Binary Data Conversions
Popular Comparisons
| bits | bytes | KiB | MiB | GiB | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 byte | 8 | 1 | 0.000977 | — | — |
| 1 KiB (1,024 bytes) | 8,192 | 1,024 | 1 | 0.000977 | — |
| 1 MiB (1,024 KiB) | 8,388,608 | 1,048,576 | 1,024 | 1 | 0.000977 |
| 1 GiB (1,024 MiB) | 8,589,934,592 | 1,073,741,824 | 1,048,576 | 1,024 | 1 |
| 1 TiB (1,024 GiB) | — | — | 1,073,741,824 | 1,048,576 | 1,024 |
Binary Data
Digital data is stored and transmitted in binary units, with the bit (b) — representing a single binary digit, either 0 or 1 — as the fundamental unit of information. Eight bits constitute one byte (B), a grouping that emerged from the practical need to encode 256 distinct characters (2⁸ = 256) to cover the ASCII character set. The byte remains the foundational unit for measuring file sizes, memory capacity, and data transfer rates.
Above the byte, two parallel systems of naming exist and are frequently confused. The SI decimal system uses prefixes based on powers of ten: 1 kilobyte (KB) = 1,000 bytes, 1 megabyte (MB) = 1,000,000 bytes, and so on. The binary system, preferred in computer architecture, uses powers of two: 1 kibibyte (KiB) = 1,024 bytes, 1 mebibyte (MiB) = 1,048,576 bytes. Hard drive manufacturers typically use decimal prefixes, while operating systems historically used binary values while applying SI labels — the source of the persistent discrepancy between advertised and reported storage capacities.
Data transfer speeds are measured in bits per second (bps), not bytes, which explains why a 100 Mbps internet connection downloads a 100 MB file in approximately 8 seconds rather than one. Understanding the relationship between bits and bytes, and between decimal and binary prefixes, is essential knowledge in computer science, networking, and digital systems engineering.