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SESK: Stuff Everyone Should Know · sesk.info/tech-kibibyte-vs-kilobyte

How many bytes are in one kibibyte (KiB)?

1,024 bytes. A kilobyte (kB) is exactly 1,000.

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  1. 1,024 bytes ✔
  2. 1,000 bytes
  3. 8,192 bytes

Why: The SI prefix kilo means 1,000. The binary prefix kibi (Ki) means 2 to the 10th, which is 1,024. Storage labels often use GB, while some software reports binary-sized GiB.

Huh, didn't know that: The same pattern runs up the scale: mebi (MiB) is 2 to the 20th, which is 1,048,576 bytes.

The dad joke
Why did the kilobyte feel left out? It was 24 bytes short of a kibibyte party.
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References

Answer: 1,024 bytes. The SI prefix kilo means 1,000. The binary prefix kibi (Ki) means 2 to the 10th, which is 1,024. Storage labels often use GB, while some software reports binary-sized GiB.

  1. NIST: Prefixes for binary multiples physics.nist.gov/cuu/Units/binary.html
    one kibibit 1 Kibit = 2 10 bit = 1024 bit one kilobit 1 kbit = 10 3 bit = 1000 bit
    Checked 2026-10-10.

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