Data Transfer Guides
Learn how long file transfers take, why actual throughput differs from advertised speeds, and how to plan backups and migrations. All theoretical examples use decimal GB/TB and network speeds in bits per second.
Understand transfer speed
Start with the difference between network bandwidth and useful file-transfer throughput.
Transfer time formulaRead the guide and explore related examplesRead guide →Why file transfers are slowerRead the guide and explore related examplesRead guide →Mbps vs MB/s explainedRead the guide and explore related examplesRead guide →1 Gbps vs 2.5 Gbps vs 10 GbpsRead the guide and explore related examplesRead guide →Wi-Fi vs Ethernet file transferRead the guide and explore related examplesRead guide →
Transfer-time examples
Compare ideal transfer times for common data sizes and link speeds. Real transfers can take longer.
10 GB at 100 MbpsRead the guide and explore related examplesRead guide →100 GB at 1 GbpsRead the guide and explore related examplesRead guide →1 TB at 500 MbpsRead the guide and explore related examplesRead guide →1 TB at 1 GbpsRead the guide and explore related examplesRead guide →1 TB at 2.5 GbpsRead the guide and explore related examplesRead guide →1 TB at 5 GbpsRead the guide and explore related examplesRead guide →1 TB at 10 GbpsRead the guide and explore related examplesRead guide →10 TB at 10 GbpsRead the guide and explore related examplesRead guide →
Backup and migration planning
Plan data movement with enough time for protocol overhead, storage limitations and competing traffic.
How long does a 1 TB backup take?Read the guide and explore related examplesRead guide →How long does a 5 TB backup take?Read the guide and explore related examplesRead guide →How long to transfer 10 TB?Read the guide and explore related examplesRead guide →Cloud backup transfer timeRead the guide and explore related examplesRead guide →NAS transfer speed guideRead the guide and explore related examplesRead guide →Data migration time estimateRead the guide and explore related examplesRead guide →
Calculate your own transfer time
Use the calculator collection to enter your own data size, link speed and efficiency assumptions. See the glossary for definitions of Mbps, throughput, latency and more.