What Is BMR?
BMR stands for Basal Metabolic Rate. It is the number of calories your body needs each day to maintain basic life functions while at complete rest. This includes:
- Breathing.
- Circulating blood.
- Maintaining body temperature.
- Repairing cells and tissues.
- Basic brain and organ function.
BMR does not include calories burned through movement, digestion of food or exercise.
What Is TDEE?
TDEE stands for Total Daily Energy Expenditure. It represents the total number of calories you burn in a typical day, including:
- Your BMR (resting burn).
- Calories burned through all physical activity (walking, work, chores, exercise).
- The thermic effect of food (energy used to digest and process what you eat).
TDEE is usually higher than BMR because it accounts for everything you do during the day.
How Are BMR and TDEE Calculated?
BMR is often estimated using equations such as the Mifflin–St Jeor formula, which uses your age, sex, height and weight.
TDEE is then estimated by multiplying BMR by an activity factor that reflects your lifestyle:
- Sedentary (little or no exercise): BMR × 1.2
- Lightly active (light exercise 1–3 days/week): BMR × 1.375
- Moderately active (moderate exercise 3–5 days/week): BMR × 1.55
- Very active (hard exercise 6–7 days/week): BMR × 1.725
- Extra active (very hard exercise or physical job): BMR × 1.9
Our Daily Calorie Burn Calculator performs these calculations for you.
Which One Should You Use?
For most practical purposes, TDEE is more useful than BMR when planning your diet:
- To maintain weight: aim to eat around your TDEE on average.
- To lose weight: create a moderate deficit below your TDEE.
- To gain weight or muscle: eat slightly above your TDEE.
BMR is still important because it tells you roughly how many calories your body needs at rest. Consistently eating far below your BMR for long periods is generally not recommended without medical supervision.
Example: BMR and TDEE in Practice
Imagine a 30‑year‑old woman, 165 cm tall, weighing 65 kg, with a moderately active lifestyle.
Her BMR might be around 1,400–1,500 kcal/day. With a moderate activity factor, her TDEE might be around 2,200–2,300 kcal/day.
If she wants to lose weight slowly and sustainably, she might aim for something like 1,700–1,900 kcal/day, depending on how her body responds over several weeks.