Download Time Calculator

How long a download takes at a given connection speed.

Download Time Calculator

Worked example result
Download time64.00 seconds
Download time1.07 minutes
Download time (h:m:s)0:01:04

An 800 MB file at 100 Mbps takes exactly 64 seconds (0:01:04) under ideal conditions: 800 × 8 = 6,400 megabits ÷ 100.

Enter a file size and a connection speed to get the transfer time. Decimal and binary units are kept strictly separate here: MB = 1000² bytes and GB = 1000³ bytes (what ISPs and disk makers use), while MiB = 1024² and GiB = 1024³ bytes (what operating systems often report).

Mind the factor of eight: speeds are usually advertised in megabits per second (Mbps), but files are measured in bytes. 100 Mbps delivers at most 12.5 MB per second. Real transfers are usually 5–15% slower than the ideal figure shown here because of protocol overhead and congestion.

The formula

Time = File size (bits) ÷ Speed (bits per second); 1 byte = 8 bits

Worked example

An 800 MB file at 100 Mbps takes exactly 64 seconds (0:01:04) under ideal conditions: 800 × 8 = 6,400 megabits ÷ 100.

The example is pre-loaded in the result panel — press Calculate with your own numbers to replace it.

Frequently asked questions

Why does my browser show a slower speed than my plan?

Browsers report megabytes per second while plans are sold in megabits per second — divide the plan speed by 8 to compare. A 100 Mbps plan shows at most about 12.5 MB/s in a browser.

What is the difference between MB and MiB?

MB is decimal (1,000,000 bytes); MiB is binary (1,048,576 bytes), about 4.9% larger. The gap grows with unit size: a GiB is about 7.4% larger than a GB.

Category: Everyday Life calculators