Key takeaways
- Women use the same activity factors as men; only the BMR equation has a different constant.
- At the same height, weight and age, a woman’s estimate is about 166 kcal lower at rest, mostly reflecting less lean mass.
- Resting metabolism rises slightly in the second half of the cycle, but not by enough to change your target.
- Missed or irregular periods while dieting or training hard are a sign of eating too little; see a doctor.
On this page
- How a woman’s TDEE is calculated
- Typical TDEE for women
- Why women’s TDEE is usually lower
- Example: TDEE for a 34-year-old woman
- Does your menstrual cycle change your TDEE?
- Losing weight safely
- Why strength training helps
- Pregnancy and breastfeeding
- Perimenopause and menopause
- PCOS, thyroid problems and other conditions
- How accurate is the estimate for women?
- Questions about TDEE for women
How a woman’s TDEE is calculated
Most calculators, including ours, start with the Mifflin-St Jeor equation. Reviews comparing the common equations have found it the most reliable for healthy adults. The version for women is:
BMR = 10 × weight (kg) + 6.25 × height (cm) − 5 × age (years) − 161
The version for men is identical except that it ends in +5 instead of −161. Your BMR is then multiplied by an activity factor, from 1.2 if you mostly sit to 1.9 if you do hard physical work or train twice a day. The activity factors are the same for women and men. Try it with the TDEE calculator.
Typical TDEE for women
Here is a 30-year-old woman who is 165 cm (5′5″) tall, at four different weights:
| Weight | Sedentary | Lightly active | Moderately active |
|---|---|---|---|
| 60 kg (132 lb) | 1,584 | 1,815 | 2,046 |
| 70 kg (154 lb) | 1,704 | 1,953 | 2,201 |
| 80 kg (176 lb) | 1,824 | 2,090 | 2,356 |
| 90 kg (198 lb) | 1,944 | 2,228 | 2,511 |
Each step up in activity adds about 230 to 285 kcal for women of this size. Choosing the right activity level matters more than almost anything else you type in, and most people overestimate it. If you are unsure, the activity level calculator picks it from your job, your steps and your training.
Why women’s TDEE is usually lower
Take a man and a woman who are both 35, 170 cm and 70 kg, and both moderately active. The equation gives him a TDEE of about 2,468 kcal and her about 2,211, a gap of 257 kcal a day. The sex term in the equation stands in for body composition. At the same weight, women on average carry more fat and less muscle, and muscle uses more energy at rest than fat does. In everyday life, the gap is usually bigger than that, simply because the average woman is shorter and lighter than the average man.
If you know your body fat percentage, a lean-mass formula such as Katch-McArdle can be more accurate, because it works from your muscle and other lean tissue directly and has no separate term for sex. For a woman who lifts and carries more muscle than average, it often gives a slightly higher number. The body fat TDEE calculator compares the formulas side by side.
Example: TDEE for a 34-year-old woman
A 34-year-old woman, 163 cm (5′4″) and 74 kg (163 lb), works at a desk, walks about 7,000 steps a day and does yoga twice a week. That makes her lightly active.
BMR = 10 × 74 + 6.25 × 163 − 5 × 34 − 161 = 1,428 kcal TDEE = 1,428 × 1.375 = 1,963 kcal To lose weight (20% below TDEE): about 1,570 kcal a day Expected loss: about 0.35 kg (0.8 lb) a week
Her target is comfortably above the usual minimum of about 1,200 kcal a day for women, and her pace is under 0.5% of her body weight a week, which is easy to sustain. After three or four weeks of logging and weighing, she can check her real TDEE with the adaptive TDEE calculator and adjust.
Does your menstrual cycle change your TDEE?
A little. A 2020 meta-analysis of 26 studies with 318 women found that resting metabolism was slightly higher in the luteal phase, the roughly two weeks between ovulation and your period, than in the follicular phase. The effect was small, and in studies published since 2000 it was smaller still and no longer statistically clear. In practical terms, it isn’t big enough to plan around.
What the cycle does change for many women is how the scale behaves and how hungry they feel. Water retention in the days before a period can add 1 to 2 kg (2 to 4 lb), and appetite or cravings often rise at the same time. Three practical habits help:
- keep the same daily target all month, and use weekly averages rather than single weigh-ins;
- compare the same phase of your cycle, or look at four-week trends, when you judge progress;
- if you are hungrier before your period, plan a slightly bigger share of your calories for those days and a little less on others, keeping the weekly total the same.
Losing weight safely
For most women, a deficit of 15 to 25% below TDEE works well, with a pace of no more than about 1% of body weight a week. Don’t go below about 1,200 kcal a day without medical supervision; below that it is hard to get enough protein, vitamins and minerals. Keep protein at about 1.6 to 2.2 g per kg of body weight if you strength train, lift weights two to four times a week, and keep your daily steps up.
