How Many Calories Should I Eat a Day? (TDEE Calculator)

Published 2 November 2026 by Kloora Tools

Quick answer: use the free Calorie Calculator to estimate your daily calorie needs for maintaining, losing or gaining weight. It runs in your browser, so nothing you enter is uploaded or stored, and there is no signup.

What is the Calorie Calculator?

Estimate your daily calorie needs for maintaining, losing or gaining weight. People often search for it as "calorie calculator", "tdee calculator" or "daily calorie needs". This free version works on any phone or computer and needs no download.

How to use the Calorie Calculator

1. Open the Calorie Calculator.
2. Enter your values in the fields.
3. The results update instantly as you type.
4. Note or copy the numbers you need.

How it works

Your basal metabolic rate comes from the Mifflin-St Jeor equation: 10 x weight (kg) + 6.25 x height (cm) - 5 x age + 5 for men or - 161 for women. It is multiplied by an activity factor from 1.2 to 1.9 to give your daily calories to maintain weight. Subtract about 500 to lose roughly half a kilo a week, or add 500 to gain.

Worked example

• Input: Age (years): 30; Sex: Male; Height (cm): 175; Weight (kg): 70; Activity: Moderate, 3 to 5 days
• Result: BMR (at rest): 1,649 kcal; Maintain weight: 2,556 kcal; Lose about 0.5 kg a week: 2,056 kcal; Gain about 0.5 kg a week: 3,056 kcal

Common uses

• Set a calorie target for fat loss or muscle gain
• See how activity level changes what you can eat
• Plan meals with a realistic daily budget

Second worked example

Here is the same tool with larger numbers, so you can see how the result scales.

• Input: Age (years): 30; Sex: Male; Height (cm): 262.5; Weight (kg): 105; Activity: Moderate, 3 to 5 days
• Result: BMR (at rest): 2,546 kcal; Maintain weight: 3,946 kcal; Lose about 0.5 kg a week: 3,446 kcal; Gain about 0.5 kg a week: 4,446 kcal

Tips for the best result

• Measure yourself the same way each time, ideally in the morning and before eating.
• Use the result as a guide and look at the trend over weeks, not a single day.
• Choose the activity level honestly, because most people overestimate it.
• Talk to a doctor or a qualified coach before making big changes to diet or training.

Common mistakes to avoid

• Entering pounds or inches in a field that expects kilograms or centimetres.
• Treating an estimate as a medical diagnosis.
• Comparing your result with someone of a different age, sex or build.
• Changing several things at once, so you cannot tell what worked.

Calorie Calculator compared with doing it by hand

Try it now

Open the Calorie Calculator and try your own numbers or text. If it helps, share it with someone who needs it.

Frequently asked questions

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