Kilobytes to Bytes

1,024, in the binary convention this converter uses — the same one built into Windows, into RAM specifications and into most software. The SI additionally defines a decimal kilobyte of exactly 1,000 bytes, and since 1998 the IEC name for the 1024-byte unit has been the kibibyte (KiB).

Multiply the number of kilobytes by 1,024: 1 KB = 1,024 B, 10 KB = 10,240 B and 0.5 KB = 512 B. To go the other way, divide the byte count by 1,024.

A byte is 8 bits and the smallest piece of memory a computer addresses on its own; it stores 256 distinct values, 0 to 255. One character of plain ASCII text occupies exactly one byte, while UTF-8 spends 1 to 4 bytes per character — which is why the same sentence in Russian or Chinese takes up more bytes than in English.