Calorie Calculator
Use this calorie calculator to find your daily calorie target for losing, maintaining, or gaining weight.
Calculated instantly in your browser — nothing is sent to or stored on our servers.
Alyssa Northrop, MPH, RD
Alyssa Northrop, MPH, RD, is a registered dietitian who earned her MPH in Human Nutrition at the University of Michigan and completed her dietetic internship there.
Medical Disclaimer: This calculator provides a general estimate based on established research and is for educational purposes only, not a substitute for medical advice. Individual results can vary based on health conditions, so consult a qualified healthcare professional or registered dietitian before making significant changes to your diet, exercise, or health routine. Read our full Medical Disclaimer.
How Daily Calorie Needs Are Calculated
Your Total Daily Energy Expenditure (TDEE) tells you the number of calories that keeps your weight stable. This calculator takes that number and adjusts it for what you’re actually trying to do, lose weight, gain weight, or hold steady, so you get one target number instead of a maintenance estimate you still have to do more math on.
What This Calculator Measures
This is a goal-adjusted calorie target, not a raw maintenance estimate. If you want maintenance calories only, with no adjustment applied, use the TDEE Calculator directly.
The Formula
We first estimate your maintenance calories using the Mifflin-St Jeor formula¹ multiplied by an activity factor, then adjust up or down based on your goal.
Maintenance calories = BMR × activity multiplier
To lose weight, we subtract 500 calories per day, roughly 0.5 kg (1 lb) of loss per week. To gain weight, we add 500 calories per day. Loss targets never drop below a safe minimum of 1,500 kcal for men or 1,200 kcal for women.
How This Calculator Computes Your Result
Enter your sex, age, height, weight, activity level, and goal above. We calculate your maintenance calories first, then apply the 500-calorie adjustment for your selected goal, capped at the safe minimums noted above.
A Note on Accuracy
The 500-calorie rule is a useful starting estimate, not a fixed law of physics. Research suggests that the calorie deficit needed per unit of weight loss changes over time². As weight loss progresses, a greater proportion may come from lean body mass rather than body fat, which has lower energy density. The NIH Body Weight Planner also accounts for changes in energy needs over time³. Track your progress for two to four weeks, then adjust your intake based on your results.
Frequently Asked Questions
How is my calorie target calculated?
We estimate your Basal Metabolic Rate with Mifflin-St Jeor¹, multiply it by an activity factor to get maintenance calories, then adjust up or down based on your goal.
Should I eat exactly this many calories every day?
Treat your daily calorie target as a starting average rather than an exact daily rule. Day-to-day intake can vary naturally as long as your weekly average lines up with your goal.
Why isn't my weight changing as expected?
Individual metabolism, water retention, and the body's own adaptation to a sustained deficit or surplus can all cause real-world results to differ from the estimate². Adjust your target based on your trend over two to three weeks.
Is this different from the TDEE Calculator?
The calorie calculator uses the same underlying maintenance math but goes a step further by applying your goal (lose, maintain, or gain) to give you a direct daily target.
Sources
A New Predictive Equation for Resting Energy Expenditure in Healthy Individuals, Mifflin et al., 1990
What Is the Required Energy Deficit per Unit Weight Loss?, Hall, 2008
Body Weight Planner, NIH / NIDDK
Calorie Calculator
Use this calorie calculator to find your daily calorie target for losing, maintaining, or gaining weight.
Calculated instantly in your browser — nothing is sent to or stored on our servers.
Alyssa Northrop, MPH, RD
Alyssa Northrop, MPH, RD, is a registered dietitian who earned her MPH in Human Nutrition at the University of Michigan and completed her dietetic internship there.
Medical Disclaimer: This calculator provides a general estimate based on established research and is for educational purposes only, not a substitute for medical advice. Individual results can vary based on health conditions, so consult a qualified healthcare professional or registered dietitian before making significant changes to your diet, exercise, or health routine. Read our full Medical Disclaimer.
How Daily Calorie Needs Are Calculated
Your Total Daily Energy Expenditure (TDEE) tells you the number of calories that keeps your weight stable. This calculator takes that number and adjusts it for what you’re actually trying to do, lose weight, gain weight, or hold steady, so you get one target number instead of a maintenance estimate you still have to do more math on.
What This Calculator Measures
This is a goal-adjusted calorie target, not a raw maintenance estimate. If you want maintenance calories only, with no adjustment applied, use the TDEE Calculator directly.
The Formula
We first estimate your maintenance calories using the Mifflin-St Jeor formula¹ multiplied by an activity factor, then adjust up or down based on your goal.
Maintenance calories = BMR × activity multiplier
To lose weight, we subtract 500 calories per day, roughly 0.5 kg (1 lb) of loss per week. To gain weight, we add 500 calories per day. Loss targets never drop below a safe minimum of 1,500 kcal for men or 1,200 kcal for women.
