What is the difference between binary and decimal?

Binary (KiB, MiB) uses base 1024: 1 KiB = 1024 bytes. Decimal (KB, MB) uses base 1000: 1 KB = 1000 bytes. RAM and SSDs use binary; hard drive manufacturers traditionally use decimal.

Why does my 1 TB hard drive show as 931 GB?

Hard drives use decimal (1000-based) capacity labeling, while Windows often displays sizes in binary (1024-based). 1,000,000,000,000 bytes ÷ 1,073,741,824 bytes/GiB ≈ 931 GiB.

Which mode should I use?

Use binary for RAM, SSDs, and USB drives. Use decimal for comparing manufacturer specifications of hard drives and external storage.

What are the exact conversion factors?

Binary: 1 KB=1024 B, 1 MB=1024² B, 1 GB=1024³ B. Decimal: 1 KB=1000 B, 1 MB=1000² B, 1 GB=1000³ B.

How do I convert bytes to bits (e.g. Megabyte to Megabit)?

One byte equals 8 bits, so the same applies to every prefix: 1 Megabyte = 8 Megabit, 1 Gigabyte = 8 Gigabit. Pick a byte unit on one side (MB) and a bit unit on the other (Mbit) to convert across. Byte units use an uppercase B (MB) and bit units a lowercase b (Mb).

Data Storage Converter

Free data storage converter supporting binary (KiB, MiB, GiB) and decimal (KB, MB, GB) conversions between bytes, kilobytes, megabytes, gigabytes, terabytes, petabytes, and bit units (bit, Kbit, Mbit, Gbit) — including byte-to-bit conversions like Megabyte to Megabit.

Convert between byte and bit data units with binary (1024) or decimal (1000) mode.

Result = Value \times \frac{Factor _{f r o m}}{Factor _{t o}}

Related calculators

Speed Converter

Convert between different speed units including km/h, mph, m/s, knots, and ft/s.

Time Unit Converter

Convert between seconds, minutes, hours, days, weeks, months, and years.

Length Converter

Convert between metric and imperial length units instantly

Temperature Converter

Convert between Celsius, Fahrenheit, Kelvin, Réaumur, and Rankine scales instantly