Data storage converter

Convert data sizes between B, KB, MB, GB (powers of 1,000) and KiB, MiB, GiB (powers of 1,024). Example: 500 GB is 465.661287 GiB.

Data · B → KB0.001 KB

What to know

The data page contains seven units in two families. KB, MB and GB use powers of 1,000 (1 KB = 1,000 B, 1 MB = 1,000,000 B, 1 GB = 1,000,000,000 B), while KiB, MiB and GiB use powers of 1,024 (1 KiB = 1,024 B, 1 MiB = 1,048,576 B, 1 GiB = 1,073,741,824 B).

That split explains the familiar gap on drives. A 500 GB disk holds 500,000,000,000 B, which is 500e9 / 1,073,741,824 = 465.661287 GiB, the number that an operating system reporting in binary units shows. Going up, 256 GiB equals 274.877907 GB.

The difference grows with size: about 2.4 percent at the KB level, 4.9 percent at MB, 7.4 percent at GB. Storage vendors and network speeds use decimal prefixes, whereas RAM and many file managers use binary ones.

The page counts bytes only, with no bits and no terabytes, so a 100 Mbit/s line needs dividing by 8 first. The default pair is B to KB.

Network and storage figures meet here: a 4.7 GB disc is 4.377216 GiB, a 700 MB file is 667.572021 MiB, and 1 GiB of RAM is 1,073.741824 MB. Keep the family consistent when you compare two numbers, since mixing GB with GiB hides a 7 percent gap.

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How to use Data storage converter
  1. Type 500 in the Value field.
  2. Select GB in From and GiB in To.
  3. Read the Result line, which shows 465.661287 GiB.
  4. Use Swap units, then type 256 to read 274.877907 GB for a 256 GiB volume.

Quick answers

Why does my 1 TB drive show less than 1 TB?

The vendor counts 1,000,000,000,000 B, while binary readouts divide by 1,024 steps. That gives roughly 931 GiB; the page lists up to GB and GiB, so enter 1000 GB to see 931.322575 GiB.

How many bytes are in 1 MiB?

Exactly 1,048,576 bytes, which is 1.048576 MB in decimal units.

Does it convert bits or megabits per second?

No. Only bytes are covered. Divide a line speed in megabits by 8 to get megabytes.

Is a KB 1,000 or 1,024 bytes here?

KB is 1,000 B. For 1,024 B choose KiB.