Harris-Benedict Calculator

This is an online Harris-Benedict calculator that estimates an individual’s Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR) using the Harris-Benedict equations. It also calculates the approximate daily kilocalorie intake to maintain current body weight, based on the estimated BMR value and the individual’s activity level.

What is Basal Metabolic Rate (BPR)?

Even when you are resting, your body burns calories by performing basic functions to sustain life, such as breathing, circulation, nutrient process, etc. Basal metabolic rate is the minimum amount of calories your body needs to accomplish its most basic (basal) life-sustaining functions.

What is the Harris-Benedict equation?

The Harris-Benedict equation (aka. the Harris-Benedict principle) is a method to use in estimating an individual’s basal metabolic rate (BMR). The equation sprang from a study by James Arthur Harris and Francis Gano Benedict, which was published in 1919 by the Carnegie Institution of Washington in the monograph A Biometric Study Of Basal Metabolism In Man. The accuracy of the equation was improved in a 1984 revision. In 1990, Mifflin et al. published an equation more predictive for modern lifestyles. Later work produced BMR estimators that accounted for lean body mass.

How to calculate the Harris-Benedict BMR?

There are two Harris-Benedict equations, one for men and another for women:

  • BMR for men = 10 x weight [kg] + 6.25 x height [cm] – 5 x age [years] + 5
  • BMR for women = 10 x weight [kg] + 6.25 x height [cm] – 5 x age [years] – 161

To calculate your basal metabolic rate, measure your weight and height, then apply the appropriate equation above.

BMR calculation example

In the case of a male, aged 34, at a height of 183 cm and a weight of 76 kg, the BMR is:

  • BMR (for men) = 10 x weight [kg] + 6.25 x height [cm] – 5 x age [years] + 5
  • BMR (for men) = 10 x 76 + 6.25 x 181 – 5 x 34 + 5
  • BMR (for men) = 1726.3 kg / m2
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