Which category of analytics is used to summarize data and describe what has happened?

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Descriptive analytics focuses on summarizing historical data to describe what happened. It uses simple measures and visuals—totals, averages, counts, distributions, and dashboards—to provide a clear picture of past performance. For example, a monthly sales report showing total revenue, average order value, and transaction counts tells you what occurred during that period. This sets the stage for deeper analysis by offering a clear summary before exploring why it happened (diagnostic), what might happen next (predictive), or what actions to take (prescriptive).