TDEE Calculator
Estimate your total daily calorie needs from weight, height, age, sex, and activity level.
Estimated daily calories to maintain your current weight at this activity level.
Energy your body burns at complete rest, before any activity is added.
Your TDEE is your basal metabolic rate multiplied by an activity factor. A 30-year-old man weighing 75 kg at 178 cm has a BMR of about 1,718 kcal/day (Mifflin–St Jeor): 10·75 + 6.25·178 − 5·30 + 5 = 1,717.5. At a moderately active factor of 1.55, his TDEE is roughly 2,662 kcal/day to maintain weight.
What TDEE means
Total daily energy expenditure (TDEE) is the number of calories your body burns in a full day, including everything you do. It starts from your basal metabolic rate (BMR) — the energy needed just to stay alive at rest — and scales it up for movement, work, exercise, and digesting food. Eating at your TDEE keeps your weight roughly steady, which is why it is the number most people use as a calorie target.
This calculator finds BMR with the Mifflin–St Jeor equation, the most accurate of the common predictive formulas for the general population, then multiplies it by an activity factor between 1.2 and 1.9. That factor is what separates TDEE from BMR: it is the estimate of how much your daily activity adds on top of resting energy.
Mifflin–St Jeor BMR scaled by an activity factor from 1.2 (sedentary) to 1.9 (extra active).
Worked example: 75 kg, 178 cm, 30-year-old man, moderately active
Compute BMR with Mifflin–St Jeor, then apply the moderately active factor of 1.55:
- 1 Use metric units. Weight in kilograms, height in centimetres. 1 lb ≈ 0.4536 kg; 1 in = 2.54 cm.
- 2 Compute BMR. 10·75 + 6.25·178 − 5·30 + 5 = 750 + 1,112.5 − 150 + 5 = 1,717.5 ≈ 1,718 kcal/day.
- 3 Pick your activity factor. Match a typical week: moderately active (exercise 3–5 days) uses a factor of 1.55.
- 4 Multiply BMR by the factor. 1,717.5 × 1.55 = 2,662.1 ≈ 2,662 kcal/day.
- 5 Read the result. TDEE ≈ 2,662 kcal/day — the calories that maintain current weight at this activity level.
Activity multipliers
Pick the factor that best matches a typical week, then multiply your BMR by it.
| Activity level | Factor | Who it fits |
|---|---|---|
| Sedentary | 1.2 | Little or no exercise; a desk job with minimal walking |
| Lightly active | 1.375 | Light exercise or sport 1–3 days a week |
| Moderately active | 1.55 | Moderate exercise or sport 3–5 days a week |
| Very active | 1.725 | Hard exercise or sport 6–7 days a week |
| Extra active | 1.9 | Very hard daily training or a physically demanding job |
Using and interpreting your TDEE
TDEE is the maintenance number. To lose weight you eat below it (a deficit); to gain you eat above it (a surplus). Body fat stores roughly 7,700 kcal per kilogram, so a steady deficit of about 500 kcal/day works out to a little under half a kilogram per week. The single biggest source of error is the activity factor — most people overestimate how active they are, so when in doubt, choose the lower level and adjust from real results.
This tool is an informational estimate, not medical advice. Predicted calories vary with muscle mass, genetics, hormones, and logging accuracy. Talk to a qualified professional before making significant dietary changes.