Use this free TDEE calculator to estimate how many calories you burn each day. Enter your age, sex, height, weight and activity level to calculate your estimated BMR, maintenance calories and starting calorie targets for fat loss or muscle gain.
Calculate Your TDEE
Enter your details to estimate how many calories your body burns each day.
What Is TDEE?
TDEE stands for Total Daily Energy Expenditure. It is an estimate of the total number of calories your body uses during a typical day.
Your daily energy expenditure includes the calories your body needs to keep basic functions running, along with the energy used through walking, work, exercise, training and other daily activities.
Knowing your estimated TDEE gives you a useful starting point when deciding how many calories to eat for weight loss, weight maintenance or muscle gain.
How Does the TDEE Calculator Work?
Our TDEE calculator first estimates your Basal Metabolic Rate, commonly called BMR.
BMR is an estimate of the energy your body would use at rest.
Your estimated BMR is then adjusted according to your activity level.
The basic calculation is:
TDEE = BMR × Activity Multiplier
If you do not enter a body-fat percentage, the calculator uses the Mifflin–St Jeor equation to estimate BMR.
If you provide a body-fat percentage, the calculator can estimate resting energy needs using lean body mass through the Katch–McArdle equation.
Because these equations are estimates, your calculated TDEE should be treated as a starting point rather than an exact calorie requirement.
TDEE Activity Levels
Activity level can have a large effect on your estimated daily calorie needs.
Choose the option that most closely reflects your normal routine rather than selecting a higher level simply because you exercise occasionally.
Sedentary – 1.20
This level is generally suitable for people who do little planned exercise and spend much of the day sitting.
Examples may include desk-based work with limited daily physical activity.
Lightly Active – 1.375
This level may suit someone who exercises lightly around 1–3 days per week while otherwise having a relatively normal or sedentary lifestyle.
Moderately Active – 1.55
This option is commonly used for people who exercise around 3–5 days per week and have a reasonably active routine.
Very Active – 1.725
This level may be more appropriate for people who train hard most days of the week or have a lifestyle that includes substantial physical activity.
Extra Active – 1.90
This is generally intended for people combining demanding training with a physically active occupation or unusually high daily activity.
If you are unsure which level to choose, it is usually better to start conservatively and adjust your calorie intake based on real progress.
TDEE for Weight Loss
Weight loss occurs when average energy intake remains below average energy expenditure over time.
Your TDEE gives you an estimated maintenance calorie level. A calorie deficit can then be created by eating below this amount.
For example, if your estimated TDEE is:
2,500 calories per day
a 20% calorie deficit would be approximately:
2,000 calories per day
Our calculator shows a moderate fat-loss target at approximately 20% below estimated TDEE.
This does not mean everyone should automatically use a 20% deficit. Your training, body composition, hunger, recovery and individual circumstances can affect the calorie intake that is suitable for you.
The most useful approach is to treat the calculated number as an initial target and then monitor your real weight trend.
TDEE for Muscle Gain
Building muscle generally requires consistent resistance training, adequate protein and enough total energy to support training and recovery.
Our calculator displays a starting muscle-gain target approximately 10% above estimated TDEE.
For example:
Estimated TDEE: 2,500 calories
10% surplus: 250 calories
Starting muscle-gain target: 2,750 calories per day
A moderate calorie surplus can provide additional energy for training and recovery without immediately adding a very large amount of food.
Your ideal surplus can vary depending on your training experience, body composition and rate of progress.
TDEE for Weight Maintenance
If you want to maintain approximately the same body weight, your estimated TDEE is a useful starting calorie target.
For example, if your TDEE result is:
2,400 calories per day
then eating around 2,400 calories on average may place you close to energy balance.
However, daily calorie expenditure naturally changes.
Some days you may walk more, train harder or spend more time sitting. For this reason, it is more useful to think about calorie intake and body-weight trends across several days or weeks rather than expecting the same result every single day.
TDEE vs BMR: What Is the Difference?
TDEE and BMR are related, but they measure different things.
BMR
BMR stands for Basal Metabolic Rate.
It estimates how much energy your body needs to support basic functions while at rest.
These include functions such as breathing, circulation and maintaining normal body processes.
TDEE
TDEE stands for Total Daily Energy Expenditure.
