Convert Bits to Bytes
Convert Bits to Bytes instantly. 1 Bit (bit) equals 0.125 Bytes (B).
Bits to Bytes conversion table
| Bits (bit) | Bytes (B) |
|---|---|
| 1 bit | 0.125 B |
| 2 bit | 0.25 B |
| 3 bit | 0.375 B |
| 5 bit | 0.625 B |
| 10 bit | 1.25 B |
| 20 bit | 2.5 B |
| 50 bit | 6.25 B |
| 100 bit | 12.5 B |
| 500 bit | 62.5 B |
| 1,000 bit | 125 B |
1 Bit = 0.125 Bytes · multiply Bits by 0.125
About converting Bits to Bytes
Bits (bit) and Bytes (B) are both units of digital storage, so converting between them is a single multiplication: multiply your Bits figure by 0.125. Ten Bits comes to 1.25 Bytes, and a hundred works out at 12.5 Bytes.
Rule of thumb: going from Bits to Bytes divides, so the figure always shrinks — it takes about 8 Bits to make a single Byte. If your answer came out bigger, you have the conversion the wrong way round.
What is a Bit?
A bit is a single binary digit — one yes or no, the smallest thing a computer can distinguish. The name is a contraction of "binary digit", credited to John Tukey and made famous by Claude Shannon’s 1948 paper founding information theory. The practical thing to know is that bits and bytes live in different places: connection and network speeds are quoted in bits per second, while file sizes are in bytes. That is why a 100 Mbps line downloads at about 12.5 MB/s and people assume they have been cheated. Nobody has — the two figures are counting different things.
What is a Byte?
The byte is the unit computers actually store things in, and it has not always been eight bits. Werner Buchholz coined the word at IBM in 1956, when a byte meant however many bits a particular machine needed to hold one character — six, seven and nine-bit bytes all existed. Eight bits became the standard with the IBM System/360, and the industry never looked back. Because that old ambiguity was real, networking standards still say "octet" when they want to be unmistakable about meaning exactly eight bits.
To put both in perspective: a bit is a single yes-or-no, while a byte holds a single letter of plain text.
The converter above updates as you type, and the table lists common values for quick reference. Need the opposite direction? Use the Bytes to Bits converter, or browse all Digital Storage converters.
Frequently asked questions
How many Bytes are in one Bit?
There are 0.125 Bytes in one Bit.
How do I convert Bits to Bytes?
Multiply the number of Bits by 0.125. For example, 10 Bits = 1.25 Bytes.
What is 100 Bits in Bytes?
100 Bits is equal to 12.5 Bytes.
How do I convert Bytes to Bits?
Multiply the Bytes value by 8 (or divide by 0.125).
Is this Bits to Bytes conversion exact?
Yes, exactly. Both units are fixed against the same base by definition, and 1 Bit = 0.125 Bytes is the complete value — nothing is rounded away.
What is a Bit?
A bit is a single binary digit — one yes or no, the smallest thing a computer can distinguish. The name is a contraction of "binary digit", credited to John Tukey and made famous by Claude Shannon’s 1948 paper founding information theory. The practical thing to know is that bits and bytes live in different places: connection and network speeds are quoted in bits per second, while file sizes are in bytes. That is why a 100 Mbps line downloads at about 12.5 MB/s and people assume they have been cheated. Nobody has — the two figures are counting different things.
What is a Byte?
The byte is the unit computers actually store things in, and it has not always been eight bits. Werner Buchholz coined the word at IBM in 1956, when a byte meant however many bits a particular machine needed to hold one character — six, seven and nine-bit bytes all existed. Eight bits became the standard with the IBM System/360, and the industry never looked back. Because that old ambiguity was real, networking standards still say "octet" when they want to be unmistakable about meaning exactly eight bits.