Digital Storage

Convert bits, bytes, decimal, and binary digital storage units for computing, networking, and data workflows.

Converter

Digital Storage Converter

From Unit To Unit

Decimal control Notation

Result 1 byte = 8 bit

From definition

Byte digital storage unit.

To definition

Bit digital storage unit.

Formula

Result = input x 8 / 1.

Digital storage uses bits as the base unit.

What Digital conversions measure

Digital conversions cover units such as bits, bytes, kilobytes, and gigabytes. Converting between them lets you move between the different measurement systems and conventions used across regions and industries.

Common real-world use

Common real-world uses include storage device capacity, file sizes, mobile data plans, and network transfer.

Choosing a unit

Pick the unit your source data, audience, or regional convention already uses, and convert once at the start of a calculation rather than mixing systems partway through.

Popular Conversions

GB to MB MB to GB

All Digital Storage Conversions

Search digital storage conversions

253 of 253 conversions shown

Bits to Bytes Bits to EiBs Bits to Exabits Bits to GiBs Bits to Gigabits Bits to KiBs Bits to Kilobits Bits to Megabits Bits to MiBs Bits to Petabits Bits to PiBs Bits to Terabits Bits to TiBs Bits to YB Bits to ZB Bytes to Bits Bytes to EiBs Bytes to Exabits Bytes to GiBs Bytes to Gigabits Bytes to KiBs Bytes to Kilobits Bytes to Megabits Bytes to MiBs Bytes to Petabits Bytes to PiBs Bytes to Terabits Bytes to TiBs Bytes to YB Bytes to ZB EB to Exabits EiBs to Bits EiBs to Bytes EiBs to Exabits EiBs to GiBs EiBs to Gigabits EiBs to KiBs EiBs to Kilobits EiBs to Megabits EiBs to MiBs EiBs to Petabits EiBs to PiBs EiBs to Terabits EiBs to TiBs EiBs to YB EiBs to ZB Exabits to Bits Exabits to Bytes Exabits to EB Exabits to EiBs Exabits to GiBs Exabits to Gigabits Exabits to KiBs Exabits to Kilobits Exabits to Megabits Exabits to MiBs Exabits to Petabits Exabits to PiBs Exabits to Terabits Exabits to TiBs Exabits to YB Exabits to ZB GB to Gigabits GB to MB GiBs to Bits GiBs to Bytes GiBs to EiBs GiBs to Exabits GiBs to Gigabits GiBs to KiBs GiBs to Kilobits GiBs to Megabits GiBs to MiBs GiBs to Petabits GiBs to PiBs GiBs to Terabits GiBs to TiBs GiBs to YB GiBs to ZB Gigabits to Bits Gigabits to Bytes Gigabits to EiBs Gigabits to Exabits Gigabits to GB Gigabits to GiBs Gigabits to KiBs Gigabits to Kilobits Gigabits to Megabits Gigabits to MiBs Gigabits to Petabits Gigabits to PiBs Gigabits to Terabits Gigabits to TiBs Gigabits to YB Gigabits to ZB KB to Kilobits KiBs to Bits KiBs to Bytes KiBs to EiBs KiBs to Exabits KiBs to GiBs KiBs to Gigabits KiBs to Kilobits KiBs to Megabits KiBs to MiBs KiBs to Petabits KiBs to PiBs KiBs to Terabits KiBs to TiBs KiBs to YB KiBs to ZB Kilobits to Bits Kilobits to Bytes Kilobits to EiBs Kilobits to Exabits Kilobits to GiBs Kilobits to Gigabits Kilobits to KB Kilobits to KiBs Kilobits to Megabits Kilobits to MiBs Kilobits to Petabits Kilobits to PiBs Kilobits to Terabits Kilobits to TiBs Kilobits to YB Kilobits to ZB MB to Megabits Megabits to Bits Megabits to Bytes Megabits to EiBs Megabits to Exabits Megabits to GiBs Megabits to Gigabits Megabits to KiBs Megabits to Kilobits Megabits to MB Megabits to MiBs Megabits to Petabits Megabits to PiBs Megabits to Terabits Megabits to TiBs Megabits to YB Megabits to ZB MiBs to Bits MiBs to Bytes MiBs to EiBs MiBs to Exabits MiBs to GiBs MiBs to Gigabits MiBs to KiBs MiBs to Kilobits MiBs to Megabits MiBs to Petabits MiBs to PiBs MiBs to Terabits MiBs to TiBs MiBs to YB MiBs to ZB PB to Petabits Petabits to Bits Petabits to Bytes Petabits to EiBs Petabits to Exabits Petabits to GiBs Petabits to Gigabits Petabits to KiBs Petabits to Kilobits Petabits to Megabits Petabits to MiBs Petabits to PB Petabits to PiBs Petabits to Terabits Petabits to TiBs Petabits to YB Petabits to ZB PiBs to Bits PiBs to Bytes PiBs to EiBs PiBs to Exabits PiBs to GiBs PiBs to Gigabits PiBs to KiBs PiBs to Kilobits PiBs to Megabits PiBs to MiBs PiBs to Petabits PiBs to Terabits PiBs to TiBs PiBs to YB PiBs to ZB TB to Terabits Terabits to Bits Terabits to Bytes Terabits to EiBs Terabits to Exabits Terabits to GiBs Terabits to Gigabits Terabits to KiBs Terabits to Kilobits Terabits to Megabits Terabits to MiBs Terabits to Petabits Terabits to PiBs Terabits to TB Terabits to TiBs Terabits to YB Terabits to ZB TiBs to Bits TiBs to Bytes TiBs to EiBs TiBs to Exabits TiBs to GiBs TiBs to Gigabits TiBs to KiBs TiBs to Kilobits TiBs to Megabits TiBs to MiBs TiBs to Petabits TiBs to PiBs TiBs to Terabits TiBs to YB TiBs to ZB YB to Bits YB to Bytes YB to EiBs YB to Exabits YB to GiBs YB to Gigabits YB to KiBs YB to Kilobits YB to Megabits YB to MiBs YB to Petabits YB to PiBs YB to Terabits YB to TiBs YB to ZB ZB to Bits ZB to Bytes ZB to EiBs ZB to Exabits ZB to GiBs ZB to Gigabits ZB to KiBs ZB to Kilobits ZB to Megabits ZB to MiBs ZB to Petabits ZB to PiBs ZB to Terabits ZB to TiBs ZB to YB

