Macro Calculator
Plug in your stats, activity level, and a goal with an explicit weekly rate. Get a daily calorie target plus a protein/carb/fat split — from ratio presets (balanced, low-carb, low-fat, high-protein) or a custom g/kg + fat% split — with a per-meal breakdown and added-sugar / saturated-fat ceilings.
Custom split (protein g/kg + fat %)
A preset ratio is selected — these fields apply only when the Custom chip is active. Editing them switches back to Custom.
The hierarchy of importance
For body composition, the variables matter in roughly this order:
- Total calories — by far the dominant factor. A 500 cal/day deficit will produce weight loss regardless of macro split; a 500 cal/day surplus will produce weight gain.
- Protein — preserves muscle in a cut, supports growth in a surplus. Hit your protein target every day. Easier to handle than the other two.
- Fat — hormonal floor at ~20% of calories. Above that, total fat doesn't matter much for body composition; it's mainly a satiety / training-energy tradeoff.
- Carbs — fuel for training. The remainder after protein and fat. Most adjustments to carb intake are about training performance, not body composition directly.
A common mistake is obsessing over the macro split while sloppy on total calories. Get the calories right; the rest is fine-tuning.
Cutting vs bulking — pace matters
The goal options carry explicit weekly rates — 0.5 or 1 lb/week in either direction, i.e. ±250 or ±500 kcal/day. Conservative pacing is intentional.
- Aggressive cuts work for short windows (4–8 weeks), but extended deficits beyond ~25% below TDEE crash adherence and tank training quality.
- Aggressive bulks add fat faster than they add muscle. Even with optimal training, muscle gain caps around 1–2 lb/month for an experienced lifter; anything above is fat. A slower surplus minimizes the fat to cut off later.
Related
FAQ
How is the calorie target calculated?
BMR × activity factor = TDEE. Then TDEE is adjusted by your goal rate: lose 1 lb/week is −500 kcal/day, lose 0.5 lb/week is −250, maintain is ±0, gain 0.5 lb/week is +250, gain 1 lb/week is +500. The math behind each label assumes ~3,500 kcal per pound of fat — a useful approximation for most people, though individuals vary. If the resulting target dips below ~1,200 kcal/day for women or ~1,500 for men, the tool flags it; deficits that low are hard to fuel adequately without supervision.
What do the macro ratio presets mean?
They split your calorie target by percentage instead of the g/kg + fat% method: Balanced 30% protein / 35% fat / 35% carbs, Low-carb 40/40/20, Low-fat 30/20/50, High-protein 40/30/30. Grams come from the standard densities — protein and carbs 4 kcal/g, fat 9 kcal/g. So 'Balanced' at 2,000 kcal is 150g protein, 78g fat, 175g carbs. Custom uses the protein g/kg and fat % fields instead. None of these is magic; pick the one you can actually stick to, then let total calories and protein do the work.
Why does it show a per-meal breakdown?
Daily macro totals are abstract; 'what goes on this plate' is what you act on. The ÷4 line divides each macro evenly across four meals as a starting template. There's nothing special about even splits — research mainly supports spreading protein across 3–5 feedings (~0.4 g/kg per meal) rather than cramming it into one. Carbs and fat can move freely between meals.
Where do the added-sugar and saturated-fat ceilings come from?
Major dietary guidelines (WHO, US Dietary Guidelines, AHA) converge on keeping added sugar and saturated fat each under ~10% of total calories. The tool converts that into grams for your specific target: sugar at 4 kcal/g, saturated fat at 9 kcal/g. At 2,000 kcal that's ~50g added sugar and ~22g saturated fat. These are ceilings inside your fat/carb budgets, not separate allowances.
Why is protein in g/kg of body weight?
Protein needs scale roughly with lean body mass, and total body weight is a decent proxy for non-obese populations. The default 1.8 g/kg sits in the middle of the typical evidence-based range (1.6–2.2 g/kg) — sufficient for muscle preservation in deficit and growth in surplus. Endurance athletes can drop to 1.4; people with very high body fat may want to use lean mass instead of total weight.
Why 30% fat by default?
It's the middle of the 25–35% sweet spot most sports nutritionists recommend. Below 20% and hormone production (especially testosterone) tends to drop, particularly in deficit. Above 40% and protein/carb get squeezed in ways that hurt training and recovery. 30% is the safe default; cycling cuts may go lower with explicit re-feeds.
Should I hit these macros exactly every day?
No — weekly average is what matters. Hit protein within ±10g per day (it's the most important), let carbs and fat trade places day-to-day based on training load and what's convenient. The calorie total matters more than the exact split.
What if my real TDEE is different from this estimate?
Trust your scale. Track calories at the computed target for 2 weeks, weigh daily, average each week. If you're not losing/gaining at the expected rate, your real TDEE is higher (gain less) or lower (gain more). Adjust by ±100–200 cal/day and re-test. The formula gets you in the right ballpark; your body confirms.