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Sort Numbers

Paste a list or any text: every number is extracted and sorted from least to greatest or greatest to least, instantly. Remove duplicates, pick the output separator, and see the count, sum, average, median, minimum and maximum.

Numbers or text with numbers 0 found

Sorted numbers

Order

Number format

Output separator

Remove duplicates Detect negative numbers Keep original formatting Sort by absolute value

0Count

0Sum

–Average

–Median

–Minimum

–Maximum

–Range

0Unique values

How to use the Sort Numbers

Paste your numbers or any text that contains numbers. Line breaks, commas, spaces and words between them are fine.
Choose the order: ascending (smallest first) or descending (largest first).
Pick the number format so commas and periods are read correctly, and tick Remove duplicates if you only want unique values.
Choose a separator for the output, such as new line or comma.
Copy or download the sorted numbers and check the statistics below the result.

How numbers are found in your text

The sorter scans the text for anything that looks like a number and ignores everything else, so you can paste a column from a spreadsheet, a comma-separated list, a log file or a paragraph. It understands:

Integers and decimals: 42, 3.14, .5
Negative numbers: -7 or −7. A hyphen between digits or letters, as in 2024-05-01 or A-3, is not treated as a minus sign.
Scientific notation: 1e3 = 1000, 2.5E-4 = 0.00025
Thousands separators, depending on the number format you pick:

Number format	Input	Read as
1234.56 (default)	`5,10,15`	5, 10, 15
1,234.56 (US / UK)	`1,250.75, 980`	1250.75, 980
1.234,56 (most of Europe)	`1.250,75; 980`	1250.75, 980

Numeric order vs. alphabetical order

Ordinary text sorting compares numbers digit by digit, which gives the wrong order: 1, 10, 100, 2, 25, 3. Numeric sorting compares the actual values: 1, 2, 3, 10, 25, 100. Negative numbers come before zero in ascending order, and -10 is smaller than -2. With Sort by absolute value the sign is ignored when ordering, which is handy for errors or differences where size matters more than direction.

Statistics formulas

Sum = x₁ + x₂ + … + xₙ
Average (arithmetic mean) = sum ÷ n
Median = the middle value of the sorted list, or the mean of the two middle values when n is even
Range = maximum − minimum

When Remove duplicates is on, the statistics are calculated from the unique values only. Results are rounded to 12 significant digits to hide floating-point noise such as 0.30000000000000004.

Frequently asked questions

How do I sort numbers from least to greatest?

Paste the numbers into the box and choose Ascending. The tool compares the numeric values, so 9 comes before 10 and negative numbers come before zero, unlike alphabetical sorting which would put 10 before 9.

Why does alphabetical sorting put 100 before 20?

Text sorting compares character by character, and the character 1 comes before 2, so 100 is placed before 20. A number sorter reads each value as a number and compares the size, giving 20, 100.

How are commas handled?

That depends on the number format. In the default mode commas separate numbers, so 3,1,2 is three numbers. In the 1,234.56 mode a comma followed by exactly three digits is a thousands separator, and in the European 1.234,56 mode the comma is the decimal mark.

Can it find numbers inside sentences?

Yes. Words and symbols are ignored and only the numbers are kept, so a sentence such as 'We sold 12 apples for $3.50 and 7 pears' gives 3.5, 7 and 12. A minus sign counts only when it is directly in front of the number and not between two digits, so a date like 2024-05-01 gives 2024, 5 and 1 rather than negative values.

How is the median calculated?

The numbers are sorted and the middle value is taken. With an even count the median is the average of the two middle values. For 1, 3, 8, 10 the median is (3 + 8) / 2 = 5.5.

Is there a limit on how many numbers I can sort?

There is no fixed limit. Sorting runs in your browser and handles hundreds of thousands of numbers in a fraction of a second. Your data is never uploaded.

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