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.
Binary GiB vs Decimal GB in Cloud and RAM Pricing
BrainyCalculators editorial insight — unique to this tool
Hard-drive makers label capacity in decimal gigabytes (1 GB = 10⁹ bytes) while operating systems report gibibytes (1 GiB = 2³⁰ bytes) — a "1 TB" SSD shows ~931 GiB in Windows. AWS S3 bills per GB-month but RAM is sold in power-of-two GiB sticks. Video editors planning 4K footage (~1 GB per minute raw) and DBAs sizing PostgreSQL instances both need consistent base-2 vs base-10 math to avoid surprise overages.
When to use this calculator
Use when converting bytes, KB/MB/GB/TB or KiB/MiB/GiB for storage planning, bandwidth estimates, or devops sizing — not liquid volume or file download time alone.
| Reference | Value | Context |
|---|---|---|
| 1 GiB | 1.074 GB | OS vs label mismatch |
| 1 TB (decimal) | 931 GiB | Typical SSD display |
| 4K ProRes/min (approx.) | ~6 GB | Post-production planning |
| AWS S3 Standard | ~$0.023/GB-mo | us-east-1 list price |
Not what you need? For monthly cloud bill totals across services, use Cloud Cost. For how long a file takes to download, use Internet Speed.
Need to estimate photo or video project sizes?
This page converts raw storage units (KB, MB, GB, GiB, TiB) and explains decimal vs binary prefixes. For image resolution, video bitrate, and capacity planning tools, use our File Size Calculator →
Digital Storage: Bits, Bytes, and the GiB vs GB Trap
A 1 TB hard drive marketed to consumers rarely formats to 1,000 GB of usable space in Windows — manufacturers use decimal TB (10¹² bytes) while operating systems often display tebibytes (2⁴⁰ bytes). RAM is sold in binary GiB steps; broadband is sold in decimal megabits per second. Storage conversion without naming the convention is how “missing” gigabytes disappear after purchase.
BrainyCalculators toggles binary (KiB, MiB, GiB, TiB) and decimal (KB, MB, GB, TB) interpretations and shows bit ↔ byte relationships (8 bits per byte). Use it when reconciling cloud invoice GB-months, backup catalog sizes, and database allocation scripts.
File Size Calculator on this site estimates photo and video project totals; Internet Speed converts Mbps download time. This page is raw unit algebra on storage capacity — not network throughput, not RAM clock speed, not addressable memory in CPU architecture beyond byte counts.
Why 1 TB ≠ 1,000 GiB in Windows
Manufacturers market decimal TB; many file browsers display binary GiB. Always name the convention before comparing drive labels, RAM sticks, and S3 storage reports.
Common Data Storage Conversions
How the Data Storage Converter Works
Formula, assumptions, and calculation steps for this conversion tool.
Methodology
Conversion calculators multiply by fixed conversion factors after identifying the source and destination units.
Calculation Steps
- Choose the input unit and output unit.
- Enter the amount to convert.
- Apply the standard conversion factor.
- Return the converted value with unit labels.
Assumptions and Limits
- Conversions use standard factors unless a regional variant is selected.
- Rounding is applied for readability.
- Temperature and pressure conversions may require formulas rather than simple multiplication.
Frequently Asked Questions
Manufacturers advertise decimal terabytes (10¹² bytes) while Windows often displays binary gibibytes (2³⁰ bytes). 1 TB ≈ 0.931 TiB before formatting overhead.
GB usually means 10⁹ bytes (decimal). GiB means 2³⁰ bytes (binary). At larger sizes the gap reaches roughly 7–10%.
A megabyte is 8 megabits. A 100 Mbps connection downloads about 12.5 MB/s at full throughput, not 100 MB/s.
RAM is marketed with binary GiB steps. Storage drives often use decimal GB/TB on the box. Both appear as “GB” in casual speech.
Convert both sides to the same byte base first. A 500 GiB backup is about 537 GB decimal — the invoice unit matters for cost forecasting.
Real-World Applications
Data Storage Conversion Mistakes to Avoid
Storage Unit Conversion Reference
| Unit | Symbol | Bytes (Exact) | Common Usage |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kilobyte | KB | 1,000 | File sizes (SI/decimal) |
| Kibibyte | KiB | 1,024 | RAM, OS display |
| Megabyte | MB | 1,000,000 | File downloads |
| Mebibyte | MiB | 1,048,576 | Memory, OS |
| Gigabyte | GB | 1,000,000,000 | Storage capacity |
| Gibibyte | GiB | 1,073,741,824 | Windows display |
References
- IEC 80000-13:2008. Quantities and Units — Part 13: Information Science and Technology. IEC, 2008.
- NIST. Prefixes for Binary Multiples. National Institute of Standards and Technology, 2023.
- Tanenbaum, Andrew S. Modern Operating Systems. Pearson, 2014.
- Patterson, David A. & Hennessy, John L. Computer Organization and Design. Morgan Kaufmann, 2020.
- IEEE Std 1541-2002. IEEE Recommended Practice for Prefixes for Binary Multiples. IEEE, 2002.
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Internet Speed vs File Size
ISPs advertise speeds in Megabits per second (Mbps) — note: bits, not bytes. To estimate download time:
Example: 4 GB file at 100 Mbps = 4,000 × 8 ÷ 100 = 320 seconds (~5.3 min). Use the estimator in the calculator above.