In the data‑driven economy, raw information seldom arrives in a pristine, analysis‑ready format. Typos, duplicate entries, missing values, inconsistent units, and out‑of‑range numbers can all distort insights and jeopardize business decisions. Mastering data cleaning is therefore a mission‑critical skill for analysts who want to deliver accurate, actionable results. This guide walks you through a structured process—adopted by leading enterprises—so you can transform messy datasets into high‑quality assets.