Bits Conversion

What Is a Bit?

By

Joe Sexton

Joe is the creator of Inch Calculator and has over 20 years of experience in engineering and construction. He holds several degrees and certifications.

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Sexton, J. (n.d.). Bits Conversion. Inch Calculator. Retrieved January 4, 2025, from https://www.inchcalculator.com/convert/from-bit/

A bit is a unit used to measure data storage.

Bits can be abbreviated as b; for example, 1 bit can be written as 1 b.

You can use our binary calculator to convert a number of bits to other number systems such as hex or decimal.

How Much Is a Bit?

A bit, or more formally, a binary digit, is the smallest unit of information stored in digital systems. A bit can hold one of two possible values: one or zero.

Computers represent bits in circuits using a variety of techniques, but the most common way is using changes in voltage to represent the bit's value of one or zero.

Multiples of bits are represented using SI prefixes such as kilo, mega, giga, or tera.

How to Convert Bits

To convert bits to another unit of data storage, you need to multiply the value by a conversion factor. A conversion factor is a numerical value used to change the units of a measurement without changing the value.^[1]

You can find the conversion factors for bits in the conversion table below.

Then, multiply the data storage measurement by the conversion factor to find the equivalent value in the desired unit of measurement.

bits × conversion factor = result

You can also use a calculator, such as one of the converters below, for the conversion.