How Many Calories To Lose Weight? Get Your Target In 30 Seconds.

Enter your details, get the daily calorie deficit that fits your body and goal, then see exactly what eating that target looks like on a real meal plan.

  • Calculates exactly what you burn at rest, at work, and in the gym
  • Instant macro breakdown: protein, carbs, fat in grams
  • Then see exactly what your target looks like on a real plan

Reviewed by Brad Gorlicki, ISSA-certified nutritionist (NZIHF, NZQA-recognized).

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Today
1,663 calories

Your Details

Same fields as the FlexiDiet onboarding: your number here equals your number in the app.

yrs
cm
kg
Activity Level
Day Job
Your Goal

How Many Calories Should I Eat To Lose Weight?

Quick answer

To lose 0.5 kg (1.1 lb) per week, most adults need to eat 500 calories per day below their maintenance (TDEE). That typically lands at 1,200 to 1,800 calories/day for women and 1,500 to 2,200 calories/day for men, depending on age, height, weight, and activity. Your personalised target above is 1,663 calories/day.

See the full breakdown ↓

The Math

How We Get Your Target

Three steps. No black-box AI. The same calculation a nutritionist would run on paper.

BMR × activity × job multiplier ± goal adjustment
1

BMR: Calories At Rest

Mifflin-St Jeor: 10·kg + 6.25·cm − 5·age (+5 male, −161 female). What your body burns just to keep you alive.
2

TDEE: Your Real Burn

BMR × activity multiplier (1.2 sedentary → 1.725 very active) × 1.1 if your job is on your feet.
3

Daily Target

−500 calories for steady fat loss, hold for maintenance, +300 calories for lean muscle gain. That's your number.
The Meal Plan

What 1,663 calories looks like in FlexiDiet

The hard part is about how to calculate recipes in your head. FlexiDiet turns your calorie target into a week of meals automatically.

Set your goals: gender, age, height, weight, activity
Step 1 · Goals

Get Your Calorie Target

Your inputs here flow straight into onboarding. Nothing to re-enter.

Daily plan with portions, recipes, and grocery list
Step 2 · Daily plan

We Find Recipes To Match Your Target

Breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks, all sized to land within 50 calories of your number.

Full week meal plan with grocery list
Step 3 · Cook

Recipes & Grocery List Automatic

Tap any meal for a recipe; auto-generated grocery list rolls up the week.

How Many Calories Should You Eat To Lose Weight?

The answer everyone wants is a single number. The honest answer is your maintenance calories minus 500 per day. That's the deficit that produces about half a kilo (one pound) of fat loss per week, which sits inside the safe range every major health body recommends. The trick is knowing what your maintenance actually is, because most people guess wrong by 300+ calories. That's what the calculator above does for you in 30 seconds.

What is a calorie deficit?

A calorie deficit is when you eat fewer calories than your body burns in a day. Roughly 7,700 calories equals one kilo of body fat (3,500 calories per pound), so a 500-calorie daily deficit produces about 0.5 kg of fat loss every seven days. Larger deficits lose weight faster but get harder to sustain and risk muscle loss; smaller deficits go slower but stick.

Calories to lose weight, by goal pace

Pick a weekly fat-loss target, the daily deficit comes with it. This applies to anyone: multiply by 7,700 cal/kg or 3,500 cal/lb to confirm the maths.

Daily calorie deficit needed to lose weight at different rates
Weekly fat lossDaily deficitWhat that looks like
0.25 kg / 0.5 lb−250 calories/daySkip a snack, take a 20-min walk
0.5 kg / 1.1 lb−500 calories/dayFlexiDiet's standard "Lose weight" plan
0.75 kg / 1.6 lb−750 calories/dayAggressive: review weekly, watch energy
1 kg / 2.2 lb−1,000 calories/dayNot recommended for most adults

Daily calorie targets for weight loss (computed)

The numbers below come from the same Mifflin-St Jeor equation the calculator above uses: moderate activity, desk job, age 35, average height. Find the row closest to your weight to see roughly where your target lands.

