What is the difference between GB and GiB?

A Gigabyte (GB) uses decimal SI units (1 GB = 1,000,000,000 bytes = 1,000 MB), whereas a Gibibyte (GiB) uses binary IEC units (1 GiB = 1,073,741,824 bytes = 1,024 MiB).

How many bits are in a byte?

There are exactly 8 bits in 1 byte.

How many megabytes are in a gigabyte?

In standard decimal storage, 1 GB = 1,000 MB. In binary RAM storage (GiB), 1 GiB = 1,024 MiB.

Why does my 1TB hard drive show less than 1,000GB in Windows?

Storage manufacturers use decimal units (1TB = 1,000,000,000,000 bytes), but Windows and most operating systems display capacity using binary units labeled the same way — so what the OS shows as "GB" is actually calculating in GiB (1,024-based), making the same physical drive appear to have less space, roughly 7% less at the terabyte scale.

How many bits are in a byte, and why does it matter for internet speed?

There are 8 bits in 1 byte. Internet speeds are usually advertised in megabits per second (Mbps), while file sizes are shown in megabytes (MB) — so a "100 Mbps" connection downloads at roughly 12.5 MB/s, not 100 MB/s, a common point of confusion.

Digital Storage Converter

Instant, precise digital storage converter with live formula explanations and interactive lookup tables.

TL;DR: Digital Storage Converter performs exact deterministic conversion across data units with zero server latency.

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Mathematical Formula

Reference Conversion Table

From	To

Why Use This Tool?

Digital Storage Converter switches between decimal (SI) and binary (IEC) data units instantly — useful for understanding why a "1TB" hard drive shows less space in your operating system, or comparing file sizes, RAM, and download amounts.

How to Use the Digital Storage Converter

This converter uses exact international metrology factors to deliver accurate and reliable conversions right inside your web browser. Choose your starting unit and target unit, then type a value — the conversion updates instantly.

Unit	Equal to (in bytes)
1 Bit	0.125 B
1 Kilobyte (KB, decimal)	1,000 B
1 Kibibyte (KiB, binary)	1,024 B
1 Megabyte (MB, decimal)	1,000,000 B
1 Mebibyte (MiB, binary)	1,048,576 B
1 Gigabyte (GB, decimal)	1,000,000,000 B

Mathematical Formula & Methodology

Here is the standard mathematical equation used to calculate this result accurately:

\text{Bytes} = \text{Value} \times 1024^n \text{ (Binary / IEC)} \quad\text{or}\quad \text{Value} \times 1000^n \text{ (Decimal / SI)}

Formula Variables Explained:
Digital storage conversions across Bits, Bytes, KB/KiB, MB/MiB, GB/GiB, and TB/TiB.

Step-by-Step Worked Example

Converting 5 Gigabytes (GB) to Megabytes (MB): $5 \times 1024 = 5120 \text{ MB}$ (binary) or $5000 \text{ MB}$ (decimal).

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All processing runs locally inside your browser using JavaScript and HTML5 APIs. Your data, files, and inputs are never uploaded to any remote server. Complete privacy by design.

Frequently Asked Questions

: A Gigabyte (GB) uses decimal SI units (1 GB = 1,000,000,000 bytes = 1,000 MB), whereas a Gibibyte (GiB) uses binary IEC units (1 GiB = 1,073,741,824 bytes = 1,024 MiB).
: There are exactly 8 bits in 1 byte.
: In standard decimal storage, 1 GB = 1,000 MB. In binary RAM storage (GiB), 1 GiB = 1,024 MiB.
: Storage manufacturers use decimal units (1TB = 1,000,000,000,000 bytes), but Windows and most operating systems display capacity using binary units labeled the same way — so what the OS shows as "GB" is actually calculating in GiB (1,024-based), making the same physical drive appear to have less space, roughly 7% less at the terabyte scale.
: There are 8 bits in 1 byte. Internet speeds are usually advertised in megabits per second (Mbps), while file sizes are shown in megabytes (MB) — so a "100 Mbps" connection downloads at roughly 12.5 MB/s, not 100 MB/s, a common point of confusion.

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