How many different values can a bit have?

A bit (binary digit) is the smallest unit of data in a computer, and it can only exist in one of two states.

These two states are usually represented as \(0\) and \(1\), which correspond physically to conditions such as "off/on", "low voltage/high voltage", or "no charge/charge" depending on the type of storage or circuit involved. Because there are exactly two possible states, a single bit can hold exactly \(2\) different values.

This is different from a byte, which is a group of \(8\) bits and can represent \(2^{8} = 256\) different values, that larger number is easy to confuse with the question if you are not careful to read that it is asking about a single bit, not a byte.

Exam tip: always distinguish a bit (2 possible values) from a byte (256 possible values), the number of possible values for \(n\) bits is \(2^{n}\).