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Powers of 2 Table: 2⁰ to 2²⁰ and Why Computers Love Them

Published October 3, 2026Written and reviewed by Mateuss M.

Powers of 2 Table: 2⁰ to 2²⁰ and Why Computers Love Them — illustration
In short: Each power of 2 is double the last. 2¹⁰ = 1024 and 2³² = 4,294,967,296. Computers use them because a bit has two states.

The table

PowerValuePowerValue
2^012^112,048
2^122^124,096
2^242^138,192
2^382^1416,384
2^4162^1532,768
2^5322^1665,536
2^6642^17131,072
2^71282^18262,144
2^82562^19524,288
2^95122^201,048,576
2^101,024

Bigger ones

PowerValue
2^301,073,741,824
2^324,294,967,296
2^401,099,511,627,776
2^6418,446,744,073,709,551,616

Why they matter

  • n bits can represent 2ⁿ different values: 8 bits give 256, 16 bits give 65,536.
  • A kibibyte (KiB) is 2¹⁰ = 1024 bytes; a mebibyte is 2²⁰ = 1,048,576.
  • Binary place values are powers of 2: 1, 2, 4, 8, 16, 32 …

Practise with the base converter or read binary to decimal conversion.

Doubling grows fast

Fold a sheet of paper 10 times and you have 2¹⁰ = 1024 layers. Powers of 2 are a classic example of exponential growth: compare 2²⁰ = 1,048,576 with 20² = 400.

2^16
Answer65536
Step-by-step working 3 steps
  1. 1
    Write it as a power
    2^16
  2. 2
    Repeated multiplication

    2 is multiplied by itself 16 times.

  3. 3
    Result
    2^16 = 65536

Frequently asked questions

What is 2 to the power of 0?

1. Any non-zero number to the power 0 is 1.

Why is a kilobyte sometimes 1000 and sometimes 1024 bytes?

The prefix kilo means 1000 in SI. Operating systems often use 1024 (2¹⁰), which the IEC names kibibyte (KiB).

Written and reviewed by Mateuss M.

Mateuss M. writes and reviews mathematical content for CalcSolver, focusing on online calculators, formulas, equations, and practical math tools. He reviews calculator functionality, calculation methods, formulas, examples, and explanations to help ensure that each tool is clear, useful, and easy to understand.

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