Calories alone don't tell the whole story
The same 2,000 kcal a day affects your body differently depending on what it's made of. Enough protein helps preserve muscle while cutting; carbs matter more for workout performance. This calculator splits your target calories into grams of protein, carbs, and fat.
Two steps: calories, then the split
First it estimates your basal metabolic rate (BMR) with the Mifflin-St Jeor formula and multiplies by an activity factor to get total daily energy expenditure (TDEE). Then it applies your goal (cut, maintain, or bulk) and splits the result using your chosen ratio — protein and carbs at 4 kcal per gram, fat at 9 kcal per gram.
More calculators
Frequently asked questions
QWhy do the presets use different ratios?
Different goals favor different splits. Higher protein tends to help preserve muscle during a cut; low-carb and keto are often used to blunt insulin response. There's no single correct ratio — these are starting points to adjust from.
QWhy 4 kcal for protein and carbs but 9 for fat?
Those are the Atwater factors — the energy released when each nutrient is metabolized. Alcohol is 7 kcal/g but isn't one of the three macros this calculator splits.
QWhy 20% for a cut and 15% for a bulk?
A moderate calorie change is generally easier to sustain and better for preserving muscle than a drastic one. Your actual ideal deficit or surplus depends on your own metabolism and activity, so treat these as reasonable starting points, not fixed rules.