We usually learn that 1 kilobyte is 1024 bytes, 1 MB is 1024 kilobytes, etc. But is this true or a kilobyte is precisely 1000 bytes?

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The common belief that 1 kilobyte equals 1024 bytes stems from binary computing (2^10), but the International System of Units defines it as 1000 bytes. The International Electrotechnical Commission introduced binary prefixes (KiB, MiB, GiB) to distinguish powers of 1024 from decimal SI prefixes (kB, MB, GB) which use powers of 1000. The discrepancy grows with larger units, reaching nearly 27% difference at the quettabyte scale. This dual convention creates confusion, especially when hardware manufacturers use decimal units while operating systems display binary units.

1 kilobyte is precisely 1000 bytes

Why do we often say 1 kilobyte = 1024 bytes?

<p>This topic always makes me mad. I grew up around computers in the 90s and it was always weird, but a kilobyte was 1024 bytes, etc. I think some hardware/computer manufacturers owe me for my mental health over this because they were either advertising falsely or lying to me. And because of that, I firmly stand by the fact that 1kB is 1024B. If they want to define something that’s 1000 bytes, let them use that weird KiB gibberish for that!</p>
