Daily Calorie Calculator
Calculate how many calories you need per day based on your age, weight, height, and activity level.
How This Calculator Works
This calculator uses the Mifflin-St Jeor equation, which research has shown to be the most accurate widely available formula for estimating calorie needs. It calculates your Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR) — the calories your body burns at rest — then multiplies by an activity factor to estimate your Total Daily Energy Expenditure (TDEE).
Understanding Your Results
BMR (Basal Metabolic Rate) is the number of calories your body needs just to maintain basic functions like breathing, circulation, and cell repair while at complete rest. This is your physiological floor — you should never eat below this number.
TDEE (Total Daily Energy Expenditure) is your maintenance calories — the total number of calories you burn per day including all activity. Eating at this level keeps your weight stable.
Calorie Target adjusts your TDEE based on your goal. For weight loss, we subtract 500 calories (producing roughly 0.5kg loss per week). For muscle gain, we add 500 calories to provide the energy surplus needed to build new tissue.
Next Steps
Use the Meal Calculator to build meals and see if they fit your calorie target. Search our database of 300,000+ foods to find the calorie content of anything you eat. Read our calorie deficit guide for the complete science behind sustainable weight loss.