Calories vs. Macros: Which is Better for Weight Loss?

If you are trying to lose weight, tracking calories and counting macros are common recommendations, but what’s the difference? Here is everything you need to know about counting calories vs. macros, the pros and cons, and the best approach for weight loss.

What’s the difference between counting calories and macros?

Calorie counting is a method of food tracking that tracks how many calories a person consumes per day. A calorie is an independent measure of the energy content of a food and tracking calories involves tracking how many total calories are in the food and beverages a person consumes in a day.

Macro counting is a method of food tracking that tracks how many grams of each macronutrient, protein, carbohydrate, and fat, a person consumes per day. Macros, also known as macronutrients, are the primary dietary nutrients that the body requires in large amounts and they make up the majority of the calorie content of our food and beverages. Protein and carbohydrates provide 4 calories per gram, while fat provides 9 calories per gram.

Given macros make the calorie content of our food, by counting macros you are indirectly counting calories, however, by counting calories you are not counting macros.

As noted in the pyramid of nutrition priorities, both calories and macros play important roles in weight loss, fat loss, and body composition goals, although, their level of importance varies depending on the specific goal.

How to Track Calories vs. Macros for Weight Loss

To lose weight, or more specifically lose fat, you must create a calorie deficit. When the calories you consume via food and beverage exceed the calories expended via total metabolism, the body will use stored energy, also known as body fat, for fuel. Put simply, for fat loss to occur, you must ensure you are eating fewer calories than you are burning.

To count calories for weight loss, you must determine how many calories you need to consume to create a calorie deficit.

To determine how many calories you need for weight loss or fat loss, you must determine your total daily calorie needs for general health and weight maintenance. This is known as your total daily energy expenditure (TDEE) and can be calculated using the Mifflin-St Jeor formula by using an online calculator such as tdeecalculator.net (1). Once you’ve calculated your TDEE, you can then determine the size of your calorie deficit (small = 10-15%, medium = 20-25%, large = 25% or more) to determine your total calorie intake for weight loss. Put simply:

• Daily Calorie Needs for Weight Loss = TDEE – (TDEE x % Calorie Deficit)

For example, if Sara determines her TDEE is 2,000 calories per day and wants to implement a moderate calorie deficit of 20% (400 calories), her total daily calorie needs for weight loss are 1,600 calories per day.

• Daily Calorie Needs for Weight Loss = 2,000 – (2,000 x 0.2) = 2,000 – 400 = 1,600 calories

Once you’ve determined your total calorie needs for weight loss, you can use an app to help track your calorie intake, such as MyFitnessPal or FatSecret.

To count macros for weight loss, you must determine how many grams of each macronutrient you need to consume per day to create a calorie deficit.

Once you’ve determined how many calories you need to consume for weight loss, you can determine the macronutrient balance of those calories. While the exact macronutrient balance required may vary from one individual to the next depending on specific sex, age, body weight, activity level, and goals, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the Food and Nutrition Board of the Institutes of Medicine (IOM) recommend healthy adults consume a macronutrient ratio of (2, 3):

• Carbohydrates: 45 – 65% of total calories
• Fats: 20 – 35% of total calories
• Proteins: 10 – 35% of total calories

More specifically, should an individual choose to consume a macro balance of 45% carbohydrate, 30% protein, and 25% fat, their macro intake would be calculated by the following steps:

• Daily Calorie Needs for Weight Loss = TDEE – (TDEE x % Calorie Deficit)
• Grams of Carbohydrate per Day = Daily Calorie Needs x 45% ÷ 4 calories per gram
• Grams of Protein per Day = Daily Calorie Needs x 30% ÷ 4 calories per gram
• Grams of Fat per Day = Daily Calorie Needs x 25% ÷ 9 calories per gram

This calculation will provide the exact number of grams of carbohydrate, protein, and fat required to create a calorie deficit for weight loss.

For example, if Sara determines her TDEE is 2,000 calories per day and wants to implement a moderate calorie deficit of 20% (400 calories), her total daily calorie needs for weight loss are 1,600 calories per day. Based on this calorie deficit, her macro intake would be:

• Grams of Carbohydrate per Day = 1,600 x 0.45 ÷ 4 = 180 grams
• Grams of Protein per Day = 1,600 x 0.30 ÷ 4 = 120 grams
• Grams of Fat per Day =1,600 x 0.25 ÷ 9 = 44 grams

Note: While not a primary or essential nutrient, alcohol is also considered a macronutrient and contains 7 calories per gram. Alcohol should be included in tracking methods whether you are counting calories or macros.

While macro intake can be calculated manually, it can also easily be calculated using an app such as MyFitnessPal, Carbon Diet, or MyMacros.

Pros and Cons of Counting Calories

Here is a list of the benefits of counting calories:

• Supports weight loss. Counting calories increases the accuracy of how many calories an individual consumes per day, which can help to ensure they are creating a calorie deficit when food and beverages are consistently and accurately tracked.
• Increases portion size awareness. Counting calories can help to increase awareness around the serving sizes and portion sizes of the food and beverages an individual consumes, which can be highly beneficial for long-term success. Research has shown that people underestimate their calorie intake by up to 20%, and overweight people may underestimate their calorie intake by up to 40% (4).
• Can be very educational. The sheer act of counting calories can bring greater awareness to the quality and quantity of our food choices, as well as potentially increase intuitive eating behaviors and promote healthy eating habits.

Here is a list of the drawbacks of counting calories:

• Does not ensure food quality. While calorie counting emphasizes food quantity, it does not account for food quality. For this reason, it is possible to count calories and create a calorie deficit while consuming a high level of processed foods.
• Doesn’t account for macronutrient balance. Although calorie counting addresses the total number of calories consumed, it does not account for the source of those calories. Consuming a good ratio of carbohydrates, proteins, and fats can help to encourage a more optimal macronutrient intake which helps to support overall health, as well as increase satiety signals and balance blood sugar (5).
• Doesn’t account for micronutrient intake. Because counting calories does not emphasize food quality, it does not ensure that you will meet your optimal intake of micronutrients, including vitamins and minerals.
• May lead to muscle loss. Counting calories without tracking protein intake may lead to the loss of lean muscle mass (6, 7). Not only is muscle mass a predictor of health and longevity, but it helps to increase metabolism, via the thermic effect of food, and increase satiety signals in a calorie deficit. Evidence suggests that a protein intake of 0.7 grams of protein per pound of body weight per day is an optimal intake for weight loss (8).
• May promote unhealthy eating habits. For certain individuals, intense food restriction, such as calorie counting, has been linked to eating disorders including anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, and binge eating disorder, which can all lead to major health problems (9).

Pros and Cons of Counting Macros

Here is a list of the benefits of counting macros:

• Supports weight loss. Counting macros indirectly ensures you are tracking calories, which can help to ensure you are creating and maintaining a calorie deficit to support weight loss.
• Increases portion size awareness. Counting macros can help to improve portion control by bringing more awareness to the portion size of proteins, carbohydrates, and fats consumed. Not only do many people tend to underestimate portion sizes overall, but they tend to overestimate their protein intake.
• Can be very educational. In addition to bringing more awareness to the quality and quantity of our food choices, counting macros can help to provide more food freedom by demonstrating that all foods can be included in a healthy diet. Research has shown that flexible dieting helps to promote a healthier relationship with food and prevent binge eating (10).
• Promotes macronutrient balance. By counting macros, you can ensure you are creating a calorie deficit to support weight loss while consuming an optimal balance of macronutrients to support optimal health and other health goals. Carbohydrates, protein, and fat all play important roles in our health to provide energy, maintain structure, and regulate metabolic pathways, and learning how to create a balanced meal can help to ensure you are meeting your macro targets.
• Increases energy expenditure. While one calorie is one calorie, not all sources of calories are created equal in terms of how they affect energy expenditure and calories in vs. calories out. Counting macros can help to increase TDEE through the thermic effect of food (TEF); the energy expended to digest, metabolize, absorb, and store the food that you eat. Protein has a much greater thermic effect (20-30%) than carbs (5-10%) or fat (0-3%) and, therefore, the food you eat can increase your energy expenditure (11).
• Increases satiety signals. Tracking macros, namely protein, can help to increase satiety signals and support weight loss, as protein impacts several appetite-regulating hormones, namely ghrelin, that increase feelings of fullness. Studies have demonstrated that individuals have decreased appetites with a higher protein intake, and research has shown that the most filling foods are those with a high protein and high fiber content (12).
• Promotes muscle maintenance. By counting macros, you can help to ensure you are consuming adequate protein to support muscle maintenance, and potentially muscle gain, while in a calorie deficit. Consuming adequate protein is imperative for maintaining lean muscle mass, a common negative side effect of weight loss programs, including calorie counting, when optimal protein intake targets are not tracked and met (6, 7).
• Supports athletic performance. While the ideal macronutrient ratio for performance depends on the type and intensity of the activity, counting macros is a more ideal approach for athletic performance than calorie counting alone, especially during a weight loss phase. Athletes require a different ratio of carbohydrates and fat for performance than the average person, and tracking macros can help to ensure you are meeting these needs (13).
• Supports hormone balance. Unlike counting calories, tracking macros allows individuals to prioritize the best macronutrient ratio to balance their hormones. This is particularly helpful for females, particularly athletes and those who exercise, as benefit from a higher ratio of fats than men to support their menstrual cycle (14, 15, 16).

Here is a list of the drawbacks of tracking macros:

• Requires more effort. The increased detail of counting macros requires slightly more effort than calorie counting.
• Does not ensure food quality. While tracking macros places far more emphasis on nutrient intake than calorie counting, namely macronutrient intake, it is still possible to accurately track macros while consuming a high level of ultra-processed foods.
• Doesn’t account for micronutrient intake. Like calorie counting, because macro counting does not emphasize food quality, it does not ensure that you will meet your required intake of vitamins and minerals.
• May promote unhealthy eating habits. Much like calorie counting, macro counting may lead to intense food restriction, which has been linked to eating disorders including anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, and binge eating disorder, which can all lead to major health problems.

Are macros or calories more important for building muscle?

Counting macros is more beneficial than counting calories for building muscle and body composition goals. Unlike calorie counting, macro counting emphasizes protein intake, which is essential for muscle development, particularly when paired with resