Bitrate Calculator

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Bitrate Calculator

Find the right video bitrate for any resolution and frame rate, or from a file size and length. It also works out file size and duration.

Try a common question

Calculate bitrate, file size or duration

Pick what you want to find. The answer updates as you type.

Calculate
Based on
Output resolution

Frame rate (fps)
Codec
Content

Most games, IRL, vlogs, music

Size units

Recommended bitrate

9,000kbps

Required upload speed

—Mbps

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Resolution-based figures are recommendations from our bitrate model, not exact maths.

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File size per hour at common bitrates

Total bitrate, including audio. Decimal and binary units side by side.

BitratePer minutePer hourPer hour (binary)
500 kbps 3.75 MB 0.225 GB 0.21 GiB
1,000 kbps 7.5 MB 0.45 GB 0.419 GiB
2,500 kbps 18.8 MB 1.13 GB 1.05 GiB
4,500 kbps 33.8 MB 2.03 GB 1.89 GiB
6,000 kbps 45 MB 2.7 GB 2.51 GiB
8,000 kbps 60 MB 3.6 GB 3.35 GiB
12 Mbps 90 MB 5.4 GB 5.03 GiB
20 Mbps 150 MB 9 GB 8.38 GiB
50 Mbps 375 MB 22.5 GB 21 GiB
100 Mbps 750 MB 45 GB 41.9 GiB

Two ways to get a bitrate

From resolution and frame rate. There is no fixed bitrate for a resolution, only a sensible target. Common calculators use

bitrate = width × height × frames per second × bits per pixel

with a fixed “bits per pixel” such as 0.1. We use the same idea, but let bits per pixel fall as resolution and frame rate rise, because encoders need fewer bits per pixel for bigger, smoother pictures. Codec and content then adjust it: H.265 and AV1 need less, and fast motion needs more. The result is a recommendation with a range, not an exact figure. The methodology has the full formula.

From file size and length. This part is exact arithmetic, and resolution doesn’t affect it:

bitrate (bit/s) = file size (bytes) × 8 ÷ duration (s)

The same formula, rearranged, gives the file size or the duration. Bitrates use decimal prefixes (1 Mbps = 1,000 kbps). Windows shows file sizes in binary units (1 “GB” = 1,073,741,824 bytes), so use the Size units switch to match it.

Frequently asked questions

How do I calculate file size from bitrate?

Multiply the bitrate in bits per second by the duration in seconds, then divide by 8 to get bytes. For example, 6,000 kbps for one hour is 6,000,000 × 3,600 ÷ 8 = 2,700,000,000 bytes, or 2.7 GB.

What is the difference between kbps and KB/s?

kbps is kilobits per second; KB/s is kilobytes per second. A byte is 8 bits, so 8,000 kbps is 1,000 KB/s (1 MB/s). Bitrates and internet speeds use bits; file sizes and download progress bars usually use bytes.

Why does Windows show my file as smaller than this calculator?

Windows Explorer uses binary units but labels them MB and GB: its "1 GB" is 1,073,741,824 bytes (a GiB). Drive makers, macOS and most websites use decimal units, where 1 GB is 1,000,000,000 bytes. Switch "Size units" to Binary to match Windows.

Should the bitrate include audio?

Yes. File size depends on the total bitrate of every stream in the file, so add the audio bitrate to the video bitrate. A 5,000 kbps video with 160 kbps audio is 5,160 kbps in total.

Why is my real file a little bigger or smaller?

Containers such as MP4 and MKV add a small amount of overhead (usually under 1–2%), and variable-bitrate encodes rarely hit their average exactly. Constant-bitrate encodes and streams land closest to the calculated size.