Calorie Calculator

Estimate how many calories you burn each day, and how many to eat to lose, keep or gain weight.

Resultupdates as you type
Calories to maintain weight—
Mild loss (½ lb/week)—
Weight loss (1 lb/week)—
Mild gain (½ lb/week)—
BMR (at rest)—

How to use the calorie calculator

  1. Choose metric or US units, then enter your age, sex, height and weight.
  2. Pick the activity level that best describes a typical week.

You'll get your estimated maintenance calories (TDEE), plus daily targets for gentle weight loss, steady weight loss and gentle weight gain.

The formula behind it

Your resting energy use (BMR) is estimated with the Mifflin-St Jeor equation:

Men: BMR = 10 × weight(kg) + 6.25 × height(cm) − 5 × age + 5 Women: BMR = 10 × weight(kg) + 6.25 × height(cm) − 5 × age − 161

Your daily needs (TDEE) are then BMR × activity factor, from 1.2 for sedentary up to 1.9 for extra active.

Example: a 30-year-old man, 175 cm (5'9") and 75 kg (165 lb), has a BMR of about 1,699 calories. If he's moderately active, he burns about 2,633 calories a day. Eating around 2,133 a day would lose roughly 1 lb a week.

Activity multipliers

Activity levelMultiplier
Sedentary1.2
Lightly active1.375
Moderately active1.55
Very active1.725
Extra active1.9

Tips for using your number

  • Treat it as a starting point. Eat at your target for 2–3 weeks, track your weight, and adjust by 100–200 calories if needed.
  • Protein helps. Higher-protein diets keep you fuller and help preserve muscle while losing weight.
  • Recalculate as you change. Your needs drop as you lose weight, so update your numbers every 5–10 lb.

For healthy adults only. Not suitable during pregnancy or for people with medical conditions affecting weight. This is general information, not medical advice. Talk to a doctor or registered dietitian for personal guidance.

Frequently asked questions

How accurate is this calorie calculator?
It uses the Mifflin-St Jeor equation, which research has found to be among the most accurate formulas for estimating resting energy needs in healthy adults. Even so, real needs can differ by 10% or more from person to person. Track your weight for a few weeks and adjust.
What is the difference between BMR and TDEE?
BMR (basal metabolic rate) is the energy your body uses at complete rest to keep you alive. TDEE (total daily energy expenditure) adds everything else — walking, work, exercise and digesting food. TDEE is the number to base your eating on.
How many calories should I cut to lose weight?
A deficit of about 500 calories a day typically leads to losing around 1 pound (0.45 kg) a week. Faster loss is harder to sustain and can cost muscle. Most guidance suggests not going below about 1,200 calories a day for women or 1,500 for men without medical supervision.
Which activity level should I choose?
Be honest and slightly conservative — most people overestimate. A desk job with a few workouts a week is usually "lightly" or "moderately active". Only choose "very active" or above if you do hard training most days or have a physically demanding job.