Caloric Deficit Calculator
Enter your current weight, target weight, daily calorie expenditure (TDEE), and planned daily intake to see your daily deficit, weekly weight loss rate, and a timeline to reach your goal.
Use the Calorie Calculator for your TDEE
Daily Deficit
500 kcal
Weekly Loss
0.45 kg
Time to Goal
4mo 0w (123 days)
Progress milestones
How caloric deficit drives weight loss
Weight loss occurs when you consistently consume fewer calories than you burn. One kilogram of body fat contains approximately 7,700 kilocalories of stored energy (3,500 kcal per pound). To lose 0.5 kg per week, you need a weekly deficit of 3,850 kcal — or roughly 550 kcal per day.
In practice, weight loss is not perfectly linear. Water retention, glycogen depletion (which is rapid initially), muscle preservation, and metabolic adaptation all affect the rate. The 7,700 kcal/kg figure is a population average — individual results vary.
What is a safe rate of weight loss?
Most health guidelines recommend losing no more than 0.5–1 kg per week (1–2 lbs). Faster loss often comes at the cost of muscle mass, nutritional deficiencies, gallstones (with very rapid loss), and metabolic adaptation that makes long-term maintenance harder.
A deficit of 500–750 kcal per day is generally appropriate for most adults. Deficits above 1,000 kcal per day should only be undertaken under medical supervision. Eating below 1,200 kcal/day (women) or 1,500 kcal/day (men) risks inadequate protein, vitamins, and minerals regardless of total calorie intake.
Frequently asked questions
How do I find my TDEE?
Total Daily Energy Expenditure (TDEE) is your Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR) multiplied by an activity factor. Use the Calorie Calculator on Pix Garage to calculate your TDEE based on age, gender, weight, height, and activity level. As you lose weight, your TDEE will decrease slightly, so recalculate every 4–6 weeks.
Why have I stopped losing weight despite maintaining the same deficit?
Plateaus are normal and expected. As body weight decreases, your TDEE decreases — meaning the same food intake produces a smaller deficit. Metabolic adaptation (the body becoming more efficient) also occurs. To break a plateau, recalculate your TDEE at your new weight and adjust your intake accordingly, or add more exercise.
