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How to Use Aggregate Percentages to Determine Whole Percentage

Percentages are portions of whole numbers. They are equal to fractions that have 100 in their denominator. For example, 45 percent is equal to 45/100. An aggregate percentage is a percentage taken over a segment of time that is smaller than the whole. For example, if the percentage of apples to all fruits is calculated over a whole year, then there would be an aggregate percentage for each month. Unfortunately, aggregate percentages cannot be summed to yield whole percentages.

Instructions

- 1
  Figure out the total units of the category for which each aggregate sum was calculated during each time segment. For example, if the aggregate percentage of apples to all fruits is known for each month in a year, then find out the total number of fruit sold in each month of that year.
- 2
  Multiply each aggregate percentage divided by 100 with their corresponding value in Step 1. For example, if there were 1,200 fruits sold in May, and the aggregate percentage of apples in May was 5 percent, multiply 1,200 * .05 to yield 60.
- 3
  Sum the results from Step 2 for each month. That is, find the total number of apples sold over the whole year.
- 4
  Divide the result from Step 3 by the sum of each of the values from Step 1. In this example, divide the total number of apples sold over the year by the total number of fruits sold in the year. This resulting value is the whole percentage.

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