How This Calculator Computes Your Result
Enter your sex, age, height, weight, activity level, and goal above. We calculate your maintenance calories first, then apply the 500-calorie adjustment for your selected goal, capped at the safe minimums noted above.
A Note on Accuracy
The 500-calorie rule is a useful starting estimate, not a fixed law of physics. Research suggests that the calorie deficit needed per unit of weight loss changes over time². As weight loss progresses, a greater proportion may come from lean body mass rather than body fat, which has lower energy density. The NIH Body Weight Planner also accounts for changes in energy needs over time³. Track your progress for two to four weeks, then adjust your intake based on your results.
Frequently Asked Questions
How is my calorie target calculated?
We estimate your Basal Metabolic Rate with Mifflin-St Jeor¹, multiply it by an activity factor to get maintenance calories, then adjust up or down based on your goal.
Should I eat exactly this many calories every day?
Treat your daily calorie target as a starting average rather than an exact daily rule. Day-to-day intake can vary naturally as long as your weekly average lines up with your goal.
Why isn't my weight changing as expected?
Individual metabolism, water retention, and the body's own adaptation to a sustained deficit or surplus can all cause real-world results to differ from the estimate². Adjust your target based on your trend over two to three weeks.
Is this different from the TDEE Calculator?
The calorie calculator uses the same underlying maintenance math but goes a step further by applying your goal (lose, maintain, or gain) to give you a direct daily target.
Sources
A New Predictive Equation for Resting Energy Expenditure in Healthy Individuals, Mifflin et al., 1990
What Is the Required Energy Deficit per Unit Weight Loss?, Hall, 2008
Body Weight Planner, NIH / NIDDK
Calorie Calculator
Use this calorie calculator to find your daily calorie target for losing, maintaining, or gaining weight.
Calculated instantly in your browser — nothing is sent to or stored on our servers.
Alyssa Northrop, MPH, RD
Alyssa Northrop, MPH, RD, is a registered dietitian who earned her MPH in Human Nutrition at the University of Michigan and completed her dietetic internship there.
Medical Disclaimer: This calculator provides a general estimate based on established research and is for educational purposes only, not a substitute for medical advice. Individual results can vary based on health conditions, so consult a qualified healthcare professional or registered dietitian before making significant changes to your diet, exercise, or health routine. Read our full Medical Disclaimer.
How Daily Calorie Needs Are Calculated
Your Total Daily Energy Expenditure (TDEE) tells you the number of calories that keeps your weight stable. This calculator takes that number and adjusts it for what you’re actually trying to do, lose weight, gain weight, or hold steady, so you get one target number instead of a maintenance estimate you still have to do more math on.
What This Calculator Measures
This is a goal-adjusted calorie target, not a raw maintenance estimate. If you want maintenance calories only, with no adjustment applied, use the TDEE Calculator directly.
The Formula
We first estimate your maintenance calories using the Mifflin-St Jeor formula¹ multiplied by an activity factor, then adjust up or down based on your goal.
Maintenance calories = BMR × activity multiplier
To lose weight, we subtract 500 calories per day, roughly 0.5 kg (1 lb) of loss per week. To gain weight, we add 500 calories per day. Loss targets never drop below a safe minimum of 1,500 kcal for men or 1,200 kcal for women.
How This Calculator Computes Your Result
Enter your sex, age, height, weight, activity level, and goal above. We calculate your maintenance calories first, then apply the 500-calorie adjustment for your selected goal, capped at the safe minimums noted above.
A Note on Accuracy
The 500-calorie rule is a useful starting estimate, not a fixed law of physics. Research suggests that the calorie deficit needed per unit of weight loss changes over time². As weight loss progresses, a greater proportion may come from lean body mass rather than body fat, which has lower energy density. The NIH Body Weight Planner also accounts for changes in energy needs over time³. Track your progress for two to four weeks, then adjust your intake based on your results.
Frequently Asked Questions
How is my calorie target calculated?
We estimate your Basal Metabolic Rate with Mifflin-St Jeor¹, multiply it by an activity factor to get maintenance calories, then adjust up or down based on your goal.
Should I eat exactly this many calories every day?
Treat your daily calorie target as a starting average rather than an exact daily rule. Day-to-day intake can vary naturally as long as your weekly average lines up with your goal.
Why isn't my weight changing as expected?
Individual metabolism, water retention, and the body's own adaptation to a sustained deficit or surplus can all cause real-world results to differ from the estimate². Adjust your target based on your trend over two to three weeks.
Is this different from the TDEE Calculator?
The calorie calculator uses the same underlying maintenance math but goes a step further by applying your goal (lose, maintain, or gain) to give you a direct daily target.
Sources
A New Predictive Equation for Resting Energy Expenditure in Healthy Individuals, Mifflin et al., 1990
What Is the Required Energy Deficit per Unit Weight Loss?, Hall, 2008
Body Weight Planner, NIH / NIDDK