Use the digital storage converter to express a known byte quantity in another unit. Use the storage needs calculator to calculate a three-year planning amount from file categories, stored copies and an entered annual growth rate. The latter applies publisher-defined planning rules; its tier is not a purchase recommendation.
| Feature | Digital storage | Storage needs |
|---|---|---|
| Editable inputs | Value, From, To | Photos, Videos, Documents, Apps and games, Other files, Total stored copies, Annual growth rate |
| Units | B, KB, MB, GB, TB, KiB, MiB, GiB, TiB | Decimal GB inputs and GB/TB planning results |
| Operation | Input × source byte factor ÷ target byte factor | Sum file categories × total copies × (1 + annual rate/100)³ |
| Time horizon | None | Fixed three years |
| Supporting results | Units other than the selected source and target | Current data, backup storage, immediate need, three-year need, growth rate |
Decimal GB and binary GiB describe different unit sizes: 1 GB is 1,000,000,000 bytes; 1 GiB is 1,073,741,824 bytes. With 1 GB entered and GiB selected, the converter displays 0.931323 GiB. Defined factors are exact; calculations and displayed values can be rounded. Its default 1 GB → MB displays 1,000.0000 MB. The target determines the number of displayed fractional places; there is no precision selector. Copy includes the entered unit and formatted result.
The needs form defaults to 500 GB across its file categories, one total stored copy and 20% annual growth. Its three-year arithmetic is 500 × 1.2³ = 864 GB; the suggested tier displays 1.00 TB. Changing only total copies to two gives 1,728 GB and a 2.00 TB tier. This counts the working copy within the total, rather than adding the entered count as extra backups.
The three-year horizon and tiers—128, 256, 512, 1,000, 2,000, 4,000, 8,000 and 16,000 GB—are fixed rules, not editable controls. Above the tier list, the result rounds up to a whole decimal terabyte. NIST prefix definitions establish units, not these planning rules. The form does not automatically deduct reserved space; amounts you enter in Apps or Other can include space you have identified. Copy summarizes current, immediate and three-year amounts and the tier. It does not measure files or choose a provider’s plan.
Sources
- NIST-binary-prefixes — Byte size and decimal/binary prefix definitions only; not growth assumptions, horizons, stored-copy choices or tier recommendations.