Estimated calories per day to lose 0.5 kg (1.1 lb) per week, moderate activity
Current weightWomen (35yo, 165 cm)Men (35yo, 178 cm)
50 kg / 110 lb1,353 cal (maint. 1,853)1,736 cal (maint. 2,236)
60 kg / 132 lb1,508 cal (maint. 2,008)1,891 cal (maint. 2,391)
70 kg / 154 lb1,663 cal (maint. 2,163)2,046 cal (maint. 2,546)
80 kg / 176 lb1,818 cal (maint. 2,318)2,201 cal (maint. 2,701)
90 kg / 198 lb1,973 cal (maint. 2,473)2,356 cal (maint. 2,856)
100 kg / 221 lb2,128 cal (maint. 2,628)2,511 cal (maint. 3,011)

Floor: women shouldn't go below 1,200 cal/day, men 1,500 cal/day, without medical supervision. If your row falls under the floor, slow the loss rate to 0.25 kg/week and add resistance training.

Common Mistakes When Cutting Calories

  • Guessing your maintenance. Most people are 300+ calories off. Use the calculator above: it pulls in your real height, weight, age, and activity.
  • Cutting too fast. A 1,000-calorie deficit feels productive for a week, then willpower runs out. 500 calories/day is the sweet spot for most adults.
  • Forgetting protein. In a deficit your body will burn muscle for fuel unless protein stays high. Aim for 1.6 g per kg bodyweight: that's the "Protein 30%" line in the macro split above.
  • Eating below the floor. Targets under 1,200 cal/day for women or 1,500 for men slow your metabolism and aren't sustainable. Talk to a nutritionist, not a website, if your number lands there.

Build A Meal Plan At My Target →

FAQ

Common Questions

How many calories should I eat to lose weight?
Subtract 500 calories per day from your maintenance (TDEE). That produces about 0.5 kg (1.1 lb) of fat loss per week, which is the rate every major health body considers safe and sustainable. For most adults that lands at 1,200 to 1,800 calories/day for women and 1,500 to 2,200 calories/day for men, depending on age, height, weight, and activity. The calculator above gives you the exact number for your body.
How many calories to lose 1 pound a week?
About 500 calories per day below your maintenance. The maths: one pound of fat is roughly 3,500 calories, divided across seven days = 500 calories/day. Calculate your maintenance with the calculator above, subtract 500, and that's your daily target for steady weight loss of one pound per week.
How many calories to lose 1 kg a week?
About 1,100 calories per day below your maintenance, but this is aggressive and not recommended for most adults. One kilo of fat is roughly 7,700 calories, so a 1,100 cal/day deficit produces about 1 kg/week loss. Sustainable weight loss is closer to 0.5 kg/week (a 500-calorie deficit). If you want faster results, talk to a nutritionist before going under the safe floors (1,200 cal/day women, 1,500 cal/day men).
What's the difference between BMR, TDEE, and target?
BMR (basal metabolic rate) is what you'd burn lying in bed all day, just keeping you alive. TDEE (total daily energy expenditure) is BMR multiplied by your activity level: your real burn including work and exercise. Your target is TDEE adjusted for your goal: subtract 500 calories for steady fat loss, hold for maintenance, add 300 for lean muscle gain.
Is a 500 calories/day deficit safe?
For most adults at a healthy maintenance weight, yes. 500 calories/day produces roughly 0.5 kg (1.1 lb) of fat loss per week, which sits squarely in the range major health bodies consider safe and sustainable. If your TDEE is low (small frame, low activity), the calculator may suggest a target under 1,200 calories/day for women or 1,500 for men. Those are the floors below which you should be talking to a nutritionist, not a website.
How accurate is the calorie calculator?
Mifflin-St Jeor is a population estimate: it's correct within 10% for most people. Real-world variables (genetics, non-exercise activity, medications, sleep) shift things. Use the result as a starting point, then watch the scale and your energy for two weeks and adjust by ±150 calories if the rate of loss isn't matching the prediction.
Why Mifflin-St Jeor and not the older Harris-Benedict equation?
Mifflin-St Jeor is more accurate for the modern population: a 2005 American Dietetic Association review found it predicts resting energy expenditure within 10% for the majority of people. Harris-Benedict tends to overshoot, especially for adults with higher body fat. We use Mifflin-St Jeor everywhere in FlexiDiet, including inside the app, so the marketing number equals the in-app number.

Got Your Calorie Target? Now Eat To It.

FlexiDiet builds a week of meals at your calorie target: recipes, portions, and grocery list, automatically.

Build My Meal Plan →