TDEE Calculator

Total Daily Energy Expenditure (TDEE) is the total number of calories you burn in a day — your BMR plus the energy used for exercise, walking, digestion, and all daily movement. It is calculated as TDEE = BMR × activity multiplier, where multipliers range from 1.2 for sedentary lifestyles to 1.9 for athletes in hard training. Our calculator estimates your BMR with the Mifflin-St Jeor equation, then applies your chosen activity factor.

BMR (Basal Metabolic Rate) is the energy your body needs at complete rest to keep your heart beating, lungs breathing, and cells working — roughly 60–70% of your daily burn. TDEE adds everything else: exercise, walking, fidgeting, and the thermic effect of food. You can think of BMR as the floor and TDEE as your true daily calorie budget. Eat at your TDEE to maintain weight, below it to lose, and above it to gain.

Be honest about your average week: Sedentary (1.2) for a desk job with little exercise, Lightly Active (1.375) for light exercise 1–3 days/week, Moderately Active (1.55) for 3–5 days, Very Active (1.725) for hard exercise 6–7 days, and Extra Active (1.9) for a physical job plus twice-daily training. Most people overestimate their activity — if unsure, pick the lower option and adjust based on actual weight trends over 2–3 weeks.

To lose weight, eat roughly 500 kcal below your TDEE, which typically produces about 0.5 kg (1 lb) of fat loss per week. A milder 250 kcal deficit gives a slower but more sustainable ~0.25 kg/week, while a 750 kcal deficit accelerates to ~0.75 kg/week but is harder to maintain. Clinical guidance recommends not eating below your BMR (or roughly 1,200 kcal/day) without medical supervision — our calculator automatically flags targets that fall below this safety floor.

To gain lean mass, eat a surplus of roughly 250–500 kcal above your TDEE. A 250 kcal surplus supports a slow, lean gain (~0.25 kg/week) with minimal fat accumulation, while 500 kcal accelerates growth (~0.5 kg/week) but adds some fat. Pair the surplus with progressive resistance training and adequate protein (1.6–2.2 g per kg of body weight) to maximize muscle synthesis.

TDEE is not static. As you lose weight, your BMR falls because a smaller body burns less at rest, so your calorie needs drop. Conversely, gaining muscle raises your BMR. Activity changes shift the multiplier, and even NEAT (non-exercise activity thermogenesis) varies day to day. As a rule of thumb, re-calculate your TDEE whenever your weight changes by more than ~2 kg or your activity level shifts.

BMR equations like Mifflin-St Jeor are statistical estimates accurate to roughly ±10% for most people, and the activity multiplier is a further approximation. Individual factors — genetics, hormones (especially thyroid), muscle mass, and NEAT — cause real variation. The most reliable method is to track your weight and food intake for 2–3 weeks and adjust your intake by the observed trend. Our calculator is an excellent starting point, not a medical prescription.

Yes. The calculator is 100% free with no registration, and every calculation runs entirely in your browser — no data is ever sent to a server. If you choose to save results, they are stored only in your browser's localStorage, and you can export, import, or clear your history at any time.