Data set or dataset?
data set is a noun meaning “A file of related records on a computer-readable medium such as a disk…”; dataset is a noun meaning “Alternative form of data set”. data set is written as two words and dataset as one word; they are used differently.
What is the difference between data set and dataset?
| data set | dataset | |
|---|---|---|
| Part of speech | noun | noun |
| Meaning | A file of related records on a computer-readable medium such as a disk, especially one on a mainframe computer A set of data to be analyzed | Alternative form of data set |
| Example | none recorded | none recorded |
| Forms | none | datasets |
| Pronunciation | not recorded | not recorded |
| In writing | not counted (the list counts single words) | 1.1 times per million words |
Sources: data set and dataset in the English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0); written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
Every current meaning of data set and dataset
data set
- 1
A file of related records on a computer-readable medium such as a disk, especially one on a mainframe computer
- 2
datedA modem that connects a device such as a teletype to an ordinary telephone
- 3
A set of data to be analyzed
dataset
- 1
Alternative form of data set
Source: the English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0); obsolete, archaic, dialect and rare senses left out.
Which is more common, data set or dataset?
data set is a phrase, which the list of single words does not count; dataset 1.1 times per million words.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How many people search data set vs dataset?
“data set vs dataset” is searched about 90 times a month on Google and 10 on Bing in the United States. Google counts close variants of a query together (“dataset vs data set”, “data set or dataset”).
Sources: Google Ads keyword data through DataForSEO and Microsoft Advertising keyword data through DataForSEO, the average month from September 2025 to August 2026.