Your basal metabolic rate tells you what your body burns at rest, but you do not spend the day lying still. Total daily energy expenditure — TDEE — is the number that actually matters when planning what to eat.
TL;DR — Enter your details and activity level in the TDEE calculator to see your real daily calorie burn.
How activity multiplies your burn
TDEE takes your BMR and multiplies it by an activity factor, from about 1.2 for sedentary up to 1.9 for very active. Everything you do — walking, fidgeting, working out, even digesting food — adds to the base. The more you move, the bigger the multiplier and the more you can eat at maintenance.
Picking the right level honestly
This is where most people go wrong: they pick a level based on their best week, not their typical one. A few gym sessions do not make you “very active” if you sit most of the day. Be honest, and when you are unsure, choose the lower option. You can always adjust upward if real-world results say you are burning more.
Using your TDEE
Your TDEE is the calories to eat to stay the same weight. To lose, eat below it; to gain, eat above it. From here, the calorie calculator turns your TDEE into targets for each goal. Find your number in the TDEE calculator and treat it as a starting estimate you refine with experience.