Calorie Goal Calculator
Turn your TDEE into a daily calorie target to lose, maintain, or gain weight at a rate you choose.
Eat around this to lose about 0.5 kg/week.
Estimated calories to hold your current weight at this activity level.
0.5 kg × 7,700 kcal ÷ 7 days ≈ 550 kcal/day deficit.
To lose weight, subtract a daily deficit from your TDEE. Body fat stores ≈ 7,700 kcal/kg, so losing 0.5 kg/week needs a deficit of 0.5 × 7,700 ÷ 7 ≈ 550 kcal/day. A person with a 2,594 kcal TDEE would eat about 2,044 kcal/day; to gain, add the surplus instead.
From TDEE to a calorie goal
Your total daily energy expenditure (TDEE) is the calories that keep your weight steady. To change weight you shift eating away from that maintenance number: eat below it for a deficit (weight loss) or above it for a surplus (weight gain). The size of the shift decides how fast the scale moves.
The link between calories and mass is the energy stored in body tissue: roughly 7,700 kcal per kilogram of fat (about 3,500 kcal per pound). Pick a weekly rate, spread that energy across seven days, and you have a daily target. This calculator estimates TDEE with the Mifflin–St Jeor equation and an activity factor, then applies your chosen rate.
7,700 kcal ≈ 1 kg of body fat. Subtract Δ to lose weight, add it to gain.
Worked example: 0.5 kg/week loss on a 2,594 kcal TDEE
Take the maintenance calories, work out the daily deficit for the target rate, then subtract:
- 1 Find your maintenance calories. Estimate TDEE from your BMR and activity level. In this example TDEE ≈ 2,594 kcal/day.
- 2 Choose a goal and weekly rate. Decide to lose, maintain, or gain, and pick a rate — here, lose 0.5 kg per week.
- 3 Convert the rate to daily calories. Δ = 0.5 × 7,700 ÷ 7 ≈ 550 kcal/day of deficit.
- 4 Apply it to maintenance. 2,594 − 550 ≈ 2,044 kcal/day to lose weight; add 550 instead to gain.
- 5 Check the safety floor. Keep intake above roughly 1,500 kcal/day for men and 1,200 for women; if the target drops lower, ease the rate.
Weekly rate → daily deficit or surplus
Each rate uses Δ = rate × 7,700 ÷ 7. Subtract Δ from TDEE to lose, add it to gain.
| Weekly rate | Daily calorie change | Roughly |
|---|---|---|
| 0.25 kg/week | 0.25 × 7,700 ÷ 7 | ≈ 275 kcal/day |
| 0.5 kg/week | 0.5 × 7,700 ÷ 7 | ≈ 550 kcal/day |
| 0.75 kg/week | 0.75 × 7,700 ÷ 7 | ≈ 825 kcal/day |
| 1.0 kg/week | 1.0 × 7,700 ÷ 7 | ≈ 1,100 kcal/day |
Reading the number sensibly
The 7,700 kcal/kg rule is a useful average, not a law. Real results drift from the prediction because water weight, glycogen, muscle gain, hormones, sleep, and logging accuracy all move the scale, and metabolism adapts as you get lighter — which is why steady loss often slows after a few weeks. Treat the goal as a starting point and adjust based on what the scale actually does across two to four weeks.
Very aggressive deficits are counterproductive and can be unsafe: they cost muscle, energy, and adherence, and dropping far below the floor risks nutrient shortfalls. That is why this tool caps loss targets at about 1,500 kcal/day for men and 1,200 for women and warns when your rate would go lower.
This tool provides an informational estimate only — it is not medical, nutritional, or dietary advice. Consult a qualified professional before making significant changes to how you eat.