It starts with your resting energy needs and then includes the effect of normal activity.
For example, someone may have:
BMR: 1,700 calories
but after accounting for activity:
TDEE: 2,550 calories
When planning daily calorie intake, TDEE is generally more useful because it attempts to represent your total daily energy needs rather than resting needs alone.
Mifflin–St Jeor vs Katch–McArdle
This calculator can use two different approaches depending on the information you provide.
Mifflin–St Jeor Equation
When body-fat percentage is not entered, the calculator uses age, sex, height and body weight to estimate BMR.
This makes it useful for most visitors because body-fat percentage is not required.
Katch–McArdle Equation
If you enter a body-fat percentage, the calculator can estimate lean body mass and use it to calculate resting energy needs.
The usefulness of this method depends heavily on how accurate your body-fat estimate is.
If you do not know your body-fat percentage with reasonable confidence, leaving the field blank is completely fine.
How Accurate Is a TDEE Calculator?
No online TDEE calculator can measure your exact daily calorie expenditure.
Equations provide estimates based on population data and general activity assumptions.
Your actual energy expenditure may be different because of factors such as:
- daily movement
- training volume
- body composition
- occupation
- exercise intensity
- individual metabolic differences
This does not make a TDEE calculator useless.
It means the result should be used as a starting estimate that can be refined using real-world data.
How to Use Your TDEE Result
Once you have calculated your TDEE, choose the calorie target that matches your goal.
For fat loss, start below estimated maintenance calories.
For weight maintenance, start around your estimated TDEE.
For muscle gain, a modest calorie surplus may be appropriate.
Then follow these steps:
- Keep your calorie intake reasonably consistent.
- Weigh yourself under similar conditions.
- Look at your average weight trend rather than a single day’s weight.
- Monitor progress for around 2–3 weeks.
- Adjust calories gradually if your results do not match your goal.
For example, if your calculated fat-loss target is 2,000 calories but your average weight is not decreasing after several weeks of consistent tracking, your real energy needs may be different from the estimate.
What Should You Calculate Next?
Calories are only one part of a nutrition plan.
Once you know your estimated daily calorie needs, you can decide how those calories should be divided between protein, carbohydrates and fat.
Our Macro Calculator will help calculate those targets.
You will also be able to use our Protein Calculator to estimate a daily protein target based on your body weight and fitness goal.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does TDEE stand for?
TDEE stands for Total Daily Energy Expenditure. It is an estimate of the total number of calories your body uses during a full day.
Is TDEE the same as maintenance calories?
Your estimated TDEE is commonly used as a starting estimate for maintenance calories. If average calorie intake is close to average energy expenditure, body weight may remain relatively stable over time.
Should I eat below my TDEE to lose weight?
Weight loss generally requires an energy deficit over time. This means average calorie intake needs to remain below average energy expenditure.
How much below TDEE should I eat to lose weight?
There is no single calorie deficit that is ideal for everyone. This calculator displays approximately 20% below estimated maintenance as a practical starting estimate, but individual needs can vary.
How much above TDEE should I eat to build muscle?
There is no universal surplus for muscle gain. Our calculator displays approximately 10% above estimated TDEE as a conservative starting point.
Is TDEE the same every day?
Not exactly. Daily movement, exercise and other activities can change from one day to another. TDEE is best viewed as an estimated average rather than a fixed number your body burns every day.
Why do different TDEE calculators give different results?
Different calculators may use different BMR equations, activity multipliers, assumptions and rounding methods. Small differences in inputs can also change the final estimate.
Should I use body-fat percentage in the calculator?
Only if you have a reasonably reliable estimate. If you are unsure about your body-fat percentage, leave the field blank and the calculator will use the standard equation based on age, sex, height and weight.
How often should I recalculate my TDEE?
It makes sense to recalculate after a meaningful change in body weight, activity level or training routine.
Disclaimer
The TDEE Calculator and information provided on this page are intended for general educational and fitness-planning purposes only.
Calculator results are estimates and should not be considered medical advice, diagnosis or a personalized dietary prescription. Individual energy and nutrition requirements can vary.
People with medical conditions, pregnancy, special dietary requirements or other health concerns should seek advice from an appropriately qualified healthcare professional.