Free calorie calculator
How many calories should you eat?
Get your resting burn (BMR), your daily burn (TDEE) and a calorie and macro plan for your goal, plus your BMI and ideal weight. It takes under a minute, and your plan updates as you answer.
Your daily calorie target
– – – –kcal
Answer a few questions to get your plan.
To work out your plan, add your:
- Sex(needed)
- Age(needed)
- Height(needed)
- Weight(needed)
Free, no sign-up. Your answers never leave your browser.
How your number is worked out
The same three steps the TrackMyCalorie app uses to build your plan.
- 1
Your resting burn (BMR)
The energy your body uses at rest, just to keep you alive. We use the Mifflin–St Jeor formula, which works from your sex, age, height and weight and is the one dietitians use most.
- 2
Your daily burn (TDEE)
Your resting burn multiplied by how much you move: your steps, work and chores, plus your training. This is roughly what you burn on a typical day.
- 3
Your daily target
To lose weight we take a little off your daily burn; to gain, we add a little. About 7,700 kcal is one kilogram of body fat, so 0.5 kg a week is around 550 kcal a day.
Common questions
This calculator gives estimates for healthy adults and isn't medical advice. If you're pregnant, breastfeeding or managing a health condition, talk to a doctor or dietitian first.
What's the difference between BMR and TDEE?
BMR (basal metabolic rate) is what your body burns at complete rest. TDEE (total daily energy expenditure) adds everything you do on top: walking, working, training and digesting food. Your TDEE is the number to eat to stay the same weight.
How many calories should I eat to lose weight?
Eat less than your TDEE. A pace of 0.25 to 0.75 kg (0.5 to 1.5 lb) a week is a good range for most people: steady enough to see progress, gentle enough to stick to. The calculator works out the exact number for the pace you pick.
Why won't the target go below 1,200 or 1,500 calories?
Going lower makes it hard to get enough protein, vitamins and minerals, and is tough to keep up. Weight-loss plans stop at 1,200 kcal a day for women and 1,500 for men. If you need to go lower, do it with a doctor or dietitian.
How are my macros worked out?
Protein comes first: 1.6 g per kg of body weight to maintain, 1.8 g when changing weight, and 2 g if you lift weights, to protect muscle. Fat makes up about 27.5% of your calories, and carbs fill the rest.
What is BMI, and what's a healthy BMI?
BMI (body mass index) is your weight in kilograms divided by your height in metres squared. For adults, 18.5 to 24.9 counts as a healthy weight, 25 to 29.9 as overweight and 30 or more as obese. It's a quick screening tool, not a diagnosis: it can't tell muscle from fat, so athletes often score high.
How is ideal weight worked out?
We show four classic formulas (Hamwi, Devine, Robinson and Miller). Each starts from a base weight at 5 ft (152 cm) and adds a set amount for every inch above it, with different figures for men and women. They give a ballpark, so we also show the weight range that gives a healthy BMI for your height.
How accurate is this?
Formulas like this are usually within about 10% for most people, but everyone is different. Treat your number as a starting point: track for two or three weeks, watch your weight trend, and adjust by 100 to 200 kcal if needed.
What should I do with my number?
Track what you eat against it. TrackMyCalorie builds this same plan when you sign up and makes tracking quick: search, scan a barcode, or just describe your meal and AI does the maths.