# Confidence interval

> A chart word, with the charts that use it.

**Definition.** A confidence interval is the range a value likely falls in, drawn as a band or a whisker. A wide interval means the value is less certain.

Updated Nov 2, 2026

## 050 · Dot plot with intervals

- **01 The estimate.** The dot is the best guess for each carrier.
- **02 The interval.** The line around it is the range it likely falls in.

## Where you see it

- [015 · Forecast band](https://usechartory.com/charts/forecast-band): Change over time · Fintech data
- [050 · Dot plot with intervals](https://usechartory.com/charts/dot-plot-with-intervals): Distribution · Logistics data

## Common mistakes

- **Reading the dot as certain** Two dots can differ while their intervals overlap. Read the intervals first.
- **Leaving out the level** Say what the interval covers, such as 95%, so readers know how sure it is.

## Questions

### What does a 95% interval mean?

If the measurement were repeated many times, about 95 in 100 such intervals would hold the true value.

### How is a forecast band related?

It is the same idea over time: the range the future value likely falls in.

## Related terms

- [Range](https://usechartory.com/glossary/range): The span between a low and a high value, drawn as one bar or one line.
- [Whisker](https://usechartory.com/glossary/whisker): The line from a box to the lowest and highest values that are not outliers.
- [Distribution](https://usechartory.com/glossary/distribution): How values spread across a range: where they cluster and where they thin out.

## Forecast band, dot plot with intervals and the other types.

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