Maintenance Calorie Calculator - Find Your TDEE

Complete Guide: Calorie Calculator for Maintenance

Find your Total Daily Energy Expenditure (TDEE) - the calories you need to maintain your current weight. The foundation for any nutrition plan.

Share this calculator:

Why Knowing Your Maintenance Calories Matters

Your maintenance calories (TDEE) are the foundation of any nutrition strategy. Whether you want to lose fat, build muscle, or maintain your physique, it all starts with knowing how many calories your body burns daily.

1TDEE is the starting point for any diet - cut or bulk from here
2Maintenance eating allows body recomposition over time
3Knowing your number prevents accidental weight gain or loss
4TDEE changes with weight, activity, and age - recalculate regularly
5Diet breaks at maintenance help reset metabolism after cutting

Understanding Your TDEE

Your Total Daily Energy Expenditure consists of several components:

BMR60-70% of TDEE

Basal Metabolic Rate - calories burned just being alive. Breathing, circulation, cell repair.

TEF~10% of TDEE

Thermic Effect of Food - energy used to digest and process food. Higher with protein.

NEAT15-30% of TDEE

Non-Exercise Activity - walking, fidgeting, daily movement. Highly variable between people.

EAT5-10% of TDEE

Exercise Activity - structured workouts. Often overestimated by fitness trackers.

Expert Tips for Maintenance

✓Track your intake at calculated TDEE for 2 weeks - adjust if weight changes
✓NEAT varies hugely - active jobs can burn 500+ more calories than desk jobs
✓Recalculate TDEE every 10-15 lbs of weight change
✓Weekends often have different activity levels - account for this
✓Fitness trackers overestimate exercise calories by 20-40%
✓Your true TDEE is found through tracking, not just calculation

Calorie Calculator for Different Goals

for Weight Loss

Calculate deficit for fat loss

for Muscle Gain

Calculate surplus for building muscle

for Cutting

Preserve muscle while losing fat

for Bulking

Clean bulk calorie targets

for Athletes

Performance nutrition

for Women

Female-specific calorie needs

Frequently Asked Questions

How accurate are TDEE calculators?

▼

Calculators give a good starting estimate within 10-15%. Your true TDEE is found by eating the calculated amount, tracking weight for 2-3 weeks, and adjusting. Everyone's metabolism is slightly different.

Why is my TDEE different from my friend's?

▼

TDEE depends on weight, height, age, muscle mass, activity level, and genetics (NEAT). Two people of similar size can have TDEEs differing by 300-500 calories due to different activity patterns and metabolic rates.

Does metabolism slow with age?

▼

Yes, TDEE decreases about 1-2% per decade after 20, primarily due to muscle loss (sarcopenia). Strength training can minimize this decline by preserving metabolic muscle mass.

Should I eat the same calories every day?

▼

For simplicity, yes. However, some prefer higher calories on training days and lower on rest days. As long as weekly average matches your goal, both approaches work.

How do I maintain weight without counting calories?

▼

Once you know your portions at maintenance, you can estimate. Weigh yourself weekly - if weight trends up or down, adjust portions accordingly. Most people can maintain without strict tracking once they learn their portions.

What's a diet break and why eat at maintenance?

▼

A diet break is 1-2 weeks eating at TDEE after extended dieting. It restores hormone levels, replenishes glycogen, reduces diet fatigue, and can actually improve subsequent fat loss by resetting metabolic adaptation.

Looking for the standard Calorie Calculator?

Go to Main Calorie Calculator