Free Tool
Calorie Calculator
Find your daily calorie target for weight loss, maintenance, or muscle gain using the Mifflin-St Jeor equation.
Moderate exercise 3-5 days/week
Why calorie counting alone isn't enough
Knowing your daily calorie target is a great first step. But most people who only count calories quit within 2 weeks. The problem is not the math. It is the execution.
Counting calories means logging every meal, weighing portions, looking up nutrition data, and making real-time decisions about what to eat. That is a lot of daily friction. Willpower runs out. The app stays closed. Takeout wins.
A better approach: start with a meal plan already built to your calorie target. Every meal, every recipe, every ingredient is pre-calculated. You follow the plan, hit your numbers, and never open a food log.
Calorie Counting
- Log every meal manually
- Decide what to eat 3x/day
- Research recipes yourself
- Build your own grocery list
- Easy to undercount by 300+
Planned Meals
- Calories pre-calculated
- Zero daily decisions
- Recipes included
- Grocery list done for you
- Hit your target every day
Your TDEE is your number calories. We can build a week of meals with recipes and a grocery list that hits that target. It takes 30 seconds to set up and arrives in your inbox every Sunday.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many calories should I eat a day?
It depends on your age, gender, height, weight, and activity level. Most adults need between 1,600 and 3,000 calories per day. Use the calculator above to find your personal number. For weight loss, subtract 500 calories from your maintenance level to lose about 1 pound per week.
What is TDEE?
TDEE stands for Total Daily Energy Expenditure. It is the total number of calories your body burns in a day, including your basal metabolic rate (BMR) plus calories burned through physical activity and digestion. Your TDEE is the number you need to eat at to maintain your current weight.
How to calculate calories for weight loss?
First, calculate your TDEE using the calculator above. Then subtract 500 calories to create a safe deficit that leads to about 1 pound of weight loss per week. A 500-calorie daily deficit equals roughly 3,500 calories per week. Do not go below 1,200 calories (women) or 1,500 calories (men) without medical supervision.
Is 1,500 calories enough?
For many women and smaller or sedentary adults, 1,500 calories can be a healthy target for gradual weight loss. For taller, more active, or male-bodied individuals, 1,500 may be too low and could slow your metabolism. The right number depends on your personal stats, which is why using a TDEE calculator is important before setting a calorie goal.