Data Storage Converter

Convert between bits, bytes, kilobytes, megabytes, gigabytes, terabytes, petabytes, and binary units (KiB, MiB, GiB, TiB).

Value
From
To
1 Gigabyte = — Megabytes
Common Data Storage Conversions
FromToResult
1 ByteBits8 bits
1 KBBytes1,000 B
1 KiBBytes1,024 B
1 MBKB1,000 KB
1 MiBKiB1,024 KiB
1 GBMB1,000 MB
1 GiBMiB1,024 MiB
1 TBGB1,000 GB

Frequently Asked Questions

A Gigabyte (GB) uses SI decimal prefixes: 1 GB = 1,000,000,000 bytes (10⁹). A Gibibyte (GiB) uses binary prefixes: 1 GiB = 1,073,741,824 bytes (2³⁰). Hard drive manufacturers use GB (decimal), while operating systems like Windows report in GiB, which is why a "500 GB" drive shows as ~465 GiB.
In SI (decimal): 1 MB = 1,000,000 bytes. In binary: 1 MiB (mebibyte) = 1,048,576 bytes (2²⁰). The difference is about 4.86%. Storage manufacturers use the decimal MB, while RAM and OS file sizes typically use the binary MiB convention.
A petabyte (PB) = 10¹⁵ bytes = 1,000 terabytes = 1,000,000 gigabytes. To put this in perspective, 1 PB could store roughly 200 million songs or 1.5 billion MP3 files. Major data centers store data in petabytes; the internet generates many petabytes of data daily.
Drive manufacturers label capacity using decimal GB (1 GB = 10⁹ bytes), but operating systems report using binary GiB (1 GiB = 2³⁰ bytes = 1.074 × 10⁹ bytes). A 1 TB drive holds 10¹² bytes, which your OS reports as ~931 GiB. This is not missing space — it is a measurement convention difference.
A megabyte (MB) = 1,000,000 bytes. A mebibyte (MiB) = 1,048,576 bytes (2²⁰). The ~4.86% difference matters in storage and memory contexts. RAM is always measured in MiB (powers of 2), while internet data transfer and storage marketing use MB (powers of 10).
Approximately 200–500 photos fit in 1 GB, depending on resolution and format. A JPEG from a modern smartphone is typically 3–5 MB, so 1 GB holds about 200–333 photos. RAW files from a DSLR can be 20–50 MB each, fitting only 20–50 per GB. One minute of 4K video can be 400 MB to 2 GB.
Internet speed is measured in megabits per second (Mbps) because network hardware transmits data one bit at a time. Storage is measured in megabytes (MB) because file sizes are reported in bytes. Since 1 byte = 8 bits, a 100 Mbps connection downloads at about 12.5 MB/s.
No — a 500 GB SSD shows as ~465 GiB in your operating system because manufacturers use decimal GB while OSes report in binary GiB. SSDs also reserve additional space for wear leveling and over-provisioning (typically 7–28% of raw NAND capacity), further reducing usable space.
Streaming data usage depends on quality: SD (480p) ≈ 0.7 GB/hour, HD (1080p) ≈ 3 GB/hour, 4K Ultra HD ≈ 7–25 GB/hour on services like Netflix. Music streaming uses about 40–160 MB/hour. Video calls on Zoom use roughly 0.5–1.5 GB/hour.
The IEC introduced binary prefixes in 1998 to eliminate ambiguity: kibibyte (KiB) = 2¹⁰ = 1,024 bytes, mebibyte (MiB) = 2²⁰, gibibyte (GiB) = 2³⁰, tebibyte (TiB) = 2⁴⁰. Despite the standard, "GB" is still widely used for both decimal and binary values in everyday language.

About This Data Storage Converter

This free data storage converter converts between bits, bytes, kilobytes, megabytes, gigabytes, terabytes, and their binary equivalents (KiB, MiB, GiB, TiB). Both SI (decimal, base-10) and IEC (binary, base-2) prefixes are supported.

When to use this converter

  • Comparing hard drive and RAM capacities across manufacturers
  • Calculating download sizes and estimated transfer times
  • Understanding SI vs IEC binary prefix differences
  • Converting buffer sizes and memory allocations in software development

Standards & References

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