Free Macro Calculator – Daily Protein, Carbs & Fat
Estimate daily protein, carbohydrate, and fat grams from your age, height, weight, and activity. Results use the Mifflin–St Jeor equation, then adjust calories for fat loss, maintenance, muscle gain, or body recomposition.
Macro calculator
Daily targets
- BMR
- 1,419
- Maintenance
- 2,200
- Goal
- 1,870
Kilocalories per day, rounded for display. The split uses the unrounded target.
| Macro | Grams | kcal | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| Protein | 126 g | 503 | 27% |
| Carbs | 202 g | 806 | 43% |
| Fat | 62 g | 561 | 30% |
Whole grams can differ from the calorie target by a few kilocalories. 126 g protein, 202 g carbohydrate, and 62 g fat provide 1,870 kcal.
- Energy uses Mifflin–St Jeor with the female coefficient (−161).
- Activity multiplier 1.55 (moderately active).
- Goal calories are maintenance with a 15% deficit.
- Protein is 1.8 g per kg of body weight. Fat is 30% of calories. Remaining energy is carbohydrate.
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What is a macro calculator?
A macro calculator estimates how many grams of protein, carbohydrate, and fat to aim for in a day. “Macros” means those three energy nutrients. Protein and carbohydrate supply about 4 kilocalories per gram. Fat supplies about 9.
The useful output is a calorie target plus three gram targets you can log in a food diary. It is a starting estimate for healthy adults. It is not a meal plan, and it does not know your medical history, pregnancy, or how you will respond over the next month.
How to calculate macros
Use the form above. The steps are the same whether you want a weight-loss, maintenance, or muscle-gain target.
- Choose units and the equation coefficient. Use pounds, feet, and inches, or kilograms and centimeters. Select the female (−161) or male (+5) Mifflin–St Jeor coefficient.
- Enter age, height, weight, and activity. Age must be 18 to 100. Activity multipliers are 1.2, 1.375, 1.55, 1.725, and 1.9.
- Choose a goal. Fat loss can use a 10%, 15%, or 20% deficit. Muscle gain can use a 5%, 10%, or 15% surplus. Maintenance and recomposition stay at the estimated maintenance calories.
- Choose a macro method. Recommended sets protein from body weight. Percentage presets split the calorie target. Advanced mode can use a custom percentage total of 100, a calorie override, or a lean-mass equation if you enter body fat.
- Read the gram targets. Use the protein, carbohydrate, and fat grams as a daily budget. Whole-gram rounding can change the total by a few kilocalories.
Simple mode is enough if you want a fast answer. Advanced mode is where body fat, a custom percentage, a grams-per-kilogram override, and a typed calorie target live. You do not need an account.
How macro calculations work
Resting energy is estimated with the Mifflin–St Jeor equation. Weight is in kilograms and height is in centimeters. Age is in years.
Female coefficient
BMR = 10 × weight + 6.25 × height − 5 × age − 161
Male coefficient
BMR = 10 × weight + 6.25 × height − 5 × age + 5
Maintenance calories, often called TDEE, equal BMR times an activity multiplier. The 1990 paper estimated resting expenditure. The multipliers below are a separate convention used to sketch a full day. People routinely overestimate how active they are, and that is a common reason a “maintenance” number is too high.
| Level | Multiplier | What it is meant to describe |
|---|---|---|
| Sedentary | 1.2 | Mostly sitting, little or no planned exercise |
| Lightly active | 1.375 | Light exercise or walking about 1–3 days a week |
| Moderately active | 1.55 | Moderate exercise about 3–5 days a week |
| Very active | 1.725 | Hard exercise most days, or a physical job |
| Extra active | 1.9 | Hard training twice a day, or a physical job plus training |
Goal calories are the maintenance estimate times 0.90, 0.85, or 0.80 for fat loss, times 1.05, 1.10, or 1.15 for muscle gain, or unchanged for maintenance and for the recomposition setting. The calculator does not replace a low result with a universal calorie floor.
