Maintenance Calorie Calculator
Find the calories that keep your weight exactly where it is.
Your details
Your maintenance calories are the most important number in nutrition, because everything else is built from them. It is the amount of energy that keeps your weight exactly where it is, no gain and no loss.
Maintenance is your baseline
Think of maintenance as zero on a number line. To lose fat, you eat below it. To build muscle, you eat above it. Without knowing your maintenance, any calorie goal is a guess. This is the same figure as your Total Daily Energy Expenditure, so this calculator estimates it the same way.
How it is calculated
We estimate your resting metabolism with the Mifflin-St Jeor equation, then multiply by an activity factor to reflect how much you move. The result is the calories you burn, and therefore need to eat, to hold steady.
Finding your real maintenance
The estimate gets you close. To dial it in, eat at the number for two to three weeks and track your weekly weight trend. Stable weight confirms your maintenance. If you are slowly gaining or losing, nudge the number by 100 to 200 calories.
Why it is worth knowing
Eating at maintenance after a diet, rather than snapping back to old habits, is how you keep the results. SmaartCoach can hold you at maintenance or set a deficit or surplus, then plan the meals to match.
Frequently asked questions
What are maintenance calories?
Maintenance calories are the number that keeps your body weight stable, where the energy you eat matches the energy you burn. They are the same as your Total Daily Energy Expenditure (TDEE).
Why do maintenance calories matter?
They are your baseline. To lose fat you eat below maintenance, to build muscle you eat above it. You cannot set a good target without knowing your maintenance first.
Do maintenance calories change?
Yes. They fall as you lose weight, rise as you gain, and shift with your activity. Recheck every few kilograms of change.
How do I find my true maintenance level?
Start with this estimate, eat at it for two to three weeks, and watch your weight trend. If it is stable, that is your maintenance. Adjust if it drifts.
Sources
Reviewed against these authoritative references. Last updated August 2026.
- MedlinePlus, U.S. National Library of Medicine. Metabolism
- Compendium of Physical Activities. The Compendium of Physical Activities
- U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans
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