TDEE & Calorie Calculator

What This TDEE Calculator Does and Who It's For

This TDEE calculator estimates your Total Daily Energy Expenditure - the number of calories you burn in a full day, including everything from breathing to exercise. It first computes your Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR), the energy your body uses at complete rest, then scales it up based on how active you are.

It's useful for anyone planning a diet or training goal: people trying to lose fat, gain muscle, or maintain their current weight. Knowing your TDEE gives you a calorie baseline so you can eat with intent instead of guessing. It works as both a calorie calculator and a BMR reference point.

How It Works: The Mifflin-St Jeor Formula

The calculator uses the Mifflin-St Jeor equation, widely regarded as one of the most accurate BMR formulas for the general population. It requires your weight in kilograms, height in centimeters, age in years, and sex.

BMR for men: (10 x kg) + (6.25 x cm) - (5 x age) + 5

BMR for women: (10 x kg) + (6.25 x cm) - (5 x age) - 161

Your TDEE is then BMR multiplied by an activity factor that reflects your weekly movement and training.

• Sedentary (little or no exercise): x 1.2
• Lightly active (1-3 days/week): x 1.375
• Moderately active (3-5 days/week): x 1.55
• Very active (6-7 days/week): x 1.725
• Extra active (hard daily training or physical job): x 1.9

A Worked Example With Real Numbers

Take a 30-year-old man who weighs 80 kg and is 180 cm tall, exercising moderately 3-5 days a week.

BMR = (10 x 80) + (6.25 x 180) - (5 x 30) + 5 = 800 + 1125 - 150 + 5 = 1780 kcal/day.

TDEE = 1780 x 1.55 (moderately active) = 2759 kcal/day. That means he burns roughly 2,759 calories daily. To lose about 0.5 kg per week he would aim for around 2,259 kcal/day; to gain at the same rate, around 3,259 kcal/day.

Setting Calorie Targets for Loss or Gain

Body weight change comes down to energy balance. Roughly 7,700 calories equal 1 kg of body fat, so a daily deficit of about 500 calories produces close to 0.5 kg of loss per week. The same surplus drives a similar rate of gain.

Stay within sensible limits. Going more than 500-750 calories below your TDEE can cost lean muscle and leave you tired. Most guidance suggests not dropping below roughly 1,500 kcal/day for men or 1,200 kcal/day for women without professional supervision.

Tips, Common Mistakes, and What Affects Your Result

TDEE is an estimate, not a precise measurement. Treat the number as a starting point and adjust based on real-world results over two to three weeks.

• Overstating activity: many people pick a higher factor than their actual habits justify, inflating their calorie target.
• Confusing exercise with daily activity: a single workout doesn't make a desk-bound week 'very active'.
• Ignoring changes: as you lose or gain weight, your BMR shifts, so recalculate every few kilograms.
• Muscle mass matters: the formula uses total weight, so very muscular or higher-body-fat individuals may see less accurate estimates.
• Track honestly: weigh food and log intake for accurate comparison against your TDEE.