Calorie & TDEE Calculator
Estimate your Total Daily Energy Expenditure (TDEE) and Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR) from your body stats and activity level — free and instant.
Advanced options
Adult estimates only, not a meal plan or prescribed intake.
Carbohydrate share is the remaining percentage. These are editable examples.
Your result
Updates as you type- Daily calories
- 2,556 kcal
- Resting burn
- 1,649 kcal
- Activity share
- 907 kcal
Total burn, including your activity level.
BMR — what you burn doing nothing at all.
The part your movement adds on top.
Macro illustration
| Macronutrient | Grams per day |
|---|---|
| Protein | 192 |
| Fat | 85 |
| Carbohydrate | 256 |
Activity-level comparison
| Activity | Estimated kcal/day |
|---|---|
| sedentary | 1,979 |
| light | 2,267 |
| moderate | 2,556 |
| active | 2,844 |
| very active | 3,133 |
Informational only — not medical advice. This is a population-level estimate, not a diagnosis. Read the full disclaimer.
Method, assumptions, and tips
Adults 18+ only. Calorie goals and macro ratios are illustrative, not individualized advice. Not intended for pregnancy, breastfeeding or medical nutrition care.
Uses the Mifflin-St Jeor equation, a widely used resting-energy estimate.
Activity level is a rough multiplier, not a precise measurement.
Metric and US units are converted with the exact international factors.
Not validated for pregnancy, elite athletes, or clinical conditions.
TDEE estimates the total calories you burn per day, combining your Basal Metabolic Rate (calories burned at rest) with an activity multiplier for how much you move.
Pick the activity level that matches your typical week, not your best week — over-estimating here is the most common source of error.
Setting a realistic starting calorie target before adjusting it against what the scale actually does.
How it works
How a TDEE calculator using Mifflin-St Jeor works
Total Daily Energy Expenditure is an estimate of how many calories your body uses in a day. This TDEE calculator uses the Mifflin-St Jeor equation, which is a widely used resting-energy estimate for adults, and does not require a body-fat measurement.
It works in two steps.
Step one: basal metabolic rate
BMR is what you would burn lying still all day — keeping your heart beating, your body warm and your organs running. Mifflin-St Jeor estimates it from four inputs:
BMR = 10 × weight(kg) + 6.25 × height(cm) − 5 × age + 5 for men
BMR = 10 × weight(kg) + 6.25 × height(cm) − 5 × age − 161 for women
The only difference between the two is the final constant, which accounts for average differences in lean mass.
Step two: the activity multiplier
BMR is then multiplied by a factor reflecting how much you move:
| Activity level | Multiplier | Roughly means |
|---|---|---|
| Sedentary | 1.2 | Desk job, little deliberate exercise |
| Light | 1.375 | Light exercise 1–3 days a week |
| Moderate | 1.55 | Moderate exercise 3–5 days a week |
| Active | 1.725 | Hard exercise 6–7 days a week |
| Very active | 1.9 | Physical job, or training twice a day |
The result is your TDEE.
The multiplier is where the error lives
The BMR equation is reasonably precise. The activity multiplier is a blunt instrument, and it is the single largest source of error in the result — the gap between sedentary and very active is more than 50% of your BMR.
Most people overestimate. A desk job with three gym sessions a week is *light* to *moderate*, not *active*, because the other 165 hours of the week still involve sitting. If you are unsure, pick the lower option: an underestimate that produces slow progress is easier to correct than an overestimate that produces none.
Using the number
TDEE is a starting point for calorie targets, not a measurement:
- Eating at your TDEE tends to hold your weight steady.
- Eating below it tends to produce weight loss; a modest deficit is generally more sustainable than an aggressive one.
- Eating above it tends to produce weight gain, which is the goal if you are trying to add mass.
The honest way to use any TDEE figure is as a hypothesis. Eat at the estimate for two or three weeks, track what the scale actually does, and adjust. Your real expenditure is the number that explains your actual results — the equation just gets you close enough to start.
What it does not account for
- Body composition. Two people at the same height, weight, age and sex get the same estimate regardless of muscle mass. Formulas using body fat percentage, such as Katch-McArdle, handle this better if you have a reliable measurement.
- Medical conditions and medications that affect metabolism.
- Pregnancy or breastfeeding.
- Adaptive changes — sustained dieting can lower expenditure below what any formula predicts.
Everything is computed in your browser. Nothing you enter is transmitted or stored.
Method sources
Mifflin and St Jeor original study describes the resting-energy equation in healthy adults aged 19–78. Activity multipliers and editable calorie/macro choices are model assumptions, not measurements or prescribed intake. NIDDK adult planner guidance explains why weight-planning estimates are for adults and exclude pregnancy and breastfeeding.
FAQ
How do calorie goals and macro estimates work?
Advanced options let adults choose an illustrative surplus or deficit and protein/fat percentages. Carbohydrates use the remaining percentage; protein and carbohydrate use 4 kcal/g and fat uses 9 kcal/g. These are arithmetic estimates, not a prescribed diet.
What is the Mifflin-St Jeor equation?
A formula for estimating basal metabolic rate: 10 × weight(kg) + 6.25 × height(cm) − 5 × age, then +5 for men or −161 for women. It is a widely used resting-energy estimate for adults and needs no body-fat measurement.
What is the difference between BMR and TDEE?
BMR is what you burn at complete rest — organs, temperature, basic function. TDEE is BMR multiplied by an activity factor, so it estimates your total daily burn including movement and exercise. TDEE is always the larger number.
Which activity level should I choose?
Match your typical week, not your best week. A desk job with three gym sessions is light to moderate, not active, because most of the week is still sedentary. When unsure, choose the lower option — this multiplier is the biggest source of error in the result.
Should I eat exactly my TDEE?
Eating at your TDEE tends to maintain your weight, below it tends to cause loss, and above it tends to cause gain. Treat the figure as a starting hypothesis: eat at it for two or three weeks, see what the scale does, and adjust from there.
Can I enter pounds and feet instead of kg and cm?
Yes. Switch the units control to US and enter weight in pounds and height in feet plus inches. The conversion uses exact international factors, so both unit systems give the same result.
Why does it not ask for my body fat percentage?
Mifflin-St Jeor does not use it, which is a deliberate trade-off — it stays usable for people who have no reliable body-fat measurement. If you do have one, formulas such as Katch-McArdle can account for body composition more directly.