Calorie Calculator
Daily calorie needs.
Daily calorie needs.
This is a general estimate for information only — not medical advice. Everyone is different, so check with a qualified healthcare professional before making decisions about your health.
How to use Calorie Calculator
- Enter your age, sex, height, and weight
- Pick your activity level and metric or imperial units
- Read your maintenance, weight-loss, and weight-gain targets
About Calorie Calculator
The Calorie Calculator estimates how many calories your body needs in a day and turns that into practical targets. It starts with the Mifflin–St Jeor equation to work out your Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR) from your age, sex, height and weight, then multiplies by an activity level from sedentary to extra active. The result is your maintenance calorie number — the amount that keeps your weight steady — alongside a weight-loss target that applies a calorie deficit and a weight-gain target that adds the same amount.
If you are trying to slim down, the deficit figure shows roughly how much to eat for a gradual, sustainable loss instead of a crash diet. If you want to hold your current weight, the maintenance number is the one to follow. You can enter your details in metric (cm, kg) or imperial (ft/in, lb) and the calculator converts everything for you, so it works the same whether you think in kilograms or pounds.
It answers the same question as the well-known Mayo Clinic and Calculator.net tools — how many calories do I need? — using the widely trusted Mifflin–St Jeor formula. It is completely free with no sign-up, and it runs entirely in your browser. Every calculation happens on your device, so nothing you type is ever uploaded or stored on a server.
Frequently asked questions
- Is the calorie calculator free to use?
- Yes. It is 100% free with no account, sign-up, or limits. You can run as many calculations as you like.
- Is my data uploaded or stored anywhere?
- No. All calculations run entirely in your browser on your own device. Your age, weight, height and other inputs are never sent to a server or saved.
- How are my daily calories calculated?
- It uses the Mifflin–St Jeor equation to estimate your BMR (calories burned at rest), then multiplies that by an activity factor from 1.2 (sedentary) to 1.9 (extra active) to estimate your total daily maintenance calories.
- What is the difference between BMR and maintenance calories?
- BMR is the number of calories your body burns at complete rest to keep basic functions running. Maintenance calories add the energy you burn through daily activity and exercise, so they reflect what you need to keep your current weight.
- How do I find my maintenance calorie level?
- Enter your age, sex, height, weight and activity level, and the maintenance figure is the middle number the calculator returns. Eating around that amount each day should keep your weight roughly stable.
- How many calories should I eat to lose weight?
- Use the weight-loss target the calculator shows, which sits below your maintenance number. It builds in a moderate calorie deficit aimed at a steady loss rather than a rapid, hard-to-sustain drop.
- How much of a calorie deficit do I need to lose weight?
- The mild weight-loss target subtracts 500 calories per day from maintenance, roughly a 0.45 kg (1 lb) per week loss. The mild weight-gain target adds 500 calories per day for a similar gradual gain.
- Can I use this to count the calories in a Chipotle or other restaurant meal?
- No. This tool estimates how many calories you need per day, not the calories in a specific food or menu item. Use it to set your daily target, then log individual meals with a food database or nutrition app.
- How does this compare to the Mayo Clinic calorie calculator?
- It answers the same question — how many calories you need each day — using the widely trusted Mifflin–St Jeor equation. This version also gives you ready-made weight-loss and weight-gain targets and a metric/imperial toggle, all running privately in your browser.
- Is this the same as the Calculator.net calorie calculator?
- Both estimate your daily calorie needs from your body details and activity level. This one keeps it simple with the Mifflin–St Jeor formula and a clean unit toggle, and every calculation stays on your device.
- Can I use pounds and feet instead of kilograms and centimeters?
- Yes. Use the units toggle to switch between metric (cm, kg) and imperial (ft/in, lb). The calculator converts your entries automatically.