About this DICOM Storage Estimator
Medical imaging generates massive amounts of data. PACS administrators and IT professionals use this calculator to plan storage arrays by estimating the size of uncompressed DICOM studies based on resolution and slice count.
Who this calculator is for
- PACS administrators, imaging IT teams, and engineers sizing storage for imaging archives.
- People estimating the footprint of CT, MR, mammo, or multi-frame studies before compression.
- Learners studying how matrix size, bit depth, and frame count drive archive growth.
When to use it
- Use this tool when comparing storage impact across modalities or protocol variants.
- Use it to produce a fast back-of-the-envelope estimate before PACS, VNA, or cloud planning.
- Use it when teaching the difference between raw pixel payload and full operational storage needs.
How to use this calculator
- Enter the matrix Rows and Columns (e.g., 512x512 for CT).
- Enter the Number of Images in the study.
- Select the Bit Depth (usually 16-bit for radiology).
- Add a percentage for Header Overhead (metadata).
Key assumptions
- The estimate is based on uncompressed pixel data plus a simple metadata overhead percentage.
- Real archive usage varies with transfer syntax, compression, multi-series packaging, replicas, and lifecycle policies.
- This calculator is for capacity planning and should not be treated as an exact PACS billing or storage-accounting figure.
Accuracy and testing
Review formula sources, default test cases, assumptions, unit handling, rounding rules, and changelog for this calculator.
How this calculator works
Total Bits = Rows × Columns × Bit Depth × Images
Total Bytes = Total Bits / 8
The result is converted to MB or GB. Note that this calculates *uncompressed* size. Lossless compression (like JPEG-LS) can reduce this by 2-3x.
Inputs explained
Matrix
Dimensions of the image. CT/MR is usually 512x512. CR/DR can be 2000x2000 or higher. Mammography can be 4000x4000.
Bit Depth
Most radiology images are 12-bit or 16-bit (Allocated). Ultrasound/Nuclear are often 8-bit (Color/Grayscale).
Overhead
DICOM headers contain patient info. Usually adds 1-2% to the file size.
Understanding your results
A 1000-slice CT scan is roughly 500MB uncompressed. A 4-view Mammogram can be 160MB-200MB.
Example scenarios
Standard CT
512x512, 16-bit, 200 slices. Size: ~100 MB.
Digital Mammo (Tomosynthesis)
2500x3000, 16-bit, 300 slices. Size: ~4.2 GB.
Key Features
- Supports standard matrices (512, 1024, 2048)
- Calculates uncompressed size
- Include DICOM header overhead