Daily Calorie Needs Calculator
Estimate your daily calorie needs with the Institute of Medicine EER equations from your age, sex, weight, height, and activity. Free and private.
Independently verified for accuracy
Calculator by Toolsloft ↗- Daily calorie needs
- 3181.2 kcal/day
Find the calories you need in a day using the Institute of Medicine's Estimated Energy Requirement equations, the model behind US dietary guidelines. It factors in your age, sex, weight, height, and activity level to give a maintenance-calorie target for adults.
How this is calculated
It uses the IOM (2005) EER equations for adults 19 and older: for men 662 minus 9.53 times age plus a physical-activity coefficient times (15.91 times weight in kg plus 539.6 times height in metres), and the matching women's equation. Each activity level carries the IOM's published PA coefficient.
How to use
- Enter your age, sex, weight in kilograms, and height in centimetres.
- Choose the activity level that fits your week.
- Read your estimated daily calorie needs.
Examples
- Male, 30 yr, 80 kg, 180 cm, active:
3,181.2 kcal/day - Female, 28 yr, 60 kg, 165 cm, light:
2,131.16 kcal/day
FAQ
- How is this different from a TDEE calculator?
- A typical TDEE calculator multiplies a BMR formula by an activity factor. This tool uses the Institute of Medicine EER equations directly, which are fitted from doubly labelled water studies and used in US dietary guidance. The two approaches usually land within a few hundred calories of each other.
- What do the activity levels mean?
- Sedentary is daily living with little exercise. Light adds about 30 to 60 minutes of moderate activity most days. Active means an hour or more of daily exercise. Very active covers heavy training or physically demanding work.
- Is this a weight-loss target?
- No, it estimates maintenance calories, the amount that keeps your weight steady. To lose weight, eat below this number; to gain, eat above it.