Maintenance Calorie Calculator

Maintenance calories are simply your TDEE — the calories you burn in a day. Eat that amount and your weight stays the same.

The formula: Maintenance calories = TDEE = BMR × PAL

Where PAL (Physical Activity Level) is the weighted average of your day's MET values — sleep counts as 1.0, sitting at a desk is ~1.3, walking is ~3, gym training is ~6.

Calculate your TDEE here — FindTDEE handles the PAL math from your actual activities.

When to eat at maintenance

You like how you look. If you're at a body composition you're happy with, just stay there.
Between cuts and bulks. A 1–2 week diet break at maintenance every 8–12 weeks restores hormone levels, reduces hunger, and helps long-term adherence.
Powerlifting / strength sport. If you're hitting a weight class, eating at maintenance lets you train hard without weight changing.
Recomp phase. Beginners and people returning from a break can build muscle and lose fat simultaneously at maintenance with proper training and high protein.

Worked example

A 35-year-old woman, 140 lb (64 kg), 5'5" (165 cm), desk job + walks the dog daily, no structured exercise:

BMR (Mifflin-St Jeor) ≈ 1,330 cal
Typical day: 8h sleep, 14h sedentary, 2h light walking, 0h training
MET-hours: (8×1) + (14×1.3) + (2×3) = 32.2
PAL = 32.2 / 24 ≈ 1.34
Maintenance = 1,330 × 1.34 ≈ 1,780 cal/day

Why your real maintenance might differ from the calculator

TDEE formulas use population averages. Real-world variance is 10–20% in either direction because of NEAT, sleep, hormone levels, and adaptive thermogenesis. The calculator gives you a starting point — your real maintenance is whatever number actually keeps the scale steady over a 3-week test.

How to find your true maintenance

Calculate your TDEE — this is your starting estimate.
Eat that number every day for 3 weeks. Be honest — track everything, weigh foods.
Weigh yourself daily, average each week.
Compare week 1 average to week 3 average. If they're within 1 lb, that's your real maintenance.
If you gained, drop 100–200 calories and re-test. If you lost, add 100–200 and re-test.

Frequently asked questions

What are maintenance calories?

Maintenance calories are the number of calories you can eat each day while keeping your body weight stable. By definition this equals your TDEE — the total calories your body burns in 24 hours including BMR, exercise, daily movement, and digestion.

Why would I want to eat at maintenance?

Three good reasons: (1) you're happy with your current physique, (2) you're between a cut and a bulk and want to give your body and metabolism a break, (3) you're a strength athlete who wants to keep weight class without gaining or losing.

How do I find my real maintenance calories?

Calculate TDEE as a starting point. Eat that number for 2–3 weeks while weighing yourself daily. Compare your average weight from week 1 to week 3 — if it's stable, that's your real maintenance. If it changed, adjust by 100–200 calories and re-test.

Do maintenance calories change over time?

Yes. They go up when you gain muscle (more lean mass burns more calories) and down when you lose weight (smaller body, lower NEAT). Recalculate every 5–10 lb of weight change or every 4–6 weeks during active body recomposition.

Can I build muscle and lose fat at maintenance?

Sometimes — it's called body recomposition. It works for beginners, people returning from a layoff, and the obese. For trained lifters at moderate body fat, you'll need a small surplus or deficit to make meaningful progress.

Calculate your maintenance calories

Free TDEE calculator with macros, body fat, and workout plans included.

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