Daily Calorie Calculator (Mifflin-St Jeor Formula)
Daily calorie needs are the total energy your body burns each day (TDEE), estimated by multiplying basal metabolic rate from the Mifflin-St Jeor equation by an activity factor. This calculator estimates your maintenance calories and sets daily targets for weight loss, maintenance, or muscle gain.
Daily Calorie Calculator (Mifflin-St Jeor Formula)
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Formula: BMR = 10 × weight(kg) + 6.25 × height(cm) - 5 × age + s (s = +5 male, -161 female)
Worked example — BMR: 1,761 cal/day | TDEE (maintenance): 2,113 cal/day
Medical disclaimer: This calculator is provided for educational and informational purposes only and does not constitute medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Results are general estimates and may not reflect your individual circumstances. Always consult a qualified healthcare professional before making decisions about your health.
Reviewed for accuracy by Daniel Agrici, Founder & Lead Developer · Editorial policy
How are daily calorie needs calculated?
BMR = 10 × weight(kg) + 6.25 × height(cm) - 5 × age + s (s = +5 male, -161 female)
The Mifflin-St Jeor equation calculates Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR) — calories burned at rest. BMR is multiplied by an activity factor (1.2 sedentary to 1.9 extremely active) to get Total Daily Energy Expenditure (TDEE), which represents maintenance calories. Weight loss requires eating below TDEE, weight gain requires eating above TDEE.
How do you calculate daily calorie needs step by step?
Example 1: Sedentary Adult Male — Maintenance Calories (TDEE)
Problem:A 42-year-old male, 5 ft 11 in (180.3 cm), 185 lbs (83.9 kg), sedentary office worker with no structured exercise. What are his maintenance calories?
Solution:Height = 5 ft 11 in = 180.3 cm Weight = 185 lbs = 83.9 kg BMR (Mifflin-St Jeor, male): = 10 x 83.9 + 6.25 x 180.3 - 5 x 42 + 5 = 839 + 1,126.9 - 210 + 5 = 1,761 cal/day TDEE (sedentary multiplier x 1.2): = 1,761 x 1.2 = 2,113 cal/day This is his maintenance intake to hold current weight with minimal activity.
Result:BMR: 1,761 cal/day | TDEE (maintenance): 2,113 cal/day
Example 2: Active Young Female — Weight Loss Deficit
Problem:A 26-year-old female, 5 ft 5 in (165.1 cm), 155 lbs (70.3 kg), lightly active (walks daily, gym 2x/week). She wants to lose 1 lb per week. What deficit target should she use?
Solution:Height = 5 ft 5 in = 165.1 cm Weight = 155 lbs = 70.3 kg BMR (Mifflin-St Jeor, female): = 10 x 70.3 + 6.25 x 165.1 - 5 x 26 - 161 = 703 + 1,031.9 - 130 - 161 = 1,444 cal/day TDEE (light activity x 1.375): = 1,444 x 1.375 = 1,985 cal/day Weight loss target (-500 cal deficit = ~1 lb/week): = 1,985 - 500 = 1,485 cal/day Macros at 30/40/30 split on deficit: Protein = 1,485 x 0.30 / 4 = 111 g Carbs = 1,485 x 0.40 / 4 = 149 g Fat = 1,485 x 0.30 / 9 = 50 g
Result:BMR: 1,444 | TDEE: 1,985 | Weight loss target: 1,485 cal/day | Macros: 111 g protein, 149 g carbs, 50 g fat
Example 3: Athletic Male — High Activity Performance Nutrition
Problem:A 24-year-old male, 6 ft 0 in (182.9 cm), 175 lbs (79.4 kg), trains 6 days per week (strength and conditioning). What are his calorie needs for performance and lean muscle gain?