Two ways to turn calories into grams
Percentage mode multiplies the calorie target by each fraction, then divides protein and carbohydrate by 4 and fat by 9. Recommended mode does not do that for protein. It multiplies body weight in kilograms by a gram target, assigns fat as a percent of calories, and gives the leftover energy to carbohydrate. If protein and fat already exceed the calorie target, the page shows an error instead of a negative carbohydrate number.
The same person can therefore see two different protein numbers. That is expected. A 30% protein split depends on calories. A 1.8 g/kg target depends on body weight.
Macros for weight loss
Fat loss, including a training phase sometimes called a cut, depends on eating below your maintenance estimate often enough for body weight to trend down. The macro split does not create that deficit by itself.
The form opens on a 15% deficit. That is a moderate planning default, not a rule. Choose 10% if you want a smaller cut, or 20% for a larger one. Recommended protein for this goal is 1.8 g per kg of body weight, fat stays at 30% of the calorie target unless you change it, and carbohydrate fills the rest.
The female coefficient (−161) changes the calorie estimate. It does not assign women a separate “best” ratio. Two adults with the same weight can have similar protein grams in Recommended mode and different calorie targets because age, height, the coefficient, and activity differ.
Macros for muscle gain
Muscle gain, sometimes called a bulk, is paired here with a calorie surplus. The default is 10% above the maintenance estimate. A 5% surplus is smaller. A 15% surplus is larger and can add body weight faster, which is not the same thing as adding only muscle.
Recommended protein is 1.6 g per kg. Fat is 30% of calories. Carbohydrate receives the remainder, which is usually the larger share once protein and fat are set. Resistance training is what gives the surplus a reason to support muscle. This page cannot see whether you train.
Macros for maintenance
Maintenance means eating near the estimated TDEE so body weight stays roughly stable. Recommended protein is 1.6 g per kg, fat is 30% of calories, and carbohydrate takes the rest. If weight drifts for several weeks, the activity multiplier is the first assumption to question.
Body recomposition
On this calculator, body recomposition means maintenance calories and a higher protein target of 2 g per kg, with fat at 30% of calories and carbohydrate as the remainder. The idea is to hold weight fairly steady while training. It does not promise simultaneous fat loss and muscle gain, and it is not a different equation.
Understanding protein, carbohydrates, and fats
Protein
Protein supports tissue repair and is the macro people most often set from body weight. A widely cited adult reference is 0.8 g per kg per day. Adults who train commonly use more than that. The presets on this page sit in a practical planning range. They are not a medical dose, and they are not automatically right for kidney disease or other conditions where protein may need individual advice.
Carbohydrate
Carbohydrate is the leftover in Recommended mode, so it moves when calories, protein, or the fat share changes. Hard training usually feels better with more carbohydrate available. A low-carbohydrate percentage preset is a preference, not evidence that carbohydrate is optional for every goal.
Fat
Fat is energy-dense, so small gram changes move calories quickly. The 30% default is a planning share. Advanced mode lets you set 15% to 60% in Recommended mode. This page does not treat a very low fat intake as a standard setting.
If It Fits Your Macros (IIFYM) means using the gram targets as a daily budget and choosing foods that add up to them. The budget does not rank foods. Fiber, micronutrients, and how hungry you are still matter when two meals have the same macros.
Common macro ratio examples
Ratios on this page are always protein, then carbohydrate, then fat. None of them is the best split for every person. A 2,000 kcal day is only an illustration. Your calorie target will differ.
| Split | Protein | Carbs | Fat |
|---|---|---|---|
| 30/40/30 | 150 g | 200 g | 67 g |
| 40/30/30 | 200 g | 150 g | 67 g |
| 35/35/30 | 175 g | 175 g | 67 g |
| 30/45/25 | 150 g | 225 g | 56 g |
At 2,000 kcal, 40/30/30 is 200 g protein, 150 g carbohydrate, and 66.67 g fat. That fat figure is 66.67 g before anyone rounds it to 67 g.
