💾 Data Storage Converter
Free online data storage converter. Convert between bits, bytes, kilobytes, megabytes, gigabytes, terabytes, petabytes and exabytes.
Conversion Reference Table
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Data Storage Conversion Guide
Data storage units can be confusing because there are two competing standards: the decimal (SI) system used by hard drive manufacturers, and the binary system used by operating systems. Our data storage converter uses the binary (IEC) standard, where 1 kilobyte = 1,024 bytes, which is what your computer's operating system reports.
The hierarchy of data storage units is: 8 bits = 1 byte, 1,024 bytes = 1 kilobyte (KB), 1,024 KB = 1 megabyte (MB), 1,024 MB = 1 gigabyte (GB), 1,024 GB = 1 terabyte (TB), 1,024 TB = 1 petabyte (PB). This is why a "500 GB" hard drive shows as slightly less than 500 GB in Windows or macOS — the drive manufacturer uses 1,000 bytes per KB, while your OS uses 1,024.
Modern Data Storage Scales
A typical smartphone photo is around 3–5 MB. A full HD movie is around 4–8 GB. A 4K movie can be 50–100 GB. A modern hard drive holds 1–20 TB. The entire internet is estimated to contain several zettabytes (ZB) of data — that's 1,024 exabytes, or over a trillion gigabytes. Our converter helps you make sense of all these scales.