HARMEAN Function - why use it?

[andrewc]

Hi,

I am using the HARMEAN function to calculate the harmonic mean of a series of ratios.

I understand what the formula is doing (reciprocal of the average of the reciprocals) but don't understand the rationale for using it rather than the usual average.

Can someone please enlighten me?

Thanks!

[MrShorty]

We are good with Excel question, but this seems to go way beyond the Excel side of the question. I'm not sure that any of us on this board knows the ins and outs of using the different means -- when and why one would use them. Off the top of my head, one would just need to know -- based on one's experience in the field of interest and with the measure of interest -- when each mean is appropriate.

I put "why use harmonic mean?" into my favorite internet search engine and got several hits that looked interesting.
Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harmonic_mean Wikipedia mentions that harmonic means are particularly appropriate for rates or to minimize the impact of large outliers.
a q&a from quora: https://www.quora.com/When-is-it-mos...-harmonic-mean
Investopedia has an article for those inclined towards financials: https://www.investopedia.com/terms/h...nicaverage.asp

And many others. See if that helps.