Tools/Health Tools/TDEE Calculator

TDEE Calculator – Total Daily Energy Expenditure by Activity Level

Free TDEE calculator to find your Total Daily Energy Expenditure, BMR, and daily calorie needs for weight loss, maintenance, or muscle gain.

If this tool isn’t working as expected, please take a screenshot of the error and report the problem here so we can investigate and improve it.

Health & Wellness Disclaimer

Calculations and estimates provided by this tool are for informational and educational purposes only. They are not intended as medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always consult a qualified physician or healthcare professional regarding any health condition or medical decision.

About this tool

TDEE is a widely used reference point in nutrition and training plans because it reflects your real-world energy balance - resting metabolism plus activity - rather than just your body size. This calculator estimates it using the Mifflin-St Jeor equation, a research-backed formula for resting metabolic rate, then multiplies it by an activity multiplier you select.

Like any formula-based estimate, it's a starting point - actual energy needs vary by individual, and the result is most useful when you track real-world results and adjust from there.

TDEE - Total Daily Energy Expenditure - is an estimate of the calories your body burns in a typical day, combining your resting metabolic rate with your activity level. This calculator computes it from your stats using the Mifflin-St Jeor equation, then shows calorie targets for weight loss and muscle gain - a formula-based estimate to use as a starting point, not a measured or medical value.

How to Use TDEE Calculator

Enter Your Stats

Add your gender, age, height, and weight.

→

Select Activity Level

Choose how active you are on a daily basis.

→

Calculate TDEE

The tool computes your BMR and TDEE instantly.

→

Get Calorie Goals

Review calories for weight loss, maintenance, and muscle gain.

Common Workflows

Get Your BMR and TDEE

Enter your gender, age, height, weight, and activity level to see BMR (Base Metabolic Rate) and TDEE (Maintenance) calculated instantly.

Choose a Conservative Activity Level

If you're between two activity levels, pick the lower one first - overestimating activity is the most common source of error in a TDEE estimate.

Get a Weight-Loss Calorie Target

Read the Weight Loss (-500 kcal) figure for a standard deficit that targets roughly 0.5 kg of loss per week.

Get a Muscle-Gain Calorie Target

Read the Muscle Gain (+300 kcal) figure for a modest surplus aimed at lean gain rather than a large bulk.

See the Impact of a Different Activity Level

Change the Activity Level dropdown and reread the result to see how much the estimate shifts between levels.

Best For

Calculates BMR using the Mifflin-St Jeor equation, then multiplies it by your selected activity level to estimate TDEE.
Shows the TDEE for whichever Activity Level is currently selected - switch the dropdown to see how a different level changes the number.
Gives calorie targets for weight loss (TDEE minus 500) and muscle gain (TDEE plus 300) alongside your maintenance TDEE.

Examples

Calculate BMR, TDEE, and calorie targets

Input

Gender Male, Age 25, Height 175 cm, Weight 70 kg, Activity Moderately Active (1.55x)

Result

BMR 1,674 kcal/day, TDEE (Maintenance) 2,594 kcal/day, Weight Loss (-500 kcal) 2,094 kcal/day, Muscle Gain (+300 kcal) 2,894 kcal/day

BMR is calculated with the Mifflin-St Jeor equation from gender, age, height, and weight; TDEE multiplies BMR by the 1.55 activity multiplier; the two goal targets are simple, fixed adjustments to TDEE.

Use Cases

Setting maintenance calories before a diet phase

Get a BMR-and-activity-based TDEE estimate to use as your starting maintenance calorie level.

Estimating a calorie deficit for gradual weight loss

Use the Weight Loss (-500 kcal) figure as a standard, moderate deficit target.

Checking how a change in activity level shifts your estimate

Switch the Activity Level dropdown to see how much TDEE moves between two levels you're deciding between.

Common Mistakes

Problem

Expecting all five activity levels to display at once

Solution

Only the currently selected Activity Level's TDEE is shown - change the dropdown to see a different level's number.

Problem

Overestimating your activity level

Solution

Picking a higher activity level than you actually sustain is the most common way this estimate ends up too high - when unsure, choose the lower of two levels you're considering.

Problem

Treating the result as an exact, measured number

Solution

Mifflin-St Jeor is a formula-based estimate - your actual maintenance calories can differ from the calculated TDEE, especially over time as your weight and activity change.

Problem

Using a TDEE calculated for one body composition to judge a very different one

Solution

The formula doesn't account for body-fat percentage - it can be less accurate for people with unusually high or low muscle mass relative to their height and weight.

Tips & Best Practices

Choose the lower activity level when you're unsure

Most desk workers who exercise a few times a week land between Lightly Active and Moderately Active - the lower option is the safer starting point to avoid an inflated estimate.

Treat the result as a starting point, then adjust from real tracking

Use the calculated TDEE as your first estimate, track your actual weight change over a few weeks at that calorie level, and adjust up or down based on what actually happens.

Recalculate as your weight changes

BMR depends on your current weight, so TDEE shifts as you lose or gain - recalculate periodically rather than relying on a single result long-term.

Don't eat below your BMR

Weight Loss (-500 kcal) is a moderate deficit from TDEE - eating consistently below your BMR (the Base Metabolic Rate figure) is generally considered too aggressive for sustained use and isn't a target this calculator produces.

Limitations

Shows one activity level at a time, not a side-by-side comparison

TDEE (Maintenance) reflects whichever Activity Level is currently selected - to compare levels, change the dropdown and reread the result; the five levels aren't shown together in a table.

No Katch-McArdle or body-fat-based formula

Only the Mifflin-St Jeor equation is used, based on gender, age, height, and weight - there's no body-fat percentage input or lean-mass-based calculation for users who know their body composition.

No macro breakdown

The calculator outputs calorie targets only - it doesn't split any target into protein, carbohydrate, or fat grams.

Fixed deficit and surplus amounts

Weight Loss is always TDEE minus a flat 500 kcal, and Muscle Gain is always TDEE plus a flat 300 kcal - there's no way to enter a custom deficit or surplus size.

No input validation or error messages

Entering an empty or non-numeric value in a stat field can produce a nonsensical result instead of a clear error message.

Formula-based estimate, not a measured value

Mifflin-St Jeor approximates BMR from your stats rather than measuring your actual metabolism, and its accuracy is lower for populations it wasn't validated on, including children, pregnant people, and older or very muscular adults.

Comparisons

How Activity Level Changes the Same BMR

BMR stays fixed for your stats - only the activity multiplier changes TDEE and the calorie targets built from it.

	Sedentary (1.2x)	Moderately Active (1.55x)
BMR (same stats)	1,674 kcal/day	1,674 kcal/day
TDEE (Maintenance)	2,009 kcal/day	2,594 kcal/day
Weight Loss (-500)	1,509 kcal/day	2,094 kcal/day

Which should you use?

For the same 25-year-old, 175 cm, 70 kg profile, moving from Sedentary to Moderately Active adds 585 kcal/day to the estimate - a reminder that the Activity Level choice matters as much as the stats you enter.

FAQs

This is an estimate, not a measured or medical value - actual calorie needs vary by individual and change as your weight and activity change. The most common question is which activity multiplier to pick: most desk workers who exercise a few times a week land between Lightly Active and Moderately Active, and choosing the lower option is the safer starting point to avoid overestimating.

What is TDEE?

TDEE stands for Total Daily Energy Expenditure - the total number of calories your body burns each day including physical activity.

How is TDEE calculated?

TDEE is calculated by multiplying your BMR (base metabolic rate) by an activity multiplier. BMR is estimated using the Mifflin-St Jeor formula based on your age, gender, height, and weight.