Fitting Distributions

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This guide provides information on fitting various continuous or discrete distributions to data. 

Fitting One Continuous Distribution

1. From an open JMP data table, select Analyze > Distribution.
2. Select one or more continuous variables from Select Columns, click Y, Columns, then click OK.
   Here we chose the variable ‘World Gross’
3. Select Continuous Fit from the red triangle for the variable and select a distribution (LogNormal was selected in the example below).
4. In the resulting fitted distribution output, click on the red triangle and select Goodness of Fit (shown) or Diagnostic Plot to assess the fit of the distribution.  The small p-value suggest that the LogNormal Distribution does not provide good fit to the data.

Hollywood Movies.jmp (Help > Sample Data Folder)

Fitting All Continuous Distributions

Select Continuous Fit, then Fit All from the red triangle for the variable. JMP will compare available continuous distributions. Note: The distribution with the lowest AIC value provides the best fit to the data.  Goodness of Fit tests can be performed by selecting Goodness of Fit under the Red Triangle for the Fitted Distribution output.

Fitting Discrete Distributions

If the continuous variable contains only integer values, four discrete distributions are available under Discrete Fit.

Visit Basic Analysis > Distributions > Options for Continuous Variables > Fit Distributions in JMP Help to learn more