Total Daily Energy Expenditure: the calories you burn in 24 hours, including resting metabolism, digestion, daily movement and exercise.

What is my TDEE if I am 5 ft 10 in and 180 lb?

For a 35-year-old man who exercises 3–5 days a week it is about 2,724 kcal/day. Your age, sex and activity level change it, so enter your own numbers.

What is the difference between TDEE and BMR?

BMR is what you burn lying still all day. TDEE multiplies BMR by an activity factor of 1.2 to 1.9 to include everything else you do.

Which activity level should I pick?

Most people overestimate. If you sit at work and train 3 times a week, choose light or moderate. Very active is for hard training almost every day.

How accurate is a TDEE calculator?

Formulas usually land within about 10% of measured values for most adults, but individuals vary. Use the result as a starting point and adjust from your weight trend.

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TDEE Calculator

Total Daily Energy Expenditure (TDEE) is the number of calories you burn in a day: your resting metabolism plus everything you do on top of it. Eat about this much to hold your weight, less to lose, more to gain.

How TDEE is calculated

First the calculator estimates your basal metabolic rate (BMR) with the Mifflin-St Jeor equation, which the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics found the most accurate of the common formulas for healthy adults. You can switch to the revised Harris-Benedict equation, or to Katch-McArdle if you know your body fat percentage.

BMR is then multiplied by an activity factor from 1.2 (desk job, no exercise) to 1.9 (physical job or training twice a day). The result is your TDEE.

Example: a 35-year-old man, 5 ft 10 in and 180 lb, has a BMR of about 1,758 kcal/day. Exercising 3–5 days a week (×1.55) puts his TDEE at 2,724 kcal/day.

Using your TDEE

To lose about a pound a week, eat roughly 500 kcal below TDEE (2,224 kcal/day in the example); to gain lean weight slowly, add about 250 kcal (2,974 kcal/day).

Treat the number as a starting point. Weigh yourself under the same conditions for 2–3 weeks; if the trend does not match the plan, move your intake by 100–200 kcal.

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.

TDEE by activity level — 35-year-old man, 5 ft 10 in, 180 lb
Activity level	Multiplier	TDEE (kcal/day)
Sedentary: little or no exercise	×1.2	2,109
Light: exercise 1–3 days a week	×1.375	2,417
Moderate: exercise 3–5 days a week	×1.55	2,724
Very active: hard exercise 6–7 days a week	×1.725	3,032
Extra active: physical job or training twice a day	×1.9	3,340

Frequently asked questions

What is TDEE?: Total Daily Energy Expenditure: the calories you burn in 24 hours, including resting metabolism, digestion, daily movement and exercise.
What is my TDEE if I am 5 ft 10 in and 180 lb?: For a 35-year-old man who exercises 3–5 days a week it is about 2,724 kcal/day. Your age, sex and activity level change it, so enter your own numbers.
What is the difference between TDEE and BMR?: BMR is what you burn lying still all day. TDEE multiplies BMR by an activity factor of 1.2 to 1.9 to include everything else you do.
Which activity level should I pick?: Most people overestimate. If you sit at work and train 3 times a week, choose light or moderate. Very active is for hard training almost every day.
How accurate is a TDEE calculator?: Formulas usually land within about 10% of measured values for most adults, but individuals vary. Use the result as a starting point and adjust from your weight trend.