Question 1

What's the difference between GB and GiB?

Accepted Answer

GB (gigabyte) uses decimal: 1 GB = 1,000 MB = 1,000,000,000 bytes. GiB (gibibyte) uses binary: 1 GiB = 1,024 MiB = 1,073,741,824 bytes. Operating systems often show GiB but label it GB.

Question 2

How many megabytes are in a gigabyte?

Accepted Answer

In decimal (SI), 1 GB = 1,000 MB. In binary (IEC), 1 GiB = 1,024 MiB. Storage manufacturers use decimal (1,000), while operating systems often use binary (1,024), causing apparent size discrepancies.

Question 3

Why does my 1TB drive show less than 1TB?

Accepted Answer

Manufacturers use decimal (1 TB = 1,000 GB), but computers use binary (1 TiB = 1,024 GiB). A 1 TB drive = 931 GiB in your OS. Also, formatting and system files consume additional space.

Question 4

Can I convert between bits and bytes?

Accepted Answer

Yes! 8 bits = 1 byte. Internet speeds use bits (Mbps = megabits per second), while file sizes use bytes (MB = megabytes). A 100 Mbps connection downloads at 12.5 MB per second.

Question 5

How much storage do I need for photos and videos?

Accepted Answer

Photos: 2-5 MB for phone cameras, 10-30 MB for DSLRs. Videos: 1 GB per 10 minutes (HD), 2-4 GB per 10 minutes (4K). A 128 GB phone holds roughly 25,000 photos or 50 hours of HD video.

Question 6

What's the difference between KB and kB?

Accepted Answer

KB (uppercase K) = kilobyte = 1,000 bytes (decimal). kB is less common. KiB = kibibyte = 1,024 bytes (binary). Similarly: MB vs MiB, GB vs GiB, TB vs TiB.

Question 7

How do cloud storage providers calculate storage?

Accepted Answer

Most cloud providers (Google Drive, Dropbox, iCloud) use decimal (GB = 1,000 MB). They count actual file sizes, not disk space consumed, so you get slightly more usable space than binary calculations.

Question 8

What's a petabyte and who uses it?

Accepted Answer

A petabyte (PB) = 1,000 terabytes = 1,000,000 gigabytes. Large companies, data centers, and cloud services use petabytes. For example, Facebook stores hundreds of petabytes of user data.

Megabyte (MB)	Gigabyte (GB)
1	0.001
2	0.002
3	0.003
4	0.004
5	0.005
10	0.01
15	0.015
20	0.02
25	0.025
50	0.05
75	0.075
100	0.1
250	0.25
500	0.5
1,000	1

Megabyte to Gigabyte Converter

Conversion Formula

About Megabyte

About Gigabyte

How to Convert Megabyte to Gigabyte

Common Megabyte to Gigabyte Conversions

Conversion Reference Table

Real-World Data Storage Conversions

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