TDEE Calculator
Maintenance calories, BMR, BMI, ideal weight, and macros. Body fat switches the formula to Katch–McArdle.
Leave blank for Mifflin–St Jeor. A percentage uses Katch–McArdle.
Measure it on the body fat calculator if you do not know it.
25-year-old female, 165 cm, 60 kg, sedentary (office job).
Maintenance calories
1,614
kcal per day
11,300 kcal per week
Maintenance uses Mifflin–St Jeor. BMR is 1,345 kcal per day. TDEE = BMR × 1.2. Enter body fat to use Katch–McArdle.
Calories by activity level
| Basal metabolic rate | 1,345 kcal/day |
|---|---|
| Sedentary (office job) | 1,614 kcal/day |
| Light exercise (1–2 days/week) | 1,850 kcal/day |
| Moderate exercise (3–5 days/week) | 2,085 kcal/day |
| Heavy exercise (6–7 days/week) | 2,321 kcal/day |
| Athlete (2× per day) | 2,556 kcal/day |
The highlighted row is the activity you selected. The same BMR is multiplied by 1.2, 1.375, 1.55, 1.725, and 1.9.
BMR by formula
- Mifflin–St JeorUsed
- 1,345 kcal
- Revised Harris–Benedict
- 1,405 kcal
- Katch–McArdle
- Needs body fat
Ideal weight: 56 kg–60 kg
Height-only averages. They run low for people who lift.
- G.J. Hamwi (1964)
- 56 kg
- B.J. Devine (1974)
- 57 kg
- J.D. Robinson (1983)
- 57 kg
- D.R. Miller (1983)
- 60 kg
BMI: 22.0 · Normal weight
WHO adult bands. The same chart is on the BMI calculator.
- Below 18.5Underweight
- 18.5 – 24.9Normal weight
- 25 – 29.9Overweight
- 30 or aboveObese
Macronutrients
30/35/35 means 30% protein, 35% fat, 35% carbohydrate. Protein and carbohydrate are 4 kcal per gram. Fat is 9.
Maintenance
1,614 kcal/day
Moderate carb (30/35/35)
121 g protein
63 g fat
141 g carb
Lower carb (40/40/20)
161 g protein
72 g fat
81 g carb
Higher carb (30/20/50)
121 g protein
36 g fat
202 g carb
Cutting
1,114 kcal/day, 500 below maintenance
Moderate carb (30/35/35)
84 g protein
43 g fat
97 g carb
Lower carb (40/40/20)
111 g protein
50 g fat
56 g carb
Higher carb (30/20/50)
84 g protein
25 g fat
139 g carb
Bulking
2,114 kcal/day, 500 above maintenance
Moderate carb (30/35/35)
159 g protein
82 g fat
185 g carb
Lower carb (40/40/20)
211 g protein
94 g fat
106 g carb
Higher carb (30/20/50)
159 g protein
47 g fat
264 g carb
The cutting target is under 1,200 kcal/day, a common clinical floor. The figure is still the arithmetic result. It is not a meal plan.
This TDEE calculator estimates maintenance calories, basal metabolic rate (BMR), BMI, a height-only ideal-weight range, and protein, fat, and carbohydrate grams. Enter sex, age, height, weight, and activity. Leave body fat blank and the page uses Mifflin–St Jeor. Enter a body-fat percentage and it switches the BMR to Katch–McArdle, then multiplies by the same activity factor.
Maintenance calories are the intake that holds weight steady. Cutting on this page is 500 kcal below that figure, and bulking is 500 kcal above it — about 0.45 kg (1 lb) a week if the estimate and the food log are both right. The BMR calculator is the resting number alone. The calorie calculator and the weight-loss calculator start from a deficit. The macro calculator splits a calorie budget you already have.
How to calculate TDEE
- Take a 25-year-old woman: 60 kg, 165 cm, sedentary, body fat left blank.
- Mifflin–St Jeor BMR = 10×60 + 6.25×165 − 5×25 − 161 = 600 + 1,031.25 − 125 − 161 = 1,345.25 kcal/day. The page shows 1,345.
- Sedentary multiplies by 1.2. TDEE = 1,345.25 × 1.2 = 1,614.3 kcal/day, shown as 1,614. The week is 1,614.3 × 7 = 11,300 kcal.
- Cutting is 1,614 − 500 = 1,114 kcal/day. Bulking is 1,614 + 500 = 2,114 kcal/day.
- Moderate carb (30% protein, 35% fat, 35% carb) at the rounded 1,614 kcal is 121 g protein, 63 g fat, and 141 g carbohydrate. A half gram rounds down, so 223.5 g is shown as 223 g.
