Understanding data storage units
Decimal prefixes use powers of 1,000: 1 GB = 1,000 MB. Binary prefixes use powers of 1,024: 1 GiB = 1,024 MiB. Eight bits make one byte; a lowercase b and uppercase B can change the quantity by a factor of eight.
Conversion method
For linear units, multiply the input by its factor to the base unit, then divide by the target factor. The table lists definitions where exact and approximate constants where applicable.
| Unit | 1 unit in base units | Definition |
|---|---|---|
| Bit (bit) | 0.125 | Exact definition; display may be rounded |
| Byte (B) | 1 | Exact definition; display may be rounded |
| Kilobyte (kB) | 1,000 | Exact definition; display may be rounded |
| Megabyte (MB) | 1,000,000 | Exact definition; display may be rounded |
| Gigabyte (GB) | 1,000,000,000 | Exact definition; display may be rounded |
| Terabyte (TB) | 1.00000000e+12 | Exact definition; display may be rounded |
| Kibibyte (KiB) | 1,024 | Exact definition; display may be rounded |
| Mebibyte (MiB) | 1,048,576 | Exact definition; display may be rounded |
| Gibibyte (GiB) | 1,073,741,824 | Exact definition; display may be rounded |
| Tebibyte (TiB) | 1.09951163e+12 | Exact definition; display may be rounded |
| Kilobit (kbit) | 125 | Exact definition; display may be rounded |
| Megabit (Mbit) | 125,000 | Exact definition; display may be rounded |
| Gigabit (Gbit) | 125,000,000 | Exact definition; display may be rounded |
Worked example and common conversions
10 MB = 0.01 GB. Keep full precision during conversion, then round the final result to the precision of your measurement.
| From | To |
|---|---|
| 10 MB | 0.01 GB |
| 10 GB | 10,000 MB |
| 10 kB | 0.01 MB |
| 10 GB | 0.01 TB |
| 10 MB | 9.5367431641 MiB |
| 10 Mbit | 1.25 MB |