Eating too little for too long, especially with a lot of training, causes a state called low energy availability. The International Olympic Committee’s consensus statement on Relative Energy Deficiency in Sport describes how it can disrupt periods, weaken bones and affect mood, immunity and performance. It isn’t only a problem for athletes. See a doctor if, while dieting or training, you notice:
- missed, irregular or stopped periods;
- constant tiredness, feeling cold or frequent illness;
- repeated injuries or a stress fracture;
- food or weight taking over your thoughts.
Why strength training helps
Lifting weights won’t transform your TDEE. Muscle uses about 13 kcal per kilo a day at rest, so gaining 2 kg of muscle adds only about 25 kcal. Its real value is elsewhere: it helps you keep muscle while you diet, so more of what you lose is fat; it protects bone density, which matters more for women as they age; and it makes everyday life easier. Two or three full-body sessions a week are enough to start.
Pregnancy and breastfeeding
TDEE calculators, including ours, are not designed for pregnancy or breastfeeding. Energy needs change through pregnancy, and dieting to lose weight while pregnant isn’t recommended. As a general guide, the 2020 to 2025 US Dietary Guidelines give these extra daily calories for women who started at a healthy weight:
| Stage | Extra calories a day |
|---|---|
| First trimester | About 0 |
| Second trimester | About 340 |
| Third trimester | About 452 |
| Breastfeeding, first 6 months | About 330 |
| Breastfeeding, 7 to 12 months | About 400 |
Your midwife, doctor or health visitor can tell you what fits your own situation, especially if you started pregnancy at a higher or lower weight or are expecting more than one baby. After the birth, let feeding settle before you think about a deficit, and keep any weight loss gradual while breastfeeding.
Perimenopause and menopause
In the years around menopause, body composition tends to change. A large study that followed women through this time found the rate of fat gain doubled and lean mass started to fall at the start of the transition, levelling off about two years after the final period. That shift, together with less sleep and less movement for many women, nudges TDEE down. Our guide to TDEE for women over 40 explains what changes and what helps.
PCOS, thyroid problems and other conditions
Conditions such as polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) and an underactive or overactive thyroid can affect appetite, weight and, in the case of the thyroid, resting metabolism. The effect is often smaller than people fear, and treatment matters more than adjusting a formula. See TDEE with PCOS and thyroid conditions.
How accurate is the estimate for women?
For most healthy women, Mifflin-St Jeor lands within about 10% of a measured resting metabolism, but individual errors can be larger, and the activity level adds more uncertainty. Treat your TDEE as a starting point. Eat your target consistently for three to four weeks, weigh yourself most mornings, compare weekly averages, then adjust by 100 to 150 kcal if needed. Your own data will beat any formula.
Questions about TDEE for women
Is women’s TDEE lower than men’s?
Usually, yes. At the same height, weight and age the difference is about 166 kcal at rest, and more after the activity factor. In real life the gap is often bigger because women are on average smaller.
Does my menstrual cycle change my TDEE?
Only slightly. Resting metabolism is a little higher in the two weeks before your period, but the effect is small. Water retention and appetite usually change more than energy use.
Do women need a different activity multiplier?
No. The same activity factors apply to women and men. The difference between the sexes is already built into the BMR equation.
How many extra calories do I need when pregnant?
About none in the first trimester, about 340 a day in the second and about 452 in the third, according to US guidelines for women who began at a healthy weight. Ask your midwife or doctor what suits you.
How accurate is a TDEE calculator for women?
Usually within about 10% for resting metabolism, with more uncertainty from the activity level. Check it against three to four weeks of your own food and weight data.
Should I eat more before my period?
You can move some calories into those days if you are hungrier, as long as your weekly total stays the same. Your actual energy needs rise only slightly.
Is 1,200 calories a day enough for a woman?
It is the usual minimum without medical supervision, not a target. Most women lose weight well on more than that. If your target comes out lower, choose a gentler deficit or add activity.
Sources
- Mifflin MD, St Jeor ST, Hill LA, et al. A new predictive equation for resting energy expenditure in healthy individuals. Am J Clin Nutr. 1990;51(2):241-247. doi.org/10.1093/ajcn/51.2.241
- Frankenfield D, Roth-Yousey L, Compher C. Comparison of predictive equations for resting metabolic rate in healthy nonobese and obese adults: a systematic review. J Am Diet Assoc. 2005;105(5):775-789. pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/15883556/
- Benton MJ, Hutchins AM, Dawes JJ. Effect of menstrual cycle on resting metabolism: a systematic review and meta-analysis. PLoS One. 2020;15(7):e0236025. doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0236025
- US Department of Agriculture and US Department of Health and Human Services. Dietary Guidelines for Americans, 2020 to 2025. 9th edition. December 2020. www.dietaryguidelines.gov/
- Mountjoy M, Ackerman KE, Bailey DM, et al. 2023 International Olympic Committee’s (IOC) consensus statement on Relative Energy Deficiency in Sport (REDs). Br J Sports Med. 2023;57(17):1073-1097. pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37752011/
- Greendale GA, Sternfeld B, Huang M, et al. Changes in body composition and weight during the menopause transition. JCI Insight. 2019;4(5):e124865. doi.org/10.1172/jci.insight.124865