Real, verified calculations
These examples are the same function the form uses. Intermediate steps are not rounded. Displayed grams below are rounded to two decimals. Whole grams in the form can sit a few kilocalories away from the target.
Female coefficient, 20% deficit, 35/35/30
Age 30, 165 cm, 70 kg, activity 1.55.
- BMR = 1,420.25 kcal/day
- TDEE = 2,201.3875 kcal/day
- Goal calories = 1,761.11 kcal/day
- Protein = 154.10 g
- Carbohydrate = 154.10 g
- Fat = 58.70 g
Male coefficient, 10% surplus, 30/45/25
Age 25, 178 cm, 75 kg, activity 1.725.
- BMR = 1,742.5 kcal/day
- TDEE = 3,005.8125 kcal/day
- Goal calories = 3,306.39375 kcal/day
- Protein = 247.98 g
- Carbohydrate = 371.97 g
- Fat = 91.84 g
Common macro calculation mistakes
- Rounding BMR to a whole number before multiplying by activity. That changes every gram that follows.
- Mixing a percentage protein target with a grams-per-kilogram target and expecting the same result.
- Reading 40/30/30 as carbohydrate first when this page means protein first.
- Using an adult equation for someone under 18, or during pregnancy or breastfeeding.
- Treating another site’s calorie floor as a limit that is safe for every adult.
- Picking the highest activity level because the week included one hard workout.
How to update your targets
Log the gram targets for two to four weeks. Weigh yourself under similar conditions and look at the trend, not a single morning. If fat loss is the goal and weight is flat, reduce the calorie target slightly or check whether the activity level is high. If muscle gain is the goal and weight is not moving up, the surplus may be too small or the log may be short of the target.
When body weight changes, enter the new weight. Recommended protein moves with it. Keep the method the same while you judge the trend, so you are not changing the calorie gap and the protein rule on the same day.
Talk with a physician or a registered dietitian before using a deficit or a high protein target if you are pregnant, breastfeeding, under 18, or managing a medical condition. This page cannot individualize those situations.
Frequently asked questions
What is a macro calculator?
A macro calculator estimates daily grams of protein, carbohydrate, and fat. This one estimates calories with Mifflin–St Jeor and an activity factor, adjusts the total for a goal, and converts that target into grams using 4 kcal per gram of protein or carbohydrate and 9 kcal per gram of fat.
How do I calculate my macros?
Enter age, height, weight, and activity, then choose a goal. In Recommended mode, protein is grams per kilogram of body weight, fat is a percentage of calories, and carbohydrate gets the remaining energy. In a percentage mode, each macro’s grams equal its share of calories divided by 4, or by 9 for fat.
What should my macros be for weight loss?
Weight loss starts with a calorie deficit. This calculator’s ordinary fat-loss setting is a 15% deficit and 1.8 g of protein per kilogram, with 30% of calories as fat and the rest as carbohydrate. A 10% deficit is smaller and a 20% deficit is larger. Neither percentage is a requirement, and no ratio is ideal for every adult.
How many grams of protein should I eat daily?
Needs are not identical for everyone. A common adult reference intake is 0.8 g per kg of body weight, which is not a training target. This calculator’s recommended presets are 1.6 g/kg for maintenance and muscle gain, 1.8 g/kg for fat loss, and 2.0 g/kg for the recomposition setting. They are planning defaults for healthy adults, not a prescription.
How much fat should I eat per day?
Recommended mode assigns 30% of the calorie target to fat unless you change that share in Advanced, where the allowed range is 15% to 60%. The percentage presets on this page use 25% or 30% fat. A very low fat share can leave little room for the rest of an eating pattern you can actually follow.
What does 40/30/30 mean?
On this page, 40/30/30 means 40% of calories from protein, 30% from carbohydrate, and 30% from fat. At 2,000 kcal that is 200 g protein, 150 g carbohydrate, and about 67 g fat. Other calculators sometimes list carbohydrate first, so check the order before you copy a ratio.
Are macros or calories more important?
