What is it?
Your daily calorie need is the energy your body uses in a day: to keep you alive at rest (basal metabolic rate), to digest food and to move. Eating around this amount keeps your weight stable; eating less or more changes it over time.
This calculator estimates your maintenance calories and adjusts them for your goal, with built-in safety limits.
How it's calculated
1. Basal metabolic rate (BMR) is estimated with the Mifflin-St Jeor equation.
2. BMR is multiplied by an activity factor (1.2 to 1.9) to estimate total daily energy expenditure (TDEE).
3. The goal adjustment is applied: −20% to lose weight, −10% for definition, +10% to build muscle, +15% to gain weight — capped at a 1,000 kcal deficit or 25% of TDEE.
4. The result never goes below a safe floor (1,200 kcal for women, 1,500 kcal for men, and never below BMR).
Men: BMR = 10 × weight(kg) + 6.25 × height(cm) − 5 × age + 5 Women: BMR = 10 × weight(kg) + 6.25 × height(cm) − 5 × age − 161 TDEE = BMR × activity factor
How we calculate · Last reviewed: September 1, 2026
How to interpret your result
Treat the number as a starting estimate. Follow it for 2–3 weeks and track your weekly average weight.
If your weight moves faster or slower than intended, adjust by 100–200 kcal per day and reassess.