you must perform below your own performance, which is impossible.

Also, by the 100th percentile, you cannot perform better than yourself. So this is also impossible. So theoretically there are no 0 and 100 percentiles.

6. Can a percentile be negative?

To get the 0 percentile, you must perform below your own performance. This fact is impossible to happen.

Therefore, if a person cannot get to the zero percentile, then the fact that the percentile can be negative is completely out of place. So we can’t have a negative percentile.

7. Is the 50th percentile the median?

Median is a term used to describe a number that is exactly in the middle of a class or range. The term 50th percentile means that exactly 50 people out of 100 are above it and 50 are below it. Therefore, the 50th percentile is the median for that group or class of people.

## Final Thought

A percentile separates an entire population into subsets in which the meaning of the numbers can be applied to a population. Hence, it is correct to say that percentile is a concept based on a percentage.

Reiterating, it is important to remember that a percentage gives a fraction while the percentile denotes a quartile.

Finally, a percentile is part of a percentage that can be applied in a given distribution to find out how many values ​​are below a mathematical value system (number).

Most importantly, a percentage will tell you how you did on a test, while the percentile will tell you how well you did among your peers.

The percentage is the quantity and the percentile is the quantification.