Example
The same woman with body fat still blank has a revised Harris–Benedict BMR of 1,405 kcal, about 60 kcal above Mifflin–St Jeor. A 30-year-old man at 104 kg, 180 cm, light exercise, and 20% body fat is the Katch path: lean mass 83.2 kg, BMR 370 + 21.6×83.2 = 2,167, TDEE 2,167×1.375 = 2,980 kcal/day.
TDEE formula
TDEE = BMR × activity. Mifflin–St Jeor: men BMR = 10w + 6.25h − 5a + 5; women BMR = 10w + 6.25h − 5a − 161. Katch–McArdle, when body fat is entered: BMR = 370 + 21.6 × w × (1 − bf/100). Revised Harris–Benedict (shown, not used for maintenance): men 13.397w + 4.799h − 5.677a + 88.362; women 9.247w + 3.098h − 4.330a + 447.593. w is kg, h is cm, a is years, bf is percent.
How to use this calculator
- Choose imperial or metric. Switching units converts the weight and height already entered.
- Enter sex, age, weight, and height. Imperial height is feet and inches.
- Pick the activity level that matches the training you already do, not the plan for next month.
- Leave body fat blank, or enter a percentage from a DEXA, calipers, or the body-fat calculator. That choice changes the BMR formula.
- Read maintenance, the five-row activity table, BMI, ideal weight, and the three macro presets. The highlighted rows are the ones that match your inputs.
What is TDEE?
Total daily energy expenditure is the estimated energy you burn in a day: the calories of lying still, plus walking, training, fidgeting, and digesting food. Eat that amount and body weight tends to hold. Eat less and the gap is a deficit. Eat more and it is a surplus.
It is an estimate from body size and a coarse activity multiplier. It is not a lab measurement, and it is not a meal plan.
TDEE vs. BMR
BMR is the resting piece. TDEE is BMR times an activity factor, so TDEE is always higher — even a desk job uses 1.2, not 1.0. For the woman above, BMR is 1,345 kcal and sedentary TDEE is 1,614 kcal. The extra 269 kcal is ordinary daily movement, not a workout.
Divide a known maintenance intake by BMR and you get the activity factor back: 1,614 / 1,345 ≈ 1.2. The BMR calculator stops at the resting number.
Activity factors
These five multipliers are the standard set used with Harris–Benedict-style equations. A workout counts when it is real training. Seven easy sessions do not make the heavy row.
| Level | Factor | TDEE |
|---|---|---|
| Sedentary (office job) | × 1.2 | 1,614 kcal |
| Light exercise (1–2 days/week) | × 1.375 | 1,850 kcal |
| Moderate exercise (3–5 days/week) | × 1.55 | 2,085 kcal |
| Heavy exercise (6–7 days/week) | × 1.725 | 2,321 kcal |
| Athlete (2× per day) | × 1.9 | 2,556 kcal |
Same BMR of 1,345 kcal. The page highlights the row you select.
A note on terminology
Maintenance calories, total daily energy expenditure, and TDEE are the same number on this page. “Calorie calculator” often means the next step — a deficit or a surplus — which lives on the calorie calculator. Harris–Benedict and Mifflin–St Jeor are BMR equations, not different definitions of TDEE. Katch–McArdle is the BMR equation that needs body fat. People also search “how many calories do I burn a day”; that query is this page.
What is a reasonable calorie deficit?
A useful starting cut is 10–20% below maintenance, or about 250–500 kcal/day. 500 kcal/day is the 1 lb (0.45 kg) per week rule of thumb, because 500 × 7 = 3,500 kcal and a pound of body fat is often budgeted at about 3,500 kcal (about 7,700 kcal per kilogram). A 1,000 kcal deficit is about 2 lb a week and is hard to keep. The scale moves first from water and glycogen, so judge the deficit over three or four weeks, then move calories by 100–200 if weight is stuck.
Ideal weight formulas
The range is the low and high of four height-only clinical formulas. For the 165 cm woman they round to Hamwi 56 kg, Devine 57 kg, Robinson 57 kg, and Miller 60 kg, so the band is 56–60 kg. Each formula is a base weight plus a fixed amount for every inch of height over 5 ft. They describe population averages. A muscular person can sit above the band and still be lean. The ideal weight calculator is the same family of formulas on its own page.
