Calorie calculator
How many calories do you need a day to maintain your weight or to reduce it slowly? Enter your details – the calculation runs only in your browser and nothing is sent anywhere.
Result
Enter your age, height and weight – the result appears right away.
How the calculator works
The basal metabolic rate (the energy your body uses at rest) is calculated with the Mifflin–St Jeor equation (1990). Systematic reviews found it the most accurate of the commonly used equations for healthy adults (Frankenfield et al., 2005):
- women: 10 × weight (kg) + 6.25 × height (cm) − 5 × age − 161
- men: 10 × weight (kg) + 6.25 × height (cm) − 5 × age + 5
Pounds and inches are converted first (1 lb = 0.4536 kg, 1 in = 2.54 cm). Your daily energy expenditure is the basal metabolic rate multiplied by an activity factor:
| Activity | Factor |
|---|---|
| Mostly sitting, almost no exercise | × 1.2 |
| Light activity – walking, exercise 1–3 times a week | × 1.375 |
| Moderate – sport 3–5 times a week or a job on your feet | × 1.55 |
| High – sport 6–7 times a week or physical work | × 1.725 |
| Very high – hard physical work plus sport | × 1.9 |
Calories for reducing weight
One kilogram of body fat corresponds to roughly 7,700 kcal (about 3,500 kcal per pound). A slow, sustainable pace is about 0.25–0.5 kg (½–1 lb) a week, which means roughly 275–550 kcal a day less than you use. The calculator never suggests less than 1,200 kcal a day for women and 1,500 kcal for men – a lower intake belongs under medical supervision. With a BMI under 18.5 it does not offer weight reduction.
In the kitchen: the Meal planner suggests a whole week for your calorie target in one click and shows each day’s total against it; sample meal plans are ready for 1,500, 1,800 and 2,000 kcal; the light recipes include lunches up to 500 kcal and soups up to 250 kcal per serving; the recipe calorie calculator works out how many calories a serving of your own recipe has.
BMI
Body mass index = weight (kg) / height (m)², or 703 × weight (lb) / height (in)². Categories of the World Health Organization: under 18.5 underweight, 18.5–24.9 normal weight, 25–29.9 overweight, 30 and above obesity. BMI does not tell muscle from fat – for athletes and older people it is only a rough guide.
Who the calculation is not for
The result is an estimate for healthy adults. It does not replace the advice of a doctor or a registered dietitian – especially during pregnancy and breastfeeding, with diabetes, kidney, heart or thyroid disease, eating disorders, for children and teenagers and for competitive athletes.
Sources
- Mifflin MD, St Jeor ST et al.: A new predictive equation for resting energy expenditure in healthy individuals. Am J Clin Nutr, 1990. doi:10.1093/ajcn/51.2.241
- Frankenfield D, Roth-Yousey L, Compher C: Comparison of predictive equations for resting metabolic rate in healthy nonobese and obese adults: a systematic review. J Am Diet Assoc, 2005. doi:10.1016/j.jada.2005.02.005
- World Health Organization (WHO): Body mass index
- EFSA: Dietary Reference Values for energy (2013) and for protein, 0.83 g per kg a day (2012)