Calorie Calculator for Daily Energy Needs (TDEE)

Use the Calorie Calculator

Estimate your daily energy needs (TDEE) from age, sex, height, weight, and activity. The calorie calculator also shows maintain, loss, and gain targets instantly.

How to Use Calorie Calculator for Daily Energy Needs (TDEE)

1. Step 1: Select Sex & Units

   Choose male or female and pick metric (kg, cm) or US units (lb, ft/in).

2. Step 2: Enter Age, Height, Weight

   Type your age in years, height, and current body weight with the correct units.

3. Step 3: Choose Activity Level

   Match your typical weekly activity to the closest description.

4. Step 4: See Results Instantly

   Your TDEE and calorie targets update as you type—no extra clicks.

5. Step 5: Adjust for Goals

   Review maintain, loss, and gain targets; pick a gentle change first.

Key Features

• Accurate TDEE estimate
• Mifflin–St Jeor BMR
• Activity levels
• Unit selection (US/Metric)
• Maintain/Lose/Gain targets
• Mobile‑friendly design

Understanding Results

Formula

This calorie calculator estimates your Total Daily Energy Expenditure (TDEE) by first calculating Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR) using the Mifflin–St Jeor equation and then multiplying by an activity factor. BMR is the energy your body needs at rest for essential functions like breathing and circulation.

Mifflin–St Jeor BMR: For males: BMR = 10 × weight(kg) + 6.25 × height(cm) − 5 × age + 5. For females: BMR = 10 × weight(kg) + 6.25 × height(cm) − 5 × age − 161. TDEE = BMR × activity factor (sedentary ≈ 1.2 → extra active ≈ 1.9).

Reference Ranges & Interpretation

Maintenance calories are your TDEE—the estimated calories to keep body weight stable. For weight loss, many people start with a modest deficit of 250–500 kcal/day; for weight gain, a similar surplus (≈250–500 kcal/day) is common. More aggressive changes can be harder to sustain and may reduce diet quality or recovery.

The estimate is a useful starting point, not a diagnosis. Track your body weight and energy levels for 2–3 weeks and compare to your target. If progress is slower or faster than expected, adjust intake by 100–200 kcal/day and re‑evaluate. Strength training and adequate protein support lean mass when changing weight.

Assumptions & Limitations

Formulas generalize across populations and do not capture every factor that influences energy needs, such as genetics, hormonal changes, illness, or unusually high or low muscle mass. The activity descriptions are approximations. Consider recalculating if your weight or routine changes, and avoid very low intakes without professional guidance. This tool is informational only.

Complete Guide: Calorie Calculator for Daily Energy Needs (TDEE)

Our calorie calculator estimates your daily energy needs (TDEE) using your age, sex, height, weight, and weekly activity level. You get instant targets for maintenance, gentle loss, and gradual gain. The goal is practical guidance, not medical advice—use the numbers as a starting point, then adjust based on your real‑world progress.

What are calories, BMR, and TDEE?

A calorie is a unit of energy. Your body uses energy around the clock—keeping you alive, powering movement, and supporting recovery from daily stress and exercise. Two terms matter for planning intake: Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR) and Total Daily Energy Expenditure (TDEE). Your BMR is the energy needed at rest for basic functions like breathing, heartbeat, and maintaining body temperature. Your TDEE adds the energy from daily activities on top of that baseline.

This tool first estimates BMR, then multiplies it by an activity factor to get TDEE. That TDEE approximates your maintenance calories—the intake likely to keep body weight stable. Want to change weight? Create a modest deficit or surplus relative to that maintenance number. If you prefer a direct maintenance tool, try our maintenance calorie calculator.

Which formula does this calorie calculator use?

We use the Mifflin–St Jeor equation to estimate BMR because it performs well across a wide range of adults and is widely used in nutrition research and practice. In metric units, the equations are:

• Male: BMR = 10 × weight(kg) + 6.25 × height(cm) − 5 × age + 5
• Female: BMR = 10 × weight(kg) + 6.25 × height(cm) − 5 × age − 161

To get TDEE, we multiply BMR by an activity factor that corresponds to your usual week—from sedentary (≈1.2) to extra active (≈1.9). If you already know your TDEE or want to compare methods, see our dedicated TDEE calculator.

People with measured body fat may prefer Katch‑McArdle, which uses lean body mass. If you have that information, you can estimate lean mass with our lean body mass calculator and cross‑check. Both approaches are valid estimates; use the one that best reflects your situation.

How to choose your activity level

Choose the activity option that best describes your typical week, not an idealized one. If your job is mostly seated and you walk 2–3 times per week, “lightly active” usually fits. If you perform structured training 3–5 days per week, “moderately active” may be closer. Manual labor or daily intense training often lands in the “very” to “extra active” range.

When unsure between two levels, start with the lower one—then evaluate progress after two to three weeks. This keeps expectations realistic and avoids overestimating maintenance calories. For another angle on expected effort and heart‑rate targets, try our target heart rate calculator.

Maintenance, deficit, and surplus

If your goal is maintenance, aim for calories close to your TDEE. Some daily variation is normal—look at weekly patterns rather than single days. For weight loss, a common starting point is a 250–500 kcal daily deficit. Smaller, sustainable deficits usually win in the long run. For weight gain, especially to support strength training, a 250–500 kcal surplus helps drive progress without excessive fat gain.

