TDEE Calculator
Calculate Total Daily Energy Expenditure for weight loss, maintenance, or gain.
Health
TDEE Calculator
Generated on April 24, 2026
?What is the TDEE Calculator?
Total Daily Energy Expenditure (TDEE) is the total number of calories your body burns in 24 hours, including your basal metabolism, all physical activity (planned exercise and general daily movement), and the thermic effect of digesting and absorbing food. It is the single most important number for any diet plan: eat at your TDEE to maintain weight, eat below it to lose fat, or above it to build muscle. This calculator combines the Mifflin–St Jeor BMR formula with an activity multiplier to produce a personalized TDEE estimate.
The Formula
The activity multiplier (also called PAL — Physical Activity Level) scales resting metabolism up to reflect real-world daily movement, planned exercise, and the thermic effect of food. A sedentary person still burns about 20% more than their BMR just through basic activities like walking, fidgeting, and digesting food; an athlete training hard can burn 90% more. Choose the multiplier that matches the sum of your deliberate exercise and your job/home movement level — the honest answer beats a wishful one.
Practical Examples
A male with BMR 1,700 at moderate activity (1.55) has a TDEE of approximately 2,635 kcal/day — the maintenance target.
A female with BMR 1,400 at light activity (1.375) has a TDEE of about 1,925 kcal/day — eat this much to hold weight.
For weight loss, eating 500 kcal below TDEE produces roughly 0.45 kg (1 lb) of fat loss per week — the standard sustainable pace.
For muscle gain, eating 300–500 kcal above TDEE combined with strength training delivers slow but clean muscle gain.
A sedentary office worker at 2,000 kcal TDEE can lose 5 kg in 10 weeks by eating 1,500 kcal/day, assuming consistent discipline.
An athlete at 3,500 kcal TDEE must eat consistently enough to fuel training — under-eating causes performance drops and muscle loss.