How many calories do I need to maintain my weight?

It depends on your size, age, sex and activity. A moderately active 35-year-old man at 5 ft 10 in and 180 lb needs about 2,724 kcal/day.

Are maintenance calories the same as TDEE?

Yes. Your total daily energy expenditure is the intake at which your weight holds steady.

How do I find my real maintenance?

Eat close to the estimate for 2–3 weeks while weighing yourself daily. If the weekly average is stable, that is your maintenance; if it moves, adjust by 100–200 kcal.

Why did my maintenance drop after losing weight?

A smaller body burns less at rest and during movement, so maintenance falls as you lose weight. Recalculate after each 10 lb (5 kg).

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Maintenance Calorie Calculator

Maintenance calories are what you can eat each day without gaining or losing weight. The calculator estimates them from your size, age and activity, then shows the targets for steady weight loss or gain.

How maintenance calories are worked out

Your resting metabolism (BMR) is estimated with the Mifflin-St Jeor equation, then multiplied by an activity factor between 1.2 and 1.9. That product is your maintenance intake, also called TDEE.

A 35-year-old man, 5 ft 10 in and 180 lb, who exercises 3–5 days a week maintains on about 2,724 kcal/day. A woman of the same age, 5 ft 5 in and 150 lb, maintains on about 2,133.

Losing or gaining from maintenance

A pound of body fat holds roughly 3,500 kcal (about 7,700 kcal per kg), so a 500 kcal daily deficit loses about a pound a week. The targets below the main result apply that rule.

Real weight change is not perfectly linear: water shifts and a slowly falling maintenance mean the scale lags the math. Recheck your maintenance after every 10 lb (5 kg) of change.

These are estimates for healthy adults, not medical advice. If you are pregnant or breastfeeding, under 18, or managing a medical condition or an eating disorder, ask a doctor or registered dietitian before changing how much you eat.

Example targets — 35-year-old man, 5 ft 10 in, 180 lb, moderately active
Plan	Calories (kcal/day)
Maintenance calories (moderately active)	2,724
Extreme loss, 2 lb a week (63%)	1,724
Weight loss, 1 lb a week (82%)	2,224
Mild loss, 0.5 lb a week (91%)	2,474
Mild gain, 0.5 lb a week (109%)	2,974
Weight gain, 1 lb a week (118%)	3,224

Frequently asked questions

How many calories do I need to maintain my weight?: It depends on your size, age, sex and activity. A moderately active 35-year-old man at 5 ft 10 in and 180 lb needs about 2,724 kcal/day.
Are maintenance calories the same as TDEE?: Yes. Your total daily energy expenditure is the intake at which your weight holds steady.
How do I find my real maintenance?: Eat close to the estimate for 2–3 weeks while weighing yourself daily. If the weekly average is stable, that is your maintenance; if it moves, adjust by 100–200 kcal.
Why did my maintenance drop after losing weight?: A smaller body burns less at rest and during movement, so maintenance falls as you lose weight. Recalculate after each 10 lb (5 kg).