Calorie & TDEE Calculator

Daily calories to maintain, lose or gain weight, based on your BMR.

To maintain your weight
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BMR — at complete rest
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Lose 0.25 kg a week
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Lose 0.5 kg a week
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Gain 0.5 kg a week
Where the energy goes
An estimate from a population formula — individual needs vary with body composition, medication and health conditions. Speak to a doctor or dietitian before making large changes, and do not drop below 1,200 kcal a day without medical supervision.
How this works
Mifflin-St Jeor BMR (male) = 10×kg + 6.25×cm − 5×age + 5 BMR (female) = 10×kg + 6.25×cm − 5×age − 161 TDEE = BMR × activity factor
Activity levelFactor
Sedentary — desk job, no exercise1.20
Light — exercise 1-3 days a week1.375
Moderate — exercise 3-5 days a week1.55
Active — exercise 6-7 days a week1.725
Very active — physical job or twice daily1.90
  • Roughly 7,700 kcal is stored in 1 kg of body fat, so a 1,100 kcal daily deficit loses about 1 kg a week.
  • 0.5–1 kg a week is the usual clinical guidance for sustainable loss.
  • Mifflin-St Jeor is the most accurate general formula, but it ignores body composition — a muscular person burns more than it predicts.
  • Most people overestimate their activity level. If progress stalls, drop one level rather than cutting food further.
What is the difference between BMR and TDEE?

BMR is what your body burns at complete rest just to stay alive. TDEE is BMR multiplied by an activity factor, and is the figure to eat to.

How many calories should I cut to lose weight?

A deficit of 500 kcal a day loses roughly 0.5 kg a week. Going much below that rarely speeds things up and makes the diet harder to sustain.

Why does the same formula give different numbers elsewhere?

Other sites may use Harris-Benedict or Katch-McArdle instead. Mifflin-St Jeor is the most accurate for the general population; results typically differ by 5-10%.

Keep going
BMI Calculator Body mass index in metric or imperial, with your healthy weight range. Unit Converter Length, weight, temperature, volume, area and speed in one tool. Percentage Calculator Find a percentage of a number, or the percentage change between two numbers.