Calorie & TDEE calculator
Your body spends energy keeping you alive before you move at all. This estimates that baseline, scales it for how active you are, and gives the daily calorie figure that would keep your weight steady.
How to use the calorie & tdee calculator
- Enter your sex, age, height and weight.
- Choose the activity level that honestly matches a normal week.
- Read the maintenance figure — the rows below show gentler adjustments either side of it.
How it works
Resting metabolic rate uses the Mifflin-St Jeor equation, which is currently the most accurate of the common formulas: 10 × weight in kg + 6.25 × height in cm − 5 × age, plus 5 for men or minus 161 for women. That result is multiplied by an activity factor between 1.2 and 1.9 to give total daily energy expenditure.
These are population averages. Two people with identical inputs can differ by several hundred calories a day because of body composition, genetics, medication and non-exercise movement. The honest way to use the number is as a starting estimate you adjust after two or three weeks of real-world results.
Common questions
What is the difference between BMR and TDEE?
BMR is what you would burn lying still all day. TDEE adds everything else — walking, working, training and digestion.
How large a deficit is sensible?
Moderate and slow is more sustainable than aggressive. Very low intakes are a medical matter, and anyone planning a significant change is best served by talking to a doctor or registered dietitian first.
Why does the estimate feel too high or too low?
Activity level is the biggest source of error — most people overestimate it. Try the level one step below the one you first picked.