Megabits versus Megabytes (Mbps vs MB/s)
Internet Service Providers (like Comcast, AT&T, and Verizon) market their connection speeds using Megabits per second (Mbps) because the number looks substantially larger on billboards. However, files stored on your hard drive (like MP4 movies or PC Games) are measured in Megabytes (MB).
The 8-to-1 Rule
Because there are 8 bits inside exactly 1 Byte, you must divide your ISP's advertised speed by 8 to determine your actual theoretical file download speed limit.
- An advertised 100 Mbps connection can only download files at roughly 12.5 MB/s.
- An advertised 1 Gigabit (1000 Mbps) fiber connection downloads files at roughly 125 MB/s.
This critical difference often leads consumers to believe their internet connection is throttling them by 80%, when in reality, the hardware is performing optimally strictly based on the mathematical discrepancy between bits and bytes.