How to calculate EER for females: A Complete Guide

December 7, 2025 •

4 min read

According to the National Institutes of Health, a woman's energy requirements naturally change with age, activity, and life stage. Learning how to calculate EER for females provides a personalized baseline for meeting those needs, helping to manage weight and support overall metabolic health effectively.

Quick Summary

This guide explains the process for determining the Estimated Energy Requirement (EER) for adult females using the standard scientific formula and activity factors.

Key Points

Standard Formula: Use the Institute of Medicine (IOM) equation: EER = 354 − (6.91 × A) + PA × [(9.36 × W) + (726 × H)].
Key Inputs: To calculate EER, you must know your age (A) in years, weight (W) in kg, height (H) in meters, and physical activity (PA) level.
Physical Activity Matters: The PA factor ranges from 1.0 (sedentary) to 1.45 (very active) for adult females and is a crucial multiplier in the calculation.
Special Adjustments: For pregnancy and lactation, additional calories must be added to the baseline EER to account for increased energy demands.
Long-Term Baseline: Unlike TDEE, EER is ideal for setting a stable, long-term calorie baseline for weight maintenance, preventing the metabolic backfires of extreme dieting.
Avoid Guesswork: Knowing your EER provides a scientific starting point for diet planning, enabling more consistent and predictable results for weight management goals.

The Estimated Energy Requirement, or EER, is a personalized calculation of the average daily calories needed to maintain energy balance in a healthy adult. It is more precise than generic calorie estimates because it accounts for individual factors such as age, height, weight, and physical activity level. For women, understanding their specific EER is crucial for effective weight management, whether the goal is to maintain, lose, or gain weight in a healthy, sustainable manner.

The Official EER Formula for Adult Females

For adult women aged 19 years and older, the standard formula developed by the Institute of Medicine (IOM) is used to calculate EER.

Formula: EER = 354 − (6.91 × A) + PA × [(9.36 × W) + (726 × H)]

Where:

EER is the Estimated Energy Requirement in kilocalories (kcal) per day.
A is your age in years.
PA is your Physical Activity (PA) factor.
W is your body weight in kilograms (kg).
H is your height in meters (m).

Step-by-Step Calculation

To find your EER, you'll need to gather your personal data and follow these steps:

Determine Your Measurements: Find your current weight in kilograms and height in meters. If you only know your weight in pounds and height in inches, you will need to convert them first.
Select Your Physical Activity (PA) Factor: Choose the PA factor from the table below that best represents your daily routine. This is the most subjective part of the calculation, so be honest with yourself to ensure accuracy.
Plug the Values into the Formula: Substitute your age, PA factor, weight, and height into the EER equation.
Calculate Your Result: Follow the order of operations to solve the equation. The final number will be your estimated daily caloric needs to maintain your current weight.

Understanding the Physical Activity (PA) Factors

The PA factors are multipliers that adjust your calorie needs based on how much you move throughout the day. Your average activity level over time is key, not just sporadic workouts.

Sedentary (PA = 1.0): You engage in very little or no physical activity beyond your daily living activities, such as office work and short walks.
Low Active (PA = 1.12): You perform daily living activities plus 30 to 60 minutes of moderate-intensity exercise, such as brisk walking, 3 to 4 days per week.
Active (PA = 1.27): You perform daily living activities plus more than 60 minutes of moderate-intensity exercise or a mix of moderate and vigorous exercise most days.
Very Active (PA = 1.45): You perform physically demanding work or engage in hard exercise for more than an hour a day.

Special Considerations: Pregnancy and Lactation

During key life stages such as pregnancy and lactation, a woman's energy needs increase. The standard EER calculation serves as a baseline, with additional calories added to support the physiological changes and demands of motherhood.

Pregnancy: No additional calories are needed in the first trimester. In the second trimester, an additional 340 kcal/day is recommended, and in the third trimester, an additional 452 kcal/day.
Lactation: For the first 6 months of breastfeeding, an increase of 330 kcal/day is recommended. For months 7 to 12 postpartum, the recommendation increases to 400 kcal/day.

EER vs. TDEE: A Comparison

While EER is similar to Total Daily Energy Expenditure (TDEE), there are important distinctions to consider, especially when planning long-term nutrition strategies.


Feature	Estimated Energy Requirement (EER)	Total Daily Energy Expenditure (TDEE)
Calculation Method	Uses a specific IOM formula based on age, sex, height, weight, and average PA.	Derived from a Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR) formula (e.g., Mifflin-St Jeor) multiplied by a physical activity level.
Primary Use Case	Best for long-term nutrition planning and setting a stable, scientifically sound baseline for maintaining weight.	Useful for short-term planning and tracking with fitness devices, but can fluctuate daily based on actual activity levels.
Formula Flexibility	Uses standardized PA categories (sedentary, low active, active, very active).	Allows for more granular activity multipliers, but can be less consistent.
Purpose	Designed to find the average intake needed for energy balance over time.	Represents the total calories burned on a given day, including all activity and digestion.

Example Calculation

Let's walk through an example for a 35-year-old female who is 1.65 meters (5'5") tall, weighs 68 kilograms (150 lbs), and is considered Low Active.

Gather Data:
- Age (A) = 35 years
- Weight (W) = 68 kg
- Height (H) = 1.65 m
- PA Factor = 1.12 (for Low Active)
Plug into the Formula: EER = 354 − (6.91 × 35) + 1.12 × [(9.36 × 68) + (726 × 1.65)]
Calculate the Result:
- EER = 354 − 241.85 + 1.12 × [636.48 + 1197.9]
- EER = 112.15 + 1.12 × [1834.38]
- EER = 112.15 + 2054.51
- EER = 2166.66 kcal/day

Her EER is approximately 2,167 kcal per day to maintain her weight. For weight loss, she would need to create a small deficit from this number. To learn more about the science behind energy requirements, you can read the research published by the National Institutes of Health.

Conclusion

Calculating your EER is a powerful first step toward taking control of your nutritional health. By moving beyond generic calorie estimates and using a formula that accounts for your unique physiological factors, you can establish a reliable and personalized baseline. This knowledge empowers you to make intentional dietary adjustments that align with your long-term weight and health goals, rather than relying on guesswork that can often lead to frustration and metabolic plateaus.

Frequently Asked Questions

The formula for adult women aged 19 and over is: EER = 354 − (6.91 × Age) + PA × [(9.36 × Weight) + (726 × Height)], where weight is in kilograms, height in meters, and PA is the physical activity factor.

The standard PA factors for adult females are 1.0 for sedentary, 1.12 for low active, 1.27 for active, and 1.45 for very active lifestyles.

You can convert your height from centimeters to meters by dividing by 100. If you know your height in feet and inches, convert it to inches, multiply by 2.54 to get centimeters, then divide by 100 for meters.

Yes, but you will need to add extra calories to your baseline EER calculation. The required caloric increment varies by trimester and stage of breastfeeding.

EER provides a stable, long-term calorie baseline for weight maintenance based on average activity, while TDEE (Total Daily Energy Expenditure) is a daily calorie estimate that can fluctuate more with specific activity levels.

Yes. Your calculated EER is the caloric intake needed for maintenance. To lose weight, you would need to consume slightly fewer calories than your EER to create a sustainable deficit.

EER is more accurate because it uses a scientifically derived formula that incorporates your specific age, height, weight, and average activity level, leading to a more personalized and reliable estimate.

The EER formula includes an age variable (A) with a negative coefficient (-6.91), which systematically lowers the calorie estimate as you get older. This accounts for the natural decline in metabolic rate associated with aging.