What next?
A calorie target is the start. These decide what those calories are made of.
How to use this calculator
- Enter your sex, age, weight and height.
- Choose your activity level.
- Read your maintenance calories plus targets to lose or gain.
What your result means
Maintenance calories (your TDEE) is roughly what you burn each day: eat that to hold weight, fewer to lose, more to gain. It comes from population formulas, so track your real weight over two weeks and adjust the number to fit you.
Why this one is different
Maintenance, lose and gain are returned side by side rather than one figure at a time, and the loss target is expressed as −0.5 kg a week so the deficit means something you can act on. BMR and maintenance are given as separate lines, so you can see how much of your daily burn is activity and how much is resting metabolism.
Why calorie needs are as personal as a fingerprint
There’s no universal daily calorie number, despite what magazine covers claim. Your needs depend on your size, age, sex and how much you move — which is why one-size-fits-all diets so often fail. The Mifflin-St Jeor equation used here is the researchers’ pick for accuracy.
Knowing your maintenance figure turns weight goals from guesswork into arithmetic: a modest, steady deficit or surplus beats crash dieting every time.
How it works
First we estimate your Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR) — the energy your body uses at rest — using the Mifflin-St Jeor equation. Multiplying BMR by an activity factor gives your Total Daily Energy Expenditure (TDEE): roughly the calories needed to maintain your current weight. A deficit of about 500 kcal/day loses ~0.5 kg per week; a surplus gains it.
Formula
s = +5 (male), −161 (female)
TDEE = BMR × activity factor
Frequently asked questions
How accurate is this?＋
Mifflin-St Jeor is one of the most accurate general equations, but everyone differs. Use it as a starting estimate and adjust based on real weight change over 2–3 weeks.
Should I ever eat below my BMR?＋
Generally not for long periods. Very low intakes are hard to sustain and can affect health. Consult a professional before aggressive dieting.
How long before I see a change on the scale?＋
Expect two to three weeks before a trend is readable. The first week often shows a large drop that is mostly glycogen and water, followed by a slower, steadier line.
Do I need to eat back exercise calories?＋
If you selected an activity level that already includes your training, no, that energy is counted. Only log exercise separately if you chose a sedentary baseline.
Why has my weight loss stalled?＋
Two common causes: intake has crept up as portions drift, and the calorie target itself is now too high because you weigh less than when you calculated it. Re-run the numbers and measure portions for a week.
Does the split between carbs, fat and protein matter here?＋
For weight change, total energy is what drives the result. The split matters for how full you feel, how well you train and how much lean mass you keep, which is why a protein target is worth setting.
Example calculation
A 30-year-old man, 80 kg, 180 cm, moderately active, using the Mifflin–St Jeor equation:
BMR = 800 + 1,125 − 150 + 5 = 1,780 kcal
TDEE = 1,780 × 1.55 (activity) ≈ 2,759 kcal/day
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Assumptions & limitations
Every figure here comes from a simplified model. Keep these limits in mind when reading your result:
- Uses the Mifflin–St Jeor equation with an activity multiplier.
- Individual metabolism varies by ±10% or more, so this is a starting point.
- Adjust up or down based on how your weight actually responds over a few weeks.