# can I compare standard deviation and mean? [closed]

I hope no question is too simple. I am just learning, and I came across an expression that compared standard deviation and mean of a distribution. I thought that it makes no sense to compare them, meaning that no useful information can be obtained from it. Am I wrong?

## closed as off-topic by Sycorax, Alexis, mdewey, Peter Flom♦Mar 27 at 10:45

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• Could you give the context in which they were being compared, and the exact nature of the comparison? A quote, and if possible a reference or link would help, if there is one. – Glen_b Mar 21 '13 at 22:15
• I'm voting to close this question as off-topic because the OP has not answered questions asked. – Peter Flom Mar 27 at 10:45

You can look at $\sigma / \mu$ which is the coefficient of variation.