Calorie Calculator (TDEE)
Your BMR, maintenance calories and daily targets to lose or gain weight — Mifflin-St Jeor, calculated live as you type.
About you
These figures are population-formula estimates, not medical advice. Individual needs vary with genetics, body composition and health conditions — consult a doctor or registered dietitian before starting a significant calorie deficit or surplus.
About this tool
Whether you want to lose fat, build muscle or simply stop guessing, everything starts with one number: how many calories your body burns in a day. This free calorie calculator estimates your basal metabolic rate (BMR) with the Mifflin-St Jeor equation — the formula dietitians consider the most accurate for the general population — then multiplies it by your activity level to get your total daily energy expenditure (TDEE), also called maintenance calories. From there it lays out realistic daily targets for losing 0.25, 0.5 or 1 kg per week and for gaining 0.25 or 0.5 kg per week, and a balanced sample macro split in grams of protein, carbs and fat.
Enter height in centimetres or feet and inches and weight in kilograms or pounds — the switch is one tap. Every figure updates as you type, and the calculation runs entirely in your browser, so your age, weight and goals never leave your device. Use it alongside the BMI calculator for a fuller picture, and remember that any formula is a starting point: track your weight for a few weeks and adjust.
How to calculate your daily calories
- Choose your sex, enter your age, height and weight, and pick the activity level that honestly matches your week.
- Read your BMR and maintenance calories (TDEE) — the amount that keeps your weight steady.
- Pick a goal from the targets table and use the macro tiles as a starting point for planning meals.
Frequently asked questions
How are my maintenance calories calculated?
The calculator first estimates your basal metabolic rate with the Mifflin-St Jeor equation: 10 × weight (kg) + 6.25 × height (cm) − 5 × age, plus 5 for men or minus 161 for women. It then multiplies that BMR by an activity factor between 1.2 (sedentary) and 1.9 (extra active) to get your total daily energy expenditure — the calories that keep your weight steady.
Which activity level should I pick?
Be honest rather than optimistic — most people overestimate. Sedentary means a desk job and little deliberate exercise; light is exercise one to three days a week; moderate is three to five days; very active is hard training six or seven days; extra active is a physical job plus daily training. If you are unsure, pick the lower option and adjust after two or three weeks of tracking your weight.
Why does the weight-loss target never go below 1,200 calories?
Very low intakes make it hard to get enough protein, vitamins and minerals and are difficult to sustain, so the calculator floors every target at 1,200 kcal per day. If your calculated goal hits that floor, aim for a slower rate of loss or add activity instead of cutting further — and talk to a doctor or dietitian before going lower.
What is the macro split based on?
The sample split allocates 30% of maintenance calories to protein, 40% to carbohydrates and 30% to fat, then converts to grams using 4 kcal per gram for protein and carbs and 9 kcal per gram for fat. It is a balanced starting point, not a prescription — athletes, people on medical diets or anyone with specific goals may want a different ratio.
How accurate is this calorie calculator?
Mifflin-St Jeor is the most accurate general-population formula, but it is still an estimate — individual metabolisms vary by roughly ±10%. Treat the numbers as a starting point, weigh yourself at the same time each day for a few weeks, and adjust intake by 100–200 kcal if your trend is not moving the way you expect. This is not medical advice.