About Digital Storage Conversion

Digital storage units measure the amount of data a file, drive, or memory chip can hold, ranging from a single bit up through terabytes and beyond. A bit is the smallest unit, a single binary 0 or 1, and eight bits make up a byte, the basic unit computers use to represent a character of text or a small piece of data. From there, storage scales up through kilobytes, megabytes, gigabytes, and terabytes as file sizes and drive capacities have grown over the decades.

A persistent source of confusion in digital storage is that 'kilo,' 'mega,' and 'giga' are used in two competing ways: the decimal (SI) definition, where a kilobyte is exactly 1,000 bytes, and the binary definition, where what's now technically called a kibibyte is 1,024 bytes. Storage manufacturers typically advertise capacity using the decimal definition, while operating systems often display file sizes using the binary definition, which is why a drive labeled '1 TB' often shows as roughly 931 GB in an operating system. This converter supports both bit/byte conversions and the decimal storage units used in everyday file sizes, drive capacities, and data transfer rates.

Understanding digital storage units has become an everyday practical skill as data-heavy tasks, streaming media, cloud backups, photo libraries, have made file sizes and storage capacities a routine part of technology decisions. Comparing a phone's storage tier, evaluating whether a cloud plan is enough for a photo backup, or understanding whether an internet plan's Mbps speed can handle a large download all require moving fluently between bits, bytes, and their many prefixed multiples, exactly what this converter is designed to make straightforward.

When comparing storage figures, it helps to notice whether a specification is using the decimal (1,000-based) or binary (1,024-based) definition of kilo-, mega-, and giga-, since operating systems, drive manufacturers, and networking specs don't always use the same convention, which explains most apparent 'missing storage' confusion.

Quick Facts

Base unit: byte (8 bits)
Binary prefixes: KiB, MiB, GiB (powers of 1024)
Decimal prefixes: KB, MB, GB (powers of 1000)
Common industries
- Computing
- Networking
- Data centers
- Telecommunications

Common Digital Storage Measurements

The byte (B) is the standard unit of digital information, equal to 8 bits; the SI prefixes and binary (IEC) prefixes both describe multiples of it.

Unit	Symbol	Equal to
Bit	b	1/8 byte
Byte	B	8 bits
Kilobyte	KB	1,000 bytes (decimal)
Megabyte	MB	1,000,000 bytes (decimal)
Gigabyte	GB	1,000,000,000 bytes (decimal)
Terabyte	TB	1,000,000,000,000 bytes (decimal)

Conversion Formulas

Bytes to bits: multiply by 8
KB to MB: divide by 1,000
MB to GB: divide by 1,000
GB to TB: divide by 1,000
GB to MB: multiply by 1,000

Practical Examples

A 5 MB photo is about 40,000,000 bits, since 5,000,000 × 8 = 40,000,000.
A 500 GB hard drive holds about 0.5 TB, since 500 ÷ 1,000 = 0.5.
A 100 Mbps internet connection can, in theory, transfer about 12.5 MB per second, since 100 ÷ 8 = 12.5.
A 2 TB backup drive holds about 2,000 GB, since 2 × 1,000 = 2,000.

Frequently asked questions

Why does my 1 TB hard drive show less than 1,000 GB in my computer?

Drive manufacturers use the decimal definition (1 TB = 1,000,000,000,000 bytes), while most operating systems calculate and display capacity using the binary definition (1 TiB = 1,099,511,627,776 bytes). Using the OS's binary math, a 1 TB (decimal) drive shows as about 931 GiB, which looks like 'missing' space but is really just a difference in counting convention.

What is the difference between a bit and a byte?

A bit is a single binary digit, 0 or 1. A byte is a group of 8 bits and is the standard unit for representing a character or small piece of data, which is why file and storage sizes are measured in bytes (and their multiples) rather than bits.

Why is internet speed measured in Mbps but file size in MB?

Internet speed is conventionally measured in megabits per second (Mbps), a networking tradition, while file sizes are measured in megabytes (MB). Since a byte is 8 bits, you divide Mbps by 8 to estimate the maximum MB-per-second download speed.

What's the difference between a kilobyte (KB) and a kibibyte (KiB)?

A kilobyte (KB), by the modern SI-based standard, is exactly 1,000 bytes. A kibibyte (KiB), a separate binary unit introduced to remove ambiguity, is exactly 1,024 bytes. Many operating systems and older software still label 1,024-byte units as 'KB' even though 'KiB' is the technically correct term.

How many bytes are in a gigabyte?

Using the decimal definition common for storage marketing, a gigabyte is exactly 1,000,000,000 (one billion) bytes.

When Should I Use Each Digital Storage Unit?

Byte — Used as the fundamental unit for file sizes and memory addressing.
Gigabyte (GB) — Used for storage drive capacity and mobile data plans, typically in decimal units.
Gibibyte (GiB) — Used by operating systems for actual binary memory and file-system reporting.
Bit — Used for network transfer speeds, measured in bits per second (bps).

Common Mistakes

❌ Confusing bits and bytes, an 8x error that misreads network speeds versus file sizes.
❌ Assuming 1 GB equals 1 GiB, when manufacturers use decimal GB while operating systems often report binary GiB.
❌ Mixing up storage capacity (GB) with data transfer speed (Mbps), which use different unit families entirely.
❌ Misreading a hard drive's advertised capacity against the smaller usable capacity shown by the operating system.

History

The byte emerged in the 1950s as computer architects settled on grouping bits into fixed-size chunks for addressing memory, with 8 bits per byte becoming the dominant standard by the 1960s. Storage capacity was originally reported using binary prefixes informally, since memory was naturally organized in powers of two, but hard drive manufacturers later adopted decimal (powers-of-1000) prefixes because it made advertised capacities look larger and aligned with standard SI usage. This created persistent confusion between advertised and actual capacity that the International Electrotechnical Commission tried to resolve in 1998 by introducing kibibyte, mebibyte, and gibibyte as explicitly binary units, though decimal GB and TB remain the marketing norm across the storage and telecom industries today.

Industry Applications

Computing
Networking
Data centers
Telecommunications

Why Convert Digital Storage Units?

Storage capacity, memory specs, and network speeds are reported in a mix of binary and decimal units, so accurate conversion prevents mismatched expectations between advertised and actual capacity. If your workflow also involves data transfer timing, see our Frequency converters and our Time converters.