Calorie Calculator
Calculate daily calorie needs based on age, gender, height, weight and activity level
Your Details
Enter your details and click Calculate
Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR)
— kcal/day
Maintenance Calories (TDEE)
— kcal/day
Weight Loss
— kcal/day
−500 kcal deficit
Weight Gain
— kcal/day
+500 kcal surplus
Calculated using the Mifflin-St Jeor formula. These are estimates — consult a nutritionist for personalised advice.
How to Use
- Enter your Age, select your Gender, and enter your Height and Weight.
- Select your Activity Level from the dropdown (Sedentary → Extra Active).
- Click Calculate. Your BMR (calories at rest) and TDEE (total daily calories needed) are shown instantly.
- Use the Goal section to see recommended intake for weight loss, maintenance, or muscle gain.
- The breakdown shows how calorie needs differ across goals so you can plan your diet accordingly.
What is a Calorie?
A calorie (kcal) is a unit of energy. Your body burns calories to fuel every function — from breathing and thinking to physical movement. The balance between calories consumed (food) and calories burned (metabolism + activity) determines whether you gain, lose, or maintain weight.
BMR vs TDEE
- BMR (Basal Metabolic Rate): Calories needed if you did nothing but rest all day. This covers breathing, circulation, and cell maintenance.
- TDEE (Total Daily Energy Expenditure): BMR × activity multiplier. This is your real-world daily calorie need — what you should eat to maintain your current weight.
Mifflin-St Jeor Equation
Men: BMR = (10 × kg) + (6.25 × cm) − (5 × age) + 5
Women: BMR = (10 × kg) + (6.25 × cm) − (5 × age) − 161
Women: BMR = (10 × kg) + (6.25 × cm) − (5 × age) − 161
Calorie Targets by Goal
| Goal | Intake vs TDEE | Expected Result |
|---|---|---|
| Lose 0.5 kg/week | TDEE − 550 kcal | Mild deficit, sustainable |
| Lose 1 kg/week | TDEE − 1,100 kcal | Aggressive, needs monitoring |
| Maintain weight | = TDEE | Weight stable |
| Gain 0.5 kg/week | TDEE + 500 kcal | Lean bulking |
Tips for Accurate Tracking
- Weigh food with a kitchen scale — estimating portions is notoriously inaccurate.
- Use a food diary app (MyFitnessPal, Healthify Me) to track macros alongside calories.
- Recalculate every 4–6 weeks as your weight changes — your TDEE shifts with body mass.
Frequently Asked Questions
BMR (Basal Metabolic Rate) is the number of calories your body needs to maintain basic functions at complete rest — breathing, circulation, cell production. Our calculator uses the Mifflin-St Jeor equation, considered the most accurate for most people: For men: (10 × weight kg) + (6.25 × height cm) − (5 × age) + 5. For women: (10 × weight kg) + (6.25 × height cm) − (5 × age) − 161.
Sedentary: desk job, no exercise. Lightly active: light exercise 1–3 days/week. Moderately active: moderate exercise 3–5 days/week. Very active: hard exercise 6–7 days/week. Extra active: very hard exercise + physical job. Most office workers fall under Sedentary or Lightly Active. Be honest — overestimating activity is one of the most common reasons people don't lose weight.
1 kg of body fat ≈ 7,700 kcal. To lose 1 kg/week you need a deficit of ~1,100 kcal/day. This is aggressive and hard to sustain. A more practical target is 0.5 kg/week (deficit of ~550 kcal/day). Never go below 1,200 kcal/day (women) or 1,500 kcal/day (men) without medical supervision.
The Mifflin-St Jeor formula is reasonably accurate across ethnicities, but individual variation is ±15–20%. Indians tend to have higher body fat percentage at the same BMI compared to Western populations, which can affect TDEE slightly. Use the result as a starting point and adjust based on 2–4 weeks of real-world results.
Different apps use different BMR equations (Harris-Benedict, Mifflin-St Jeor, Katch-McArdle) and different activity multipliers. Small differences (±100 kcal) are normal and expected. What matters more is consistency — pick one method and track your results over 4 weeks.