Health
Calories Burned Calculator
Pick an activity, enter your body weight and how long you were active, and see the calories burned using the MET method. Calories per minute, the MET value, and the full working update live — across 25+ exercises, in pounds or kilograms.
Calculate calories burned
MET × body weight (kg) × hours.
Running (10 km/h) · MET 9.8
Heavier bodies burn more for the same effort.
Calories burned
343kcal
Running (10 km/h) for 30 min.
≈ 3.3 bananas
Per minute
11.4 kcal
MET value
9.8
Per hour
686 kcal
Duration
30 min
A population-average estimate — your real burn varies with fitness, pace, and terrain. Updates live.
Try an example
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The basics
What does “calories burned” mean?
Every activity costs energy, measured in kilocalories (what everyone just calls “calories”). The MET method puts a single number on how intense an activity is relative to sitting still, then scales it by how big you are and how long you did it.
1 MET = resting
A MET is intensity, relative to rest
One MET is the energy your body spends doing nothing — sitting quietly. An activity rated at four METs works you four times that hard, minute for minute, whoever you are.
Walking briskly ≈ 4.3 METs
kcal = energy used
Calories are the energy that effort costs
A kilocalorie is a unit of energy. Burning calories simply means your muscles spent that energy to move you. Heavier bodies and longer sessions spend more of it.
A 30-min run might cost ≈ 350 kcal
Method
How the MET method works
Three steps turn an activity, a body weight, and a duration into calories. The calculator does all three live; here is the same working by hand.
- 1
Find the activity's MET value
Look up how intense the activity is. The bigger the MET, the more energy it costs per minute. Walking is low; running and jumping rope are high.
MET = intensity rating - 2
Convert body weight to kilograms
The formula runs in kilograms. If you weigh in pounds, multiply by 0.4536 first — the tool does this for you when you pick “lb”.
kg = lb × 0.4536 - 3
Multiply MET × weight × hours
Put it together: the MET, your weight in kilograms, and the time in hours. The product is total kilocalories.
kcal = MET × kg × hours
Worked examples
See it across activities
The same formula on a run, a walk, a bike ride, and a yoga session — only the MET, the weight, and the time change.
Given Running (10 km/h) · 70 kg (154 lb) · 30 min
MET = 9.8
Hours: 30 ÷ 60 = 0.5 h
kcal = 9.8 × 70 × 0.5
Per minute: 9.8 × 70 ÷ 60 = 11.4 kcal/min
≈ 343 kcal burned
Reference
The MET value of every activity
The full set of activities this calculator knows, grouped and rated, with the calories a reference person burns in half an hour of each. Scan it to compare exercises at a glance.
Calories shown for a 70 kg (154 lb) reference person. Use the live chart below for your own weight.
| Activity | MET | kcal/min | 30 min |
|---|---|---|---|
| Walking & running | |||
| Walking, slow (3 km/h) | 2.8 | 3.3 | 98 |
| Walking, brisk (5.5 km/h) | 4.3 | 5.0 | 151 |
| Jogging (general) | 7 | 8.2 | 245 |
| Running (8 km/h) | 8.3 | 9.7 | 291 |
| Running (10 km/h) | 9.8 | 11.4 | 343 |
| Running (12 km/h) | 11.8 | 13.8 | 413 |
| Cycling | |||
| Cycling, leisurely (<16 km/h) | 4 | 4.7 | 140 |
| Cycling, moderate (19–22 km/h) | 8 | 9.3 | 280 |
| Cycling, vigorous (22–25 km/h) | 10 | 11.7 | 350 |
| Swimming | |||
| Swimming, leisurely | 6 | 7.0 | 210 |
| Swimming laps, vigorous | 9.8 | 11.4 | 343 |
| Gym & strength | |||
| Weight training, light | 3.5 | 4.1 | 123 |
| Weight training, vigorous | 6 | 7.0 | 210 |
| Circuit training | 7.5 | 8.8 | 263 |
| Elliptical trainer | 5 | 5.8 | 175 |
| Rowing machine, moderate | 7 | 8.2 | 245 |
| Studio & home | |||
| Yoga, Hatha | 2.5 | 2.9 | 88 |
| Pilates | 3 | 3.5 | 105 |
| Aerobics, general | 7.3 | 8.5 | 256 |
| Jump rope, moderate | 11 | 12.8 | 385 |
| HIIT | 8 | 9.3 | 280 |
| Sports | |||
| Basketball, game | 8 | 9.3 | 280 |
| Soccer, casual | 7 | 8.2 | 245 |
| Tennis, singles | 8 | 9.3 | 280 |
| Outdoor | |||
| Hiking, cross-country | 6 | 7.0 | 210 |
| Dancing, general | 5.5 | 6.4 | 193 |
| Everyday | |||
| Gardening, general | 3.8 | 4.4 | 133 |
| Cleaning, house | 3.3 | 3.9 | 116 |
Where it shows up
Why the number matters
Calories burned is the bridge between effort and outcome — it shows up wherever movement meets a goal.
weight management
Closing an energy gap
Losing fat means burning more than you eat. Knowing what a session contributes lets you size the gap honestly instead of guessing. Pair it with your daily energy needs.
exercise planning
Budgeting your workouts
When you know the cost of each activity, you can plan a week that hits a target — swap a long walk for a short run, or stack sessions to reach a calorie goal.
fitness trackers
Sanity-checking your watch
Wearables estimate burn too, and often disagree. The MET method gives you an independent second opinion to judge whether a reading looks right.
