r faq - Create categorical variable in R based on range

Question

I have a dataframe with a column of integers that I would like to use as a reference to make a new categorical variable. I want to divide the variable into three groups and set the ranges myself (ie 0-5, 6-10, etc). I tried cut but that divides the variable into groups based on a normal distribution and my data is right skewed. I have also tried to use if/then statements but this outputs a true/false value and I would like to keep my original variable. I am sure that there is a simple way to do this but I cannot seem to figure it out. Any advice on a simple way to do this quickly?

I had something in mind like this:

x   x.range
3   0-5
4   0-5
6   6-10
12  11-15

Answer 1

x <- rnorm(100,10,10)
cut(x,c(-Inf,0,5,6,10,Inf))