For a change in body weight, the gap between intake and maintenance calories is the larger lever. The split across protein, carbohydrate, and fat still affects training, hunger, and whether the plan is realistic. Macros alone do not determine how much of a weight change is muscle or fat.
How do I calculate macros using pounds?
Choose US units and enter pounds, feet, and inches. The page converts those measurements with 0.45359237 kg per pound and 2.54 cm per inch, then runs Mifflin–St Jeor in kilograms and centimeters. Switching units keeps the same body size.
What is the difference between BMR and TDEE?
BMR here is the Mifflin–St Jeor estimate of resting energy. TDEE, the maintenance estimate, is BMR multiplied by your activity factor. The factors on this page are 1.2, 1.375, 1.55, 1.725, and 1.9. They are a planning convention, not coefficients from the 1990 Mifflin–St Jeor paper.
What macros should I use for muscle gain?
Muscle-gain mode adds a surplus to the maintenance estimate. The default is 10%, with 5% and 15% also available. Recommended protein is 1.6 g per kg, fat is 30% of calories, and carbohydrate receives what remains. A surplus does not guarantee that gained weight is muscle.
Can I calculate macros using body fat percentage?
Yes. In Advanced, enter body fat and choose the lean-mass equation: 370 + 21.6 × lean mass in kilograms. Lean mass is body weight × (1 − body fat ÷ 100). Body-fat estimates are uncertain, so this result is less certain than Mifflin–St Jeor from height and weight.
How do I adjust macros when my weight changes?
Enter the new weight. In Recommended mode, protein grams move with body weight. If the two-to-four-week weight trend does not match the goal, change the calorie target by a small step and keep the same method. One day’s scale weight is a weak reason to rebuild the plan.
Why are my results different from another calculator?
Compare the equation, the activity multiplier, and the goal calories before comparing grams. Other tools may round BMR before multiplying, use a fixed 500 kcal deficit, impose a calorie floor, or set protein as a percentage instead of grams per kilogram. Those choices change the grams even when the height and weight match.
Does this calculator require an account?
No. There is no signup and no email step. The math runs in your browser, and EverydayTools does not receive the age, height, weight, or goal you type.
Related calculators
- Calorie Calculator — Estimate BMR and a daily calorie target, then open this page with that target filled in.
- Protein Intake Calculator — Look at a weight-based protein range on its own.
- Body Fat Calculator — Estimate body fat before you try the lean-mass energy equation.
- BMI Calculator — See body mass index from the same height and weight.
- Lean Body Mass Calculator — Estimate lean mass when you already have a body fat percentage.
Sources, methodology, and limitations
Resting energy uses Mifflin MD, St Jeor ST, Hill LA, Scott BJ, Daugherty SA, and Koh YO, “A new predictive equation for resting energy expenditure in healthy individuals,” American Journal of Clinical Nutrition 1990;51(2):241–247. PubMed 2305711. The activity multipliers are not from that paper.
The optional lean-mass equation is 370 + 21.6 × lean body mass in kilograms, the form often called Katch–McArdle. Lean mass here is weight × (1 − body fat percentage / 100). If the body-fat number is off, the energy number is off.
Protein planning context includes the adult reference intake discussed by the NIH Office of Dietary Supplements protein fact sheet and the range often cited for exercising adults in Jäger et al., International Society of Sports Nutrition position stand on protein and exercise, Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition 2017;14:20. doi:10.1186/s12970-017-0177-8. Those sources do not set the presets on this page, and they are not personalized advice.
For the broader point that body weight follows energy intake and expenditure over time, see the NIDDK weight-management pages and the Dietary Guidelines for Americans. Neither source reviews this calculator.
Equations miss individual metabolism, food-label error, and day-to-day movement. Use the result as a hypothesis. Change it when the weight trend disagrees. Updated 2026-10-10. Written by EverydayTools. This update is an editorial revision of the page, not a clinical review, and no dietitian sign-off is claimed.
General estimate for healthy adults. Not medical, dietary, or pediatric advice.