Solution:Height = 6 ft 0 in = 182.9 cm Weight = 175 lbs = 79.4 kg BMR (Mifflin-St Jeor, male): = 10 x 79.4 + 6.25 x 182.9 - 5 x 24 + 5 = 794 + 1,143.1 - 120 + 5 = 1,822 cal/day TDEE (very active x 1.725): = 1,822 x 1.725 = 3,143 cal/day Lean gain target (+250 cal surplus): = 3,143 + 250 = 3,393 cal/day Macros for performance (35/40/25 split): Protein = 3,393 x 0.35 / 4 = 297 g Carbs = 3,393 x 0.40 / 4 = 339 g Fat = 3,393 x 0.25 / 9 = 94 g
Result:BMR: 1,822 | TDEE: 3,143 | Lean gain target: 3,393 cal/day | Macros: 297 g protein, 339 g carbs, 94 g fat
What else do people ask about calorie needs?
How does the calorie calculator estimate daily needs?
Daily Calorie Calculator (Mifflin-St Jeor Formula) uses the Mifflin-St Jeor equation to estimate basal metabolic rate and then applies an activity multiplier to estimate total daily energy expenditure. That gives a practical maintenance-calorie estimate.
What are macros and why do they matter?
Macros are protein, carbohydrates, and fat. They affect satiety, training performance, and recovery. A balanced split is often a good starting point, but the best ratio depends on your goal and what you can sustain.
Why can calorie needs change over time?
Body weight, activity level, muscle mass, age, and day-to-day movement all influence energy needs. A calculator gives a starting estimate, but real-world tracking is what fine-tunes the target.
How accurate are calorie calculators?
They are estimates, not exact measurements. For many people they are close enough to begin, but actual maintenance calories should be confirmed by watching weight and intake over a few weeks.
What is the difference between the BMR and the maintenance figure?
Basal metabolic rate is what the body spends at complete rest to run circulation, respiration, tissue repair and temperature regulation. Maintenance, or total daily energy expenditure, is that floor multiplied by an activity factor that accounts for exercise, incidental movement and the energy cost of digesting food. The equation part is fairly stable; almost all of the uncertainty in the final number comes from choosing the multiplier.
Which activity multiplier fits my week?
The scale runs from about 1.2 for a desk-bound week with little deliberate movement to roughly 1.9 for heavy physical labour or twice-daily training, with light, moderate and active levels in between. Many people select one level too high, because a few training sessions do not offset a largely seated day. Choose based on the whole week including occupation and step count, and prefer the lower option when you are between two levels.
How does the Mifflin-St Jeor equation differ from the alternatives?
Mifflin-St Jeor predicts resting expenditure from weight, height, age and sex, and is the common default for general adult use. The Harris-Benedict equations are older regressions on the same inputs and tend to read a little higher. Katch-McArdle takes a different route entirely, predicting from fat-free mass, which makes it the better option for people who know their body composition and whose total weight would otherwise mislead a weight-based formula.
How do I turn a calorie target into macronutrient grams?
Protein and carbohydrate supply about four calories per gram and fat about nine, so grams multiplied by those factors must add up to the calorie target. A common approach is to set protein first from body weight, then set a fat floor sufficient for hormone production and satiety, and let carbohydrate fill the remaining calories. Sports-nutrition literature commonly cites protein intakes in the region of 1.6 to 2.2 grams per kilogram for people training regularly.
Why can the calories the body extracts differ from the number on the label?
Label figures come from Atwater factors, which assign roughly four calories per gram to protein and carbohydrate and nine to fat, then subtract non-digestible fibre. Those are population averages. Whole nuts and intact grains resist digestion and yield less than the label implies, while heavily processed food gives up its energy more readily. Protein also carries the largest thermic cost to digest. The differences are modest for most diets but they add a few percent of noise to any target.
How many calories are in each macronutrient?
Protein and carbohydrate each supply about 4 kcal per gram, fat about 9 kcal per gram, and alcohol about 7 kcal per gram. These are Atwater factors — rounded averages, not exact constants — and real absorption varies: fibre yields closer to 2 kcal per gram, sugar alcohols less again, and whole nuts deliver measurably fewer calories than their fat content implies because some remains undigested. Because fat carries more than twice the energy per gram, small measurement errors in fat move your total far more than the same error in protein or carbohydrate, so weigh oils, nut butters, and dressings rather than estimating them by eye.
References
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