Our tool presents maintain, mild loss, standard loss, aggressive loss, mild gain, and gain targets. Think of these as guardrails. The best target depends on your training, schedule, and appetite. If you want help calculating a specific deficit, try the calorie deficit calculator.

How many calories should I eat to lose weight?

For many adults, losing 0.5–1.0 lb (0.25–0.5 kg) per week is considered a reasonable and sustainable pace. That typically corresponds to a daily deficit of about 250–500 kcal relative to maintenance. Intake should remain high enough to support diet quality, satiety, and everyday functioning. Very low calorie approaches are usually difficult to maintain and can reduce training quality and recovery.

If you have a lot to lose, early losses may appear faster due to fluctuations in water and glycogen. Focus on monthly trends. Strength training and adequate protein help maintain lean mass. Our protein calculator can turn targets into grams per day, and the macro calculator can distribute calories across protein, carbs, and fat.

Authoritative guidance emphasizes overall dietary pattern, not just calories. See the CDC overview on healthy weight for practical considerations.

Turn calories into protein, carbs, and fat

Once you know your daily calories, you can translate them into macronutrients. Many active adults do well starting around 1.6–2.2 g protein per kilogram of body weight, splitting the rest between carbohydrates and fats according to preference and training demands. Endurance work often benefits from more carbohydrate, while low‑carb approaches may skew higher in fat.

For a quick breakdown, use our dedicated macronutrient calculator or the simplified macro calculator. If you prefer to validate body size and category first, the adult BMI calculator provides a quick context check.

Remember that grams per day are easier to track than percentages. If your calories change, your macro targets change too—recalculate after a few weeks.

Example days and meal ideas

Here is a simple template for a balanced day that fits many calorie budgets: a lean‑protein breakfast, a mixed‑macro lunch, a fruit‑and‑protein snack, and a dinner built around a protein source, colorful vegetables, and a starch or whole grain. Swap items you enjoy; the structure matters more than any single food.

• Breakfast: Eggs or Greek yogurt with oats or whole‑grain toast, fruit.
• Lunch: Bowl or salad with chicken, beans, or tofu; rice or quinoa; veggies; olive oil or avocado.
• Snack: Cottage cheese and berries, or a small smoothie with whey and banana.
• Dinner: Fish, lean beef, or tempeh; roasted potatoes or pasta; mixed vegetables.

Want to estimate meals precisely? You can analyze dishes with our recipe nutrition calculator or look up typical activities with the calories burned calculator.

Troubleshooting and adjustments

Plateaus happen. If your weight is unchanged for two to three weeks while adherence has been good, consider adjusting your target by 100–200 kcal/day. Small, deliberate changes are easier to sustain than large swings. Also review sleep, stress, and step count—these can shift energy needs more than most people realize.

Training quality matters: fuel hard sessions so you can perform and recover. If your performance and mood are dropping, the deficit may be too aggressive. If you are gaining faster than planned, trim calories slightly or increase activity. Our treadmill calorie calculator and walking calorie calculator can help gauge sessions.

For context on energy balance and patterning, you can browse the U.S. Dietary Guidelines. These emphasize overall dietary pattern, flexibility, and long‑term habits over strict rules.

Why estimates differ across calculators

If you compare multiple tools, you may find small differences. Some calculators use Harris‑Benedict, others Mifflin–St Jeor, and a few use Katch‑McArdle when body fat percentage is known. All are reasonable models with slightly different assumptions. Variations of 5–10% are common and usually not a concern—consistency in tracking and adjusting beats chasing perfect precision.

For comparison, visit our RMR calculator and metabolic rate calculator. They frame the same idea from slightly different angles.

How training style affects calorie needs

Endurance blocks often increase carbohydrate needs and weekly energy burn through longer sessions and higher step counts. Strength blocks impose neural and muscular stress but may not raise weekly energy as predictably; however, building muscle can increase resting expenditure slightly. During busy training weeks, aim closer to maintenance on hard days to perform, then use lighter‑day deficits to drive fat loss without compromising workouts.

You can benchmark cardiovascular effort with our VO2 max calculator or plan paces using the running pace calculator. Align fueling with day‑to‑day demands.

Week‑to‑week patterns and check‑ins

Because appetite, training, and social events vary, think in weekly averages. Many people eat slightly more on training days and slightly less on rest days while keeping the weekly average aligned with their goal. Weigh at similar times (e.g., mornings) and focus on the trend rather than day‑to‑day noise. A quick weekly audit—sleep, steps, training, and adherence—keeps you honest and helps explain shifts in progress.

Quick answers to common questions

Is this calorie calculator exact? No estimate can be exact for every person. Think of it as a smart starting point that you refine with your own data: weigh yourself a few times per week under similar conditions, and compare monthly averages.

How often should I recalculate? Update after meaningful changes in body weight or routine. If your lifestyle or training shifts for a new season, re‑enter your details and choose the activity level that matches the new normal.

Do you need to count calories forever? Not necessarily. Many people use tracking temporarily to build awareness, then maintain progress with consistent habits and periodic check‑ins. If you want a deeper dive into underlying metabolism, our BMR calculator explains resting needs in isolation.

Frequently Asked Questions