Enter the value and choose the units, from bits per second to gigabytes per second. Internet plans are usually quoted in megabits per second, while file downloads are shown in megabytes per second, and a byte is 8 bits, so the two differ by a factor of 8. The converter uses decimal prefixes, where a megabit is 1,000,000 bits.
A provider’s advertised speed and a measured speed-test result can differ.
Data Rate Converter: worked example
| Data Rate to convert | 100 |
|---|---|
| Starting unit | Megabits per second |
| Requested unit | Megabytes per second |
| Converted value | 12.5 |
| 1 unit of "from" in "to" units | 0.125 |
Data Rate Converter: formula
Common error: Expecting a 100 megabit plan to download 100 megabytes per second. The best case is one eighth of that, and real speeds are usually lower.
Real throughput is lower than the plan rate because of protocol overhead, Wi-Fi conditions, server limits and shared connections. Binary prefixes such as mebibytes use 1,024 and differ slightly from decimal ones. Download and upload speeds are often different.
Latency is a separate measure from bandwidth.
Data Rate Converter: changing Data Rate to convert
| Data Rate to convert | Converted value | 1 unit of "from" in "to" units |
|---|---|---|
| 80 | 10 | 0.125 |
| 90 | 11.3 | 0.125 |
| 100 (example) | 12.5 | 0.125 |
| 110 | 13.8 | 0.125 |
| 120 | 15 | 0.125 |
Data Rate Converter: compare input ranges
| Input | Tested from | To | Converted value: low input | Converted value: high input | Swing |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Requested unit | Bits per second | Gigabytes per second | 100,000,000 | 0.013 | 100,000,000 (799999999%) |
| Starting unit | Bits per second | Gigabytes per second | 0.00001 | 100,000 | 100,000 (100000%) |
| Data Rate to convert | 90 | 110 | 11.3 | 13.8 | 2.5 (20%) |
Data Rate Converter: individual input comparisons
| Input | Value | Converted value | 1 unit of "from" in "to" units |
|---|---|---|---|
| Data Rate to convert | 80 | 10 | 0.125 |
| 90 | 11.3 | 0.125 | |
| 100 | 12.5 | 0.125 | |
| 110 | 13.8 | 0.125 | |
| 120 | 15 | 0.125 | |
| Starting unit | Bits per second | 0.00001 | 0 |
| Kilobits per second | 0.013 | 0.00013 | |
| Megabits per second | 12.5 | 0.125 | |
| Gigabits per second | 12,500 | 125 | |
| Bytes per second | 0.0001 | 0 | |
| Kilobytes per second | 0.1 | 0.001 | |
| Megabytes per second | 100 | 1 | |
| Gigabytes per second | 100,000 | 1,000 | |
| Requested unit | Bits per second | 100,000,000 | 1,000,000 |
| Kilobits per second | 100,000 | 1,000 | |
| Megabits per second | 100 | 1 | |
| Gigabits per second | 0.1 | 0.001 | |
| Bytes per second | 12,500,000 | 125,000 | |
| Kilobytes per second | 12,500 | 125 | |
| Megabytes per second | 12.5 | 0.125 | |
| Gigabytes per second | 0.013 | 0.00013 |
Data Rate Converter: which assumptions move the result?
Data Rate Converter: values and definitions
| Quantity and definition | Value used |
|---|---|
| Data Rate to convert | 100 |
| Starting unit — Unit to convert from. | Megabits per second |
| Requested unit — Unit to convert to. | Megabytes per second |
| Converted value | 12.5 |
| 1 unit of "from" in "to" units | 0.125 |
Unit Conversion calculators: Force Converter Calculator, Torque Converter Calculator, Frequency Converter Calculator, Fuel Economy Converter Calculator, Length Converter Calculator, Weight Converter Calculator.
Internet speed is sold in bits per second, and files are measured in bytes, with eight bits to the byte. A 100 megabit connection therefore moves at most 12.5 megabytes each second, which is the number a download window shows. The prefixes are decimal here, a thousand at each step, as network gear uses them.
Real transfers run below the line rate because of protocol overhead and other traffic. Reference values: 8 megabits per second is 1 megabyte per second, and 1 gigabit per second is 125 megabytes per second. A 1 gigabyte file needs about 80 seconds at 100 megabits per second under ideal conditions.
Note whether the unit is a lowercase b for bits or a capital B for bytes. The case carries the factor of eight.
See the networking category for download time, storage and subnet calculators, the number base converter for binary units, and the time converter for durations. The frequency converter handles cycles, and the energy converter covers other units. Test your real speed with a speed test at different times.
What is the difference between Mbps and MB/s?
Mbps is megabits per second, used for connection speeds, and MB/s is megabytes per second, used for file transfers. One megabyte is 8 megabits.
How long does a download take?
Divide the file size in megabits by the speed in megabits per second. A 1 gigabyte file is 8,000 megabits, so at 100 Mbps it takes about 80 seconds.
Why is my real speed lower than my plan?
Overhead, Wi-Fi limits, congestion and server speed reduce it, and a wired connection usually gets closer to the plan rate.