Calorie Calculator
Estimate how many calories you need per day for maintenance, fat loss, or lean gain using your profile and activity level.
Typical fat-loss range. Works best with training, protein, and sleep consistency.
| Goal | Target kcal/day |
|---|---|
| Aggressive Fat Loss(-25%) | 2043 |
| Fat Loss(-20%) | 2179 |
| Moderate Fat Loss(-15%) | 2315 |
| Mild Fat Loss(-10%) | 2451 |
| Maintenance(0%) | 2724 |
| Lean Gain(+10%) | 2996 |
| Gain(+15%) | 3132 |
Calorie Target Interpretation
Your target intake is interpreted by percentage adjustment from estimated maintenance calories.
| RANGE | CATEGORY |
|---|---|
| -100--20 | Aggressive Deficit Large intake reduction. Higher adherence and recovery risk for most people. |
| -20--12 | Deficit Typical fat-loss range. Works best with training, protein, and sleep consistency. |
| -12--5 | Mild Deficit Slower pace, often easier to sustain while preserving performance. |
| -5-5 | Maintenance Target zone for weight maintenance after normal week-to-week variance. |
| 5-12 | Mild Surplus Lean-gain style surplus commonly used for slower mass-gain phases. |
| 12-20 | Surplus Faster gain phase with higher probability of fat gain alongside weight gain. |
| 20+ | High Surplus Very high intake above maintenance. Usually unnecessary for most goals. |
How This Calorie Calculator Works
This calorie calculator first estimates your BMR (resting energy use), then scales it by activity level to estimate maintenance calories (TDEE). It then applies your selected intake adjustment to generate a practical daily calorie target.
How Many Calories Do You Need?
Most people do best starting with a moderate target and adjusting from 2 to 4 weeks of trend data. If weekly body-weight trend is moving too fast or too slow, change intake in small steps (for example 100 to 200 kcal/day), then reassess.
For maintenance-only estimation, compare with the TDEE Calculator and BMR Calculator. For weekly fat-loss pacing, use the Calorie Deficit Calculator. If you want grams of protein, carbs, and fat from your target calories, use the Macro Calculator.
You can also cross-check real intake with the Calorie Estimator for meal-photo estimates, and model movement output with the Steps to Calories Calculator and Calories Burned Calculator.
Practical Setup Tips
- Choose the smallest calorie change that still drives measurable progress.
- Keep protein and resistance training stable when running a deficit.
- Track weekly averages, not single-day scale changes.
- Recalculate targets after meaningful body-weight change.
- Use consistent weigh-in conditions (same time of day, similar hydration).
Important Limits
Equation-based calorie needs are estimates, not direct measurements. Real energy expenditure can differ due to lean mass, non-exercise activity, sleep, stress, medication effects, and adaptive metabolic changes over time.
Use this tool for planning and iteration, then calibrate with objective trend data. If you use fasting windows with variable intake days, compare with the Intermittent Fasting Calculator and Fasting Weight Loss Calculator.
References
- Mifflin-St Jeor resting energy equation (PubMed):A New Predictive Equation for Resting Energy Expenditure
- Revised Harris-Benedict equation (PubMed):The Harris Benedict Equation Reevaluated
- Dietary Reference Intakes for energy requirements (NCBI):Dietary Reference Intakes for Energy
- Dynamic energy-balance model and limitations of static calorie rules (PubMed):Why Is the 3500 kcal per Pound Weight Loss Rule Wrong?
More Calorie Tools →
Fasting Weight Loss Calculator
Project weight change from fasting-day and feeding-day calorie patterns.
Intermittent Fasting Calculator
Estimate fasting-protocol calorie intake, daily expenditure, and weekly pace.
TDEE Calculator
Estimate total daily energy expenditure from BMR equation and activity level.
BMR Calculator
Estimate basal metabolic rate from standard resting-energy equations.