How many calories should I eat to lose weight?

The rule: TDEE minus a deficit

Weight loss comes down to energy balance. Your TDEE (total daily energy expenditure) is the number of calories that keeps your weight steady — it covers your resting metabolism plus daily activity and exercise. Eat consistently below that number and the body draws on stored energy to make up the gap.

The common shorthand is that about 3,500 kcal is equivalent to roughly 1 lb of body fat. So a deficit of about 500 kcal/day adds up to that over a week, producing roughly 1 lb (0.45 kg) of loss per week. A larger daily deficit of about 750 kcal/day corresponds to about 1.5 lb/week. These are averages, not guarantees for any single week.

A worked example

Suppose your TDEE is 2,200 kcal/day. Subtract a 500 kcal deficit and you land at about 1,700 kcal/day, a pace aimed at roughly 1 lb/week. Choose a 750 kcal deficit instead and you would eat about 1,450 kcal/day, aimed at roughly 1.5 lb/week.

The first step is knowing your own TDEE, because the target calorie number is always TDEE minus the deficit — there is no universal number that fits everyone. The Calorie Deficit Calculator lets you plug in your own maintenance figure and deficit to see the daily target and estimated weekly rate.

What moves the number, and the floor

Your TDEE is not fixed. It shifts with body size, muscle mass, age, and how active you are, and it tends to drift down as you lose weight — the same deficit may slow over time, which is normal.

The CDC suggests a gradual pace of 1 to 2 lb per week. There is also a practical floor: eating below about 1,200 kcal/day for women or about 1,500 kcal/day for men is generally not advised without medical supervision, because very low intakes make it hard to meet nutrient needs.

This article is general information, not medical advice. The figures here describe what these standards say about typical rates, not a prescription for your situation — consider checking with a doctor or registered dietitian before making significant changes, especially if you have a health condition.