compared to vs compared against

Both 'compared to' and 'compared against' are correct phrases, but they are used in slightly different contexts. 'Compared to' is used to point out similarities between two things, while 'compared against' is used to highlight differences or to evaluate one thing in relation to another.

Last updated: March 25, 2024 • 1204 views

This phrase is correct and commonly used in English to point out similarities between two things.

"compared to"

Use 'compared to' when you want to show similarities between two things. For example, 'This car is fast compared to the old model.'

Examples:

She is as tall as her sister compared to her friends.
The new phone is much lighter compared to the previous model.
His painting was compared to a masterpiece by art critics.
The hotel room was spacious compared to the tiny apartment.
The company's growth this year is impressive compared to last year.

Show examples from the web [+]

The meaning of COMPARED TO is in relation to (something else) : measured or judged against (something else). How to use compared to in a sentence.
The reproductive number of COVID-19 is higher compared to SARS coronavirus. J Travel Med. 2020 Mar 13;27(2):taaa021. doi: 10.1093/jtm/taaa021.
Handbook: IFRS® compared to US GAAP. Latest edition: Side-by-side comparison of IFRS Accounting Standards and US GAAP.
Sep 28, 2020 ... Growth rates for the 2016–19 period were faster for Black and Hispanic families, rising 33 and 65 percent, respectively, compared to White ...
Nov 2, 2017 ... Further questions have been raised about the nutritional content and the health advantages of the plant based milks compared to the ...
Nov 1, 2022 ... Pregnancy-related mortality rates among Black and AIAN women are over three and two times higher, respectively, compared to the rate for ...
compared to projection based on previous years. The cumulative difference between the reported number of deaths since1 January 2020 and the projected number ...
Oct 26, 2022 ... Minerals used in clean energy technologies compared to other power generation sources - Chart and data by the International Energy Agency.

Alternatives:

in comparison to
as opposed to
similar to
like
resembling

This phrase is correct and is used to highlight differences or to evaluate one thing in relation to another.

"compared against"

Use 'compared against' when you want to emphasize differences or evaluate one thing in relation to another. For example, 'The team's performance was poor compared against their rivals.'

Examples:

The new product's features were compared against the competition.
Her salary was low compared against industry standards.
The company's revenue was high compared against last year's numbers.
The athlete's time was slow compared against the world record.
The quality of service was excellent compared against other providers.

Show examples from the web [+]

The message's date will be compared against the current time when filtering occurs.
The message's date will be compared against a time relative to when filtering occurs.
At the end of the projects, the incurred costs are verified and compared against the initial budget estimations and the amounts paid by the EU.
URL Expressions to Filter is a list of URLs that will be compared against image and frame names to decide on fitlering actions. The wildcards can be given as filename style regular expressions.
This should be compared against other means of meeting the energy need from demand-side energy efficiency improvements and/or renewable energy supply.
The amount of the compensatable difference over the remaining period, determined on the basis of this forecast, will be compared against the value calculated using the original forecast.
The message's date will be compared against 12:00am of the date specified.
During the period from the entry into force of the Bill to 2014, the amount of the compensatable difference will be recalculated annually on the basis of actual economic data and compared against the amount originally calculated on the basis of the forecast.
The message's date will be compared against a time relative to when filtering occurs.
The price shall be compared against the average value for the preceding month.
Options should be compared against different criteria, including for example technical, institutional, economic, environmental and climate change aspects.
Moreover, there should be an analysis of the numbers of defective cases within Member States as opposed to those in cross-border trade, compared against the respective levels of national and international purchases.
Ladies and gentlemen, if we are to discuss the state of human rights in Eritrea, we must first ask ourselves what kind of standard it can be compared against.
The resulting value shall then be compared against the net notional value of the credit default swap position.
The stress measures under the programme shall be compared against risk limits and considered by the institution as part of the process set out in Article 81 of Directive 2013/36/EU.
To increase the significance and check the plausibility of the results, the values for the average performance of the 10 % most efficient installations have been compared against literature on most efficient techniques.
As compared against the list in Table 2, the amended list of recipients:
the ECB's requirements can be defined in such detail that tenders can be compared against each other and the contract can be awarded without further negotiations with the tenderers; and
Its investments are therefore compared against theoretical efficient frontiers so as to measure the cost in terms of return foregone resulting from its definition of liquidity.
When using the pooled treatment group approach, show the mean/median DPM and the mean SI for each dose group compared against the concurrent VC group.

Alternatives:

contrasted with
evaluated against
measured against
compared with
in contrast to

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compared to vs compared against

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