Worth knowing
What the number does and doesn’t capture
The MET method is sound but simplified. A few facts keep your expectations calibrated.
a population average
It's an estimate, not a measurement
MET values are averages across many people. Your fitness, efficiency, and body composition shift the real burn — read the result as a ballpark, not a verdict.
EPOC / afterburn
Recovery burns a little more
After hard exercise your metabolism stays slightly elevated while you recover. The MET method ignores this afterburn, so intense sessions burn marginally more than shown.
gross vs net
This counts gross calories
The figure includes the energy you would have spent just resting for that time. Net calories subtract your resting rate — relevant if you are crediting exercise against your daily budget.
intensity beats time
How hard outweighs how long
Ten minutes of jumping rope can out-burn forty minutes of gentle walking. Raising the MET — going harder — moves the number far more than simply adding time.
Quick chart
Calories burned by activity at your weight
Enter your body weight once and read the calories you’d burn in a 30- or 60-minute session of every activity — the fast way to compare your options.
Calories burned at your weight for a 30- and 60-minute session of each activity.
| Activity | MET | 30 min | 60 min |
|---|---|---|---|
| Walking, slow (3 km/h) | 2.8 | 98 | 196 |
| Walking, brisk (5.5 km/h) | 4.3 | 151 | 301 |
| Jogging (general) | 7 | 245 | 490 |
| Running (8 km/h) | 8.3 | 291 | 581 |
| Running (10 km/h) | 9.8 | 343 | 686 |
| Running (12 km/h) | 11.8 | 413 | 826 |
| Cycling, leisurely (<16 km/h) | 4 | 140 | 280 |
| Cycling, moderate (19–22 km/h) | 8 | 280 | 560 |
| Cycling, vigorous (22–25 km/h) | 10 | 350 | 700 |
| Swimming, leisurely | 6 | 210 | 420 |
| Swimming laps, vigorous | 9.8 | 343 | 686 |
| Weight training, light | 3.5 | 123 | 245 |
| Weight training, vigorous | 6 | 210 | 420 |
| Circuit training | 7.5 | 263 | 525 |
| Elliptical trainer | 5 | 175 | 350 |
| Rowing machine, moderate | 7 | 245 | 490 |
| Yoga, Hatha | 2.5 | 88 | 175 |
| Pilates | 3 | 105 | 210 |
| Aerobics, general | 7.3 | 256 | 511 |
| Jump rope, moderate | 11 | 385 | 770 |
| HIIT | 8 | 280 | 560 |
| Basketball, game | 8 | 280 | 560 |
| Soccer, casual | 7 | 245 | 490 |
| Tennis, singles | 8 | 280 | 560 |
| Hiking, cross-country | 6 | 210 | 420 |
| Dancing, general | 5.5 | 193 | 385 |
| Gardening, general | 3.8 | 133 | 266 |
| Cleaning, house | 3.3 | 116 | 231 |
More health tools
Put the burn in context
Calories burned is one side of the energy equation. See the other side with the TDEE calculator, which estimates how many calories you need each day, and the BMR calculator, the resting rate everything else builds on. Together they turn a single session into a plan.
FAQ
Common questions
This calculator uses the MET method: calories burned = MET × body weight in kilograms × time in hours. A MET (Metabolic Equivalent of Task) is how hard an activity is relative to sitting still. Running at 10 km/h is about 9.8 METs, so it burns roughly 9.8 times as many calories per minute as resting. Multiply that by your weight and the time you spent and you get the total kilocalories.
A MET is a unit of energy expenditure. One MET is the rate of energy your body uses at complete rest — about 1 kilocalorie per kilogram of body weight per hour, or roughly the oxygen cost of sitting quietly. An activity rated at 5 METs burns five times that resting rate. MET values come from the Compendium of Physical Activities, a standardized reference researchers use to compare exercises.
Yes. In the MET formula your weight is a direct multiplier, so a heavier person burns more calories doing the exact same activity for the same time. A 90 kg person walking briskly burns about 30% more than a 70 kg person on the same walk. That is why a calories-burned figure is meaningless without a weight attached — and why every chart on this page asks for yours.
It is a solid population-average estimate, typically within 10–15% of measured energy expenditure for most people. It does not know your fitness level, exact pace, terrain, efficiency, or body composition, all of which shift the real number. Treat the result as a well-grounded ballpark for planning, not a precise measurement — even chest-strap and wrist trackers carry similar error.
The MET method gives gross calories — the total your body used during the activity, including the energy you would have spent just resting for that time. Net calories (the extra burned because you exercised) subtract your resting metabolic rate. The difference is small for short, intense sessions and larger for long, gentle ones. For weight-management math, gross is the usual and conservative choice.
A little. After hard exercise your metabolism stays slightly raised while your body recovers — known as EPOC, or the afterburn effect. It is real but usually modest: a few percent of the session's burn for most workouts, more after intense interval or heavy resistance training. The MET method does not include it, so very intense sessions burn marginally more than the number shown.
Fitness trackers blend heart rate, motion, and personal data to estimate burn, while the MET method uses a fixed activity rating and your weight. Neither is ground truth — both are estimates with similar error bars. If they disagree by 10–20%, that is normal. Pick one method and use it consistently so you are comparing like with like over time.
Roughly 7,700 kcal equals one kilogram of body fat (about 3,500 kcal per pound). A deficit of 500 kcal a day — through activity, diet, or both — loses about half a kilo a week. Exercise is only part of that; what you eat matters more for most people. Use this tool to see what a session contributes, then pair it with the TDEE calculator to set a realistic daily target.
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Ugo CharlesBuilt and fact-checked against our editorial standards · Last updated June 2026
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