Covariance Calculator

What is Covariance?

Covariance measures whether two variables tend to move together (positive covariance), move in opposite directions (negative covariance), or show no consistent relationship (near zero). It’s a building block for correlation and is widely used in statistics and finance.

The Formula

Sample covariance = Σ (xᵢ − mean of X)(yᵢ − mean of Y) / (n − 1). This calculator also reports population covariance, which divides by n instead of n−1, for when your data represents an entire population rather than a sample.

• Enter at least two X,Y pairs; leave unused rows blank.
• Covariance’s size depends on the units of X and Y, so it can’t be compared directly across different data sets — use correlation for that.

Provided for general statistical and financial education, not investment advice.