VitalMetrics

TDEE Calculator

Your total daily energy expenditure is how many calories you burn in a normal day, all in. It’s the number to eat at if you want your weight to stay the same.

Units
Sex
ft
in
lb
%
Don’t know it? Try the body fat calculator.
1,892kcal/day total burn
TDEE scale: 1892
EquationTDEE (kcal/day)
Mifflin-St Jeor (1990), recommended1,892
Harris-Benedict, revised (Roza & Shizgal 1984)1,975
Katch-McArdle (uses lean mass)add body fat %

BMR 1,376 kcal × activity factor 1.375. Hourly average ≈ 79 kcal.

The activity factor does most of the guessing

Your BMR is measured science; the activity multiplier is a judgement call. Stepping one level up adds roughly 10–12% to your daily total, and people tend to over-rate how active they are. If unsure, pick the lower level and adjust after a few weeks of real results.

Moderate exercise 3–5 days a week. Multiplier ×1.55.

1,376 × 1.55 = 2,133 kcal/day

  1. Sedentary1,651
  2. Lightly active1,892
  3. Moderately active2,133
  4. Very active2,373
  5. Extra active2,614

What goes into your TDEE

  • Basal metabolic rate (about 60–70%): breathing, circulation, keeping warm, brain activity.
  • Thermic effect of food (about 10%): the energy spent digesting and storing what you eat. Protein costs the most to process.
  • Activity (the rest): planned exercise plus everyday movement such as walking, standing and chores, often called NEAT. NEAT varies by hundreds of calories between people.

The three equations

Mifflin-St Jeor: 10 × kg + 6.25 × cm − 5 × age + 5 (men) or − 161 (women). Revised Harris-Benedict: men 88.362 + 13.397 × kg + 4.799 × cm − 5.677 × age; women 447.593 + 9.247 × kg + 3.098 × cm − 4.330 × age. Katch-McArdle: 370 + 21.6 × lean mass in kg, so it needs a body fat estimate.

Then TDEE = BMR × activity factor. The factors (1.2, 1.375, 1.55, 1.725, 1.9) are the widely used set derived from physical activity level research by the FAO/WHO.

Using your TDEE

Keep a two-week average of your weight while eating roughly at your TDEE. If the average drifts, your real TDEE is a bit higher or lower than the estimate; adjust in 100–200 kcal steps. Then set goals with the calorie calculator.

Questions people ask

What is TDEE?

Total daily energy expenditure is the energy you burn in 24 hours: your basal metabolic rate, plus the energy used digesting food (about 10%), plus all movement, from exercise to fidgeting. It is the number of calories that keeps your weight stable.

How is TDEE calculated?

Most calculators estimate BMR with an equation such as Mifflin-St Jeor and multiply it by an activity factor between 1.2 (sedentary) and 1.9 (extremely active). This page shows three BMR equations side by side so you can see the spread.

Which TDEE formula is most accurate?

For most healthy adults, Mifflin-St Jeor was the most accurate in a 2005 Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics review. If you know your body fat percentage reliably, Katch-McArdle can suit lean or very muscular people better.

Is TDEE the same as maintenance calories?

Yes. TDEE and maintenance calories describe the same idea. Eat below it to lose weight and above it to gain.

How accurate is a TDEE calculator?

Expect an error of roughly ±10% for the BMR part, and more for activity. Use the estimate as a starting point, then adjust by 100–200 kcal based on two to four weeks of weigh-ins.

Sources

  1. Mifflin MD, St Jeor ST et al. (1990). Am J Clin Nutr 51:241–247.
  2. Roza AM, Shizgal HM (1984). The Harris Benedict equation reevaluated. Am J Clin Nutr 40:168–182.
  3. McArdle WD, Katch FI, Katch VL. Exercise Physiology: BMR = 370 + 21.6 × lean body mass (kg).
  4. FAO/WHO/UNU (2004). Human energy requirements: physical activity level (PAL) multipliers.

Every formula on VitalMetrics is listed with its original reference on Sources & methods.

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