TDEE Calculator
Estimate your total daily energy expenditure from BMR and activity level, see the number at every activity multiplier, and learn what each multiplier really means.
TDEE Calculator: with the default inputs, total daily energy expenditure is 2,619.
The equations were fitted separately by sex; pick the one that matches your physiology.
Structured exercise plus how physical your job is. Most people should pick one level lower than their first instinct.
Calories you burn in a typical day. Eat this to maintain weight.
- Basal metabolic rate
- 1,690
- Burned through activity
- 929TDEE − BMR: everything above lying still, including digestion and fidgeting.
- Per week
- 18,333
- Cutting target (−20%)
- 2,095A moderate deficit for fat loss.
- Lean-bulk target (+10%)
- 2,881
Assumptions
- BMR from Mifflin-St Jeor unless another formula is chosen; the thermic effect of food is folded into the activity multiplier.
- Activity multipliers 1.2–1.9 are the conventional Harris-Benedict factors, not individually measured values.
- Cutting and bulking targets (−20% / +10%) are common starting points, not prescriptions.
| Activity level | Multiplier | TDEE (kcal/day) | vs. your level |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sedentary | 1.2 | 2,028 | -591 |
| Lightly active | 1.375 | 2,323 | -296 |
| Moderately active (selected) | 1.55 | 2,619 | 0 |
| Very active | 1.725 | 2,915 | 296 |
| Extra active | 1.9 | 3,210 | 591 |
Each step up the ladder is worth roughly 12–15% of BMR — a few hundred calories a day.
How this is worked out
The formula
TDEE = BMR × activity factor Activity factors: 1.2 sedentary · 1.375 lightly active · 1.55 moderately active · 1.725 very active · 1.9 extra active BMR (Mifflin-St Jeor) = 10 × weight (kg) + 6.25 × height (cm) − 5 × age + 5 (men) / − 161 (women)
Open How it’s calculated above to see this worked through with your own numbers.
What you enter
- Age
- A number.from 15 to 100 · whole numbers only · defaults to 35
- Sex
- The equations were fitted separately by sex; pick the one that matches your physiology.Male · Female
- Height
- A number.in ft, in, cm, m · from 2 to 9 · defaults to 5.8333
- Weight
- A number.in lb, kg, st · from 20 to 1500 · defaults to 165
- Activity level
- Structured exercise plus how physical your job is. Most people should pick one level lower than their first instinct.Sedentary — desk job, little or no exercise (×1.2) · Lightly active — light exercise 1–3 days/week (×1.375) · Moderately active — moderate exercise 3–5 days/week (×1.55) · Very active — hard exercise 6–7 days/week (×1.725) · Extra active — hard daily training plus a physical job (×1.9)
- Formula(under More options)
- Choose one of 3 options.Mifflin-St Jeor (recommended) · Harris-Benedict (revised 1984) · Katch-McArdle (needs body fat %)
- Body fat(under More options)
- Leave at 0 if unknown. Only Katch-McArdle uses it; estimate it with the body fat calculator.a percentage · from 0 to 70 · defaults to 0
What you get back
- Total daily energy expendituremain answer
- Calories you burn in a typical day. Eat this to maintain weight.
- Basal metabolic rate
- Burned through activity
- TDEE − BMR: everything above lying still, including digestion and fidgeting.
- Per week
- Cutting target (−20%)
- A moderate deficit for fat loss.
- Lean-bulk target (+10%)
What this assumes
- BMR from Mifflin-St Jeor unless another formula is chosen; the thermic effect of food is folded into the activity multiplier.
- Activity multipliers 1.2–1.9 are the conventional Harris-Benedict factors, not individually measured values.
- Cutting and bulking targets (−20% / +10%) are common starting points, not prescriptions.
About this calculator
Total daily energy expenditure is everything you burn in 24 hours: resting metabolism, digesting food, exercise, and the walking, standing and fidgeting in between. It's your maintenance number — eat it and your weight holds — so it's the reference point for any cut or bulk.
How it's calculated
The calculator estimates resting metabolism with the Mifflin-St Jeor equation (the most accurate of the common formulas in the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics' 2005 review), then multiplies by an activity factor. Those factors — 1.2 through 1.9 — are the traditional Harris-Benedict multipliers and they bundle three things together: the thermic effect of food (about 10% of intake), structured exercise, and non-exercise activity (NEAT), which varies more between people than exercise does.
Picking an activity level honestly
- Sedentary (1.2): desk job, driving, little or no deliberate exercise.
- Lightly active (1.375): light exercise 1–3 days a week, or a job on your feet part of the day.
- Moderately active (1.55): moderate exercise 3–5 days a week. Most people who "work out regularly" belong here or one step below.
- Very active (1.725): hard training 6–7 days a week, or a physically demanding job plus exercise.
- Extra active (1.9): two-a-days, endurance training blocks, or heavy manual labor plus training.
Studies that compare self-reported activity with doubly-labelled water (the gold standard) find people overestimate. If the scale doesn't agree with the estimate after three weeks, the estimate is wrong, not the scale — adjust by 100–200 kcal and carry on.
Using the table
The table shows your TDEE at every level so you can see the size of each step: for a typical adult, moving from sedentary to lightly active is worth about 300 kcal a day. That's a useful sanity check when a tracker claims a workout burned 800.
Limitations
Any equation is a population average. Real TDEE varies by ±10–15% around the estimate for genetic, hormonal and behavioural reasons, and it falls as you diet — partly because you weigh less, partly through adaptive thermogenesis. Re-run the calculator as your weight changes, and prefer a measured body fat percentage with Katch-McArdle (under More options) if you're much leaner or heavier than average.
Frequently asked questions
▸What's the difference between TDEE and BMR?
BMR is what you burn at complete rest. TDEE adds digestion, exercise and everyday movement on top, and is typically 1.2–1.9 times BMR. Calorie targets are set from TDEE.
▸How accurate is a TDEE calculator?
Within about 10% for most people, but the activity multiplier is a coarse guess and self-reported activity is usually overstated. Track your weight for 2–3 weeks on the estimated intake and adjust.
▸Should I include exercise in my activity level or add it separately?
Include it in the activity level and don't add tracker calories on top. Counting exercise twice is the most common reason people 'eat at maintenance' and still gain.
▸Why does TDEE drop when I lose weight?
A smaller body costs less to run and move, and dieting itself lowers energy expenditure a little beyond that (adaptive thermogenesis). Recalculate every 5–10 lb.
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