| Formula | Men | Women |
|---|---|---|
| Hamwi (1964) | 48 kg + 2.7 kg/in over 5 ft | 45.5 kg + 2.2 kg/in |
| Devine (1974) | 50 kg + 2.3 kg/in | 45.5 kg + 2.3 kg/in |
| Robinson (1983) | 52 kg + 1.9 kg/in | 49 kg + 1.7 kg/in |
| Miller (1983) | 56.2 kg + 1.41 kg/in | 53.1 kg + 1.36 kg/in |
BMI bands
BMI is weight in kilograms divided by height in metres squared. The 60 kg, 165 cm example is 60 / 1.65² = 22.0, inside the WHO normal band. The 104 kg, 180 cm example is 32.1, in the obese band. Muscle raises BMI without raising fat, which is why lifters often ignore the label and look at waist or body fat instead. Bands match the BMI calculator.
| BMI | WHO adult band |
|---|---|
| Below 18.5 | Underweight |
| 18.5 – 24.9 | Normal weight |
| 25 – 29.9 | Overweight |
| 30 or above | Obese |
Macro splits at maintenance
Grams are the calorie share divided by 4 for protein and carbohydrate, and by 9 for fat. There is no single best ratio. The three presets are the common fitness splits: moderate carb, lower carb, and higher carb. On a cut, protein is the share most worth protecting. For the 1,614 kcal example:
| Preset (protein/fat/carb) | Protein | Fat | Carb |
|---|---|---|---|
| Moderate carb 30/35/35 | 121 g | 63 g | 141 g |
| Lower carb 40/40/20 | 161 g | 72 g | 81 g |
| Higher carb 30/20/50 | 121 g | 36 g | 202 g |
From the rounded maintenance of 1,614 kcal. A half gram rounds down.
What this calculator leaves out
Pregnancy, breastfeeding, thyroid disease, amputation, large amounts of muscle or oedema, and drugs that change appetite sit outside these equations. The page does not know your step count, and a watch’s “calories burned” will not match this TDEE. Adaptive thermogenesis means a long cut burns a bit less than the equation says. Nothing here is a diagnosis or a prescribed diet.
Common mistakes
- Picking Heavy exercise for easy gym sessions. If the hard training is one or two days a week, use Light.
- Treating a wearable’s calorie total as maintenance. Those estimates sit on top of their own guess at metabolism and often double-count.
- Keeping the same calorie target after a large weight change. A smaller body has a lower BMR, so recalculate.
- Reading the ideal-weight band or the BMI label as a verdict for someone who lifts. Both are height-and-weight averages.
FAQ
What is TDEE?
Total daily energy expenditure is the estimated calories you burn in a day, including activity. It is the intake that holds weight steady. BMR is only the resting part.
What is a normal TDEE?
Most adults fall between about 1,600 and 3,000 kcal/day. A smaller, older, sedentary person is near the low end. A young, heavier, very active person can clear 3,500. Compare the number with your own weigh-ins.
What is a good calorie deficit?
Start around 250–500 kcal below maintenance, or 10–20%. For the 1,614 kcal example, 500 kcal less is 1,114 kcal/day, roughly 0.45 kg a week before adaptation. Deficits near 1,000 kcal a day are hard to sustain.
How do I calculate a 500 calorie deficit?
Subtract 500 from maintenance. 1,614 − 500 = 1,114 kcal/day. A 250 kcal deficit is 1,364. A 1,000 kcal deficit is 614, which is below usual clinical floors and not a target this page recommends.
How do I calculate a 20% calorie deficit?
Multiply maintenance by 0.8. 1,614 × 0.8 = 1,291 kcal/day. A 10% deficit is 1,614 × 0.9 = 1,452.6 (about 1,453). A 30% deficit is 1,614 × 0.7 = 1,129.8 (about 1,130).
How do I calculate TDEE in Excel?
Put kg in A1, cm in B1, age in C1, 1 for male or 0 for female in D1, and the activity factor (1.2, 1.375, 1.55, 1.725, or 1.9) in E1. One cell: =(10*A1+6.25*B1-5*C1+IF(D1=1,5,-161))*E1.
Is TDEE the same as BMR?
No. BMR is resting metabolism. TDEE multiplies BMR by an activity factor from 1.2 to 1.9. Maintenance calories means TDEE, not BMR.
Which activity level should I choose?
Sedentary is a desk job with little training. Light is 1–2 real sessions a week, moderate is 3–5, heavy is 6–7 hard sessions, and athlete is about two-a-days. Easy daily walks do not earn the heavy row. If weight is not moving after a few weeks, drop one level.
Mifflin–St Jeor or Katch–McArdle?
Use Mifflin–St Jeor when you do not know body fat. Use Katch–McArdle when you do, because it estimates from lean mass. Revised Harris–Benedict is on the page for comparison and is not the maintenance figure.
Why does BMI say overweight if I lift?
BMI is weight for height. Muscle weighs the same as fat in that formula, so a lean lifter can land in overweight or obese. Waist and body fat describe that person better. The ideal-weight formulas have the same limit.