Elementary Statstics

5.2.5.2.1 Frequency polygon has certain advantages over the histogram

1. The frequency polygons of several distributions may be plotted on the same graph, thereby making certain comparisons possible, whereas histograms cannot be usually employed in the same way. To compare histograms we must have a separate graph for each distribution. Because of this limitation for purposes of making a graphic comparison of frequency distributions, frequency polygons are preferred.

2. The frequency polygon is simpler than its histogram counterpart.

3. It sketches an outline of the data pattern more clearly.

4. The polygon becomes increasingly smooth and curve-like as we increase the number of classes and the number of observations.