How well the sample represents the population relies on two important statistics – the survey’s margin of error and confidence level. They tell us how well the spoonfuls represent the entire pot.

Some of the better-known statistical rules of thumb that a smart consumer might think apply in polls are more nuanced than they seem. In other words, as is so often the case in life, it’s complicated.

Understanding the confidence interval will help you grasp what an election poll is -- or is not -- saying. As you might have guessed, the media consistently gets it wrong.

In the last year, statistics have been unusually important in the news. How accurate is the COVID-19 test you or others are using? How do researchers know the effectiveness of new therapeutics for ...

NBC News’ Carrie Dann explains how we get our polling numbers together and breaks down the margin of error.

How four pollsters, and The Upshot, interpreted 867 poll responses: You’ve heard of the “margin of error” in polling. Just about every article on a new poll dutifully notes that the margin ...