A kilobyte is equivalent to how many bytes?

A kilobyte is equivalent to 1,024 bytes. This is based on the binary system used in computing, where storage and memory capacities are typically calculated in powers of two. In this system, one kilobyte is defined as 2^10 bytes, which equals 1,024. This definition is widely accepted in computer science and digital storage contexts.

The other options reflect either a misunderstanding of binary measurement or common decimal approximations. While 1,000 bytes might seem intuitive as a metric-based approximation, it does not adhere to the binary system that governs most computing applications. Similarly, 512 and 2,048 do not represent the standard conversion for a kilobyte, as 512 is only half of 1,024, and 2,048 is equivalent to 2 kilobytes. Therefore, 1,024 is the correct representation of a kilobyte in terms of bytes.