Protein intake calculator: grams per day and per meal
Estimate protein for weight loss, maintenance or muscle gain from weight and training, then split the target across realistic meals in metric or imperial units.
Enable JavaScript to calculate your result. The formulas and examples are explained below.
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For an 80-kg adult losing weight, this tool starts you at 144 g protein/day, or 36 g across four meals. Tick regular resistance training and it offers a higher target of 176 g, or 44 g per portion.
Both are practical higher-protein targets, not minimums. Picking the higher one does not buy you more muscle on its own.
What changes the result
The calculator takes your current weight, your goal, whether you lift regularly, and how many meals or protein portions you like in a day.
| Goal | Protein planning factor |
|---|---|
| Maintenance | 1.6 g/kg |
| Weight loss, no regular resistance training | 1.8 g/kg |
| Weight loss with resistance training | 2.2 g/kg |
| Gain | 2.0 g/kg |
These are the same goal-based factors HeyCoach uses, plus a higher option for people who train while losing weight. They come from sports-nutrition research, and they are starting points, not a reading of your exact needs.
In healthy adults who lift, the average benefit of extra protein tailed off above a total intake of around 1.6 g/kg/day. That is an average, not a ceiling, and it says nothing about needing supplements. Morton et al., systematic review and meta-analysis
Why a deficit changes the conversation
When you eat less, enough protein and some resistance training are what keep muscle on you while the fat comes off. Protein cannot stand in for sleep, training or food energy, though, and a very high target can crowd everything else out of a small budget.
Our protein-for-weight-loss guide walks through the reasoning and the practical range. Reach a number from ordinary meals first; buy powders only if you still need them.
If you have kidney disease, a prescribed diet or other clinical needs, take your protein target from your clinician or dietitian rather than from this page.
A worked day at 144 grams
An 80-kg adult selects weight loss, no regular resistance training, and four portions:
80 × 1.8 = 144 g/day
144 ÷ 4 = 36 g per portion
A real day might be 35 g at breakfast, 40 g at lunch, 25 g in a snack and 44 g at dinner. That is 144 without four identical meals.
The per-meal number is a convenience, not a test. If three bigger meals suit your day, use three. A routine that works beats a tidy split.
What about 40 grams looks like
Portions vary by product and how it is cooked, so check the package or a reliable food entry:
- About 130 g of cooked chicken breast gets you roughly 40 g.
- Two eggs plus a large portion of Greek yogurt comes close, depending on the yogurt.
- A substantial serving of firm tofu with beans can get there; check the tofu label, because water content varies.
- Fish, lentils and dairy in one meal can spread the total across several foods.
These are ways to build a meal, not label values. If your meals already work and you only need to close a small gap, browse high-protein snacks. USDA FoodData Central is the place to check an ingredient and serving.
When current weight gives an awkwardly large number
Multiply a higher body weight by 2.2 and you can get a target that will not fit in the calorie budget. That is not an instruction to force down protein or strip out every carbohydrate.
A dietitian will often use a reference or adjusted weight instead, and weigh body composition, age and clinical needs. This page multiplies the weight you typed, with nothing hidden, so you know where the number came from before you decide what to do with it.
Run it through the macro calculator to see protein beside fat and carbohydrate. If there is no room left for other food, the plan needs changing, not your appetite.
FAQ
Should I use pounds or kilograms?
Either. The imperial option converts pounds to kilograms before it applies the factor. If you do it by hand, convert first; pounds times a per-kilogram number gives a target far too high.
Do I need a protein shake?
No. A shake is a convenient food, nothing more. Ordinary meals can get you there if the portions are right.
Does a higher protein target cause weight loss?
Not by itself. The deficit does that. Protein helps you build a diet that holds together, but it does not cancel the calories around it.
Must every meal contain the same amount?
No. The per-meal number is an easy way to divide the day. Uneven portions build the habit just as well.
The easy way to do this
HeyCoach shows protein beside calories on every meal card, from a photo or one line in WhatsApp; there is no app to download. Set the target in about 30 seconds and it remembers it, so by evening you can see whether dinner needs 25 g or 50 g. If lunch turns out to have been half the chicken, one reply fixes it, even days later.
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Editorial and review policy. No independent dietitian review is claimed unless a reviewer is named.
HeyCoach is a nutrition coach, not a medical service. This article is general information, not medical advice — talk to your doctor before changing your diet if you have a medical condition, are pregnant, or take medication.