Data Storage Converter

Convert between bits, bytes, kilobytes, megabytes, gigabytes, terabytes, and petabytes in both decimal (SI) and binary (IEC) standards. Understand the difference between GB and GiB.

Value

From Unit

Decimal (SI — powers of 10)

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Bit (b)

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Byte (B)

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Kilobyte (KB)

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Megabyte (MB)

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Gigabyte (GB)

—

Terabyte (TB)

—

Petabyte (PB)

Binary (IEC — powers of 2)

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Kibibyte (KiB)

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Mebibyte (MiB)

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Gibibyte (GiB)

—

Tebibyte (TiB)

Download Time Estimator

Internet speed (Mbps)

Decimal (SI) vs Binary (IEC) Units

Decimal / SI (powers of 10)

1 KB = 1,000 bytes

1 MB = 1,000,000 bytes

1 GB = 1,000,000,000 bytes

Used by hard drive manufacturers and network providers.

Binary / IEC (powers of 2)

1 KiB = 1,024 bytes

1 MiB = 1,048,576 bytes

1 GiB = 1,073,741,824 bytes

Used by operating systems for RAM and file sizes.

Common Data Storage Conversions

1 KB (SI)

1,000 bytes

1 KiB (IEC)

1,024 bytes

1 GB (SI)

0.931 GiB

1 GiB (IEC)

1.074 GB

1 TB (SI)

1,000 GB

1 TiB (IEC)

1,099.5 GB

'How many MB are in 1 GB?', 'answer' => 'In the SI decimal system: 1 GB = 1,000 MB. In the IEC binary system: 1 GiB = 1,024 MiB. Most consumer contexts (internet speeds, storage labels) use the decimal definition, while operating systems traditionally use binary values. When in doubt, check whether the source specifies SI or IEC.'], ['question' => 'What is a petabyte?', 'answer' => 'A petabyte (PB) is 1,000 terabytes or 1,000,000,000,000,000 bytes (10¹⁵ bytes) in the SI system. To put it in perspective: the entire printed collection of the US Library of Congress is estimated at about 10 terabytes, meaning 1 petabyte could hold roughly 100 such libraries. Major cloud providers and data centres routinely manage hundreds of petabytes.'], ]" />