How Many Calories Should a Woman Eat a Day?
The NHS says an average woman needs about 2,000 calories a day to keep her weight steady. That’s a general guide. Your own number depends on your age, height, weight and how active you are. For a woman who is 165 cm (5 ft 5) and 70 kg (11 st), that’s roughly 1,450 to 2,250 a day, depending on age and activity. These figures are for adults who aren’t pregnant or breastfeeding.
In brief
- You need a little less as you get older, and more if you're taller, heavier or more active.
- Activity makes a big difference: about 400 to 500 calories a day between a desk job and regular exercise.
- To lose weight, a gentle cut is about 250 to 500 calories a day. For many younger or more active women, 1,200 is more of a cut than they need.
- A calculator gives a starting point. Your weight trend over a few weeks shows your real number.
How many calories does a woman need by age?
A woman’s calorie needs fall by about 60 to 80 a day every ten years. A 25-year-old who exercises 1 to 3 days a week needs about 2,000, and at 75 about 1,650. The table below is for a woman who is 165 cm (5 ft 5) tall and weighs 70 kg (11 st, or 154 lb).
| Age | Desk job, little exercise | Exercise 1 to 3 days a week | Exercise 3 to 5 days a week |
|---|---|---|---|
| 25 | 1,750 | 2,000 | 2,250 |
| 35 | 1,650 | 1,900 | 2,150 |
| 45 | 1,600 | 1,850 | 2,100 |
| 55 | 1,550 | 1,800 | 2,000 |
| 65 | 1,500 | 1,700 | 1,950 |
| 75 | 1,450 | 1,650 | 1,850 |
We worked these out with a standard formula called Mifflin-St Jeor. It was built from a 1990 study of about 500 adults aged 19 to 78. We added standard activity estimates, the same ones our calculators use, and rounded to the nearest 50.
How active you are makes a much bigger difference than age. Going from a desk job with little exercise to exercising 3 to 5 days a week adds about 400 to 500 calories a day.
Does your weight change how many calories you need?
Yes. A heavier body burns more calories, even at rest. This table is for a 35-year-old woman who is 165 cm (5 ft 5) tall and exercises 1 to 3 days a week.
| Weight | Calories to stay the same weight |
|---|---|
| 55 kg (8 st 9, 121 lb) | 1,700 |
| 65 kg (10 st 3, 143 lb) | 1,850 |
| 75 kg (11 st 11, 165 lb) | 2,000 |
| 85 kg (13 st 5, 187 lb) | 2,100 |
| 95 kg (about 15 st, 209 lb) | 2,250 |
Height matters too, but less. A woman who is 175 cm (5 ft 9) needs about 150 to 200 calories a day more than one who is 155 cm (5 ft 1).
How many calories should a woman eat to lose weight?
To lose weight gently, eat about 250 to 500 calories a day less than your maintenance (the amount that keeps your weight steady). For a woman who needs 2,000, that’s about 1,500 to 1,750. If your number from the tables above is 1,850, it’s about 1,350 to 1,600.
The NHS’s calorie counting advice suggests a slightly bigger cut, of around 600 a day.
Some people find a bigger cut harder to stick with because of hunger or tiredness. We cover both in our posts on feeling hungry in a calorie deficit and feeling tired in a calorie deficit.
You’ll often see 1,200 a day suggested for women. For many younger or more active women, that’s a bigger cut than they need. Our post on whether 1,200 calories is too little explains why.
How do you find your own number?
Start with a calculator, then check it against your weight over a few weeks.
- Put your age, height, weight and activity into our maintenance calorie calculator. To lose weight, use the calorie deficit calculator. To gain weight, use the weight gain calculator instead.
- Eat close to that number for three or four weeks.
- Weigh at the same time of day, and compare weekly averages rather than single days.
- If your average holds steady, that’s your maintenance. If it keeps rising or falling, adjust a little and check again.
Our guide to finding your maintenance calories goes through this step by step.
Where Ori fits
Ori gives you a starting target using the same formula as the tables above. With Premium, Ori checks your weight trend each week and adjusts your target if your weight isn’t moving as expected. Stealth Health, which is free, hides calorie and weight numbers and tells you how things are going in plain words. You can try Ori here.
Related reading
- How many calories are in a pound of fat?
- Why your calorie target shouldn’t stay the same
- Why do two people lose weight at different rates?
Sources
- NHS. Understanding calories. Page last reviewed 17 April 2023, checked 28 October 2026.
- NHS Better Health. Calorie counting, checked 28 October 2026.
- Mifflin MD, St Jeor ST, et al. A new predictive equation for resting energy expenditure in healthy individuals. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 1990.
A gentle safety note
Ori supports general wellness. It is not medical care. If you have a history of disordered eating, are pregnant or breastfeeding, take medicines that affect weight or appetite, or have a clinical nutrition need, speak with a qualified healthcare professional before changing your intake or weight goal.
Read Ori's Health Disclaimer