01
Start with BMR
Use sex, age, height, and weight to estimate baseline resting calories.
Free calorie calculator
BMR calculator for resting calories.
Estimate your baseline calorie burn at rest, then connect it to TDEE, fat-loss targets, and daily tracking. No account needed.
Use this when you need the baseline.
- Estimate resting calorie burn before activity.
- See why TDEE is higher than BMR.
- Use the number as a starting point, not a meal plan.
Calculator
Find resting calories
years
ft
in
lb
Estimated BMR
2,041
calories/day at rest
BMR is the baseline estimate before training, steps, job activity, and daily movement. It is useful for understanding the floor, not for setting your full eating target by itself.
Sedentary estimate
2,450 kcal
BMR × 1.2. A rough low-activity maintenance estimate.
Moderate estimate
3,175 kcal
BMR × 1.55. A rough training 3–5 days/week estimate.
Protein starter range
160–225g/day
BMR explains your baseline burn. Protein gives you a practical first anchor for meals while you decide the full calorie target.
Turn BMR into a real target.
Use TDEE when you are ready to add activity and choose a fat-loss, maintenance, or lean-gain target.
Use BMR as a planning estimate. Your useful eating target should include activity and be calibrated against real intake and weight trend.
How to use it
BMR is the floor, not the whole plan.
02
Add activity next
Most real maintenance targets are BMR plus daily movement and training.
03
Do not diet from BMR alone
A target that ignores activity can become unnecessarily low and harder to follow.
04
Calibrate with tracking
Use two to three weeks of intake and weight trend before making big changes.
Formula
Methodology
This calculator uses the Mifflin-St Jeor equation: 10 × weight in kilograms + 6.25 × height in centimeters - 5 × age, plus 5 for men or minus 161 for women.
BMR is not TDEE. TDEE multiplies BMR by an activity factor to estimate total daily energy expenditure from movement, training, work, and daily life.
Use BMR to understand the baseline, then use the TDEE calculator and real daily tracking to choose a practical calorie target.
Example
35-year-old male, 6'3", 225 lb
The calculator estimates resting calories first. From there, sedentary and moderate activity examples show why the number you eat to maintain weight is usually higher than BMR.
FAQ
Common BMR questions
What is BMR?
BMR means basal metabolic rate. It estimates the calories your body uses at rest for baseline functions before exercise, steps, work, and daily movement are added.
Is BMR the same as maintenance calories?
No. BMR is the resting baseline. Maintenance calories are usually higher because they include walking, training, digestion, job activity, and normal daily movement.
Which BMR formula does this use?
This calculator uses the Mifflin-St Jeor equation because it is a practical default for estimating resting calories from sex, age, height, and weight.
Should I eat exactly my BMR?
Usually no. Most people should use BMR to understand the baseline, then use TDEE and real tracking trends to choose a daily calorie target.
Next calculator steps
Keep the math moving in the right order.
Daily follow-through
Turn the calculator result into daily tracking.
The calculator helps you choose the number. IntakeCalc helps you see whether today’s meals actually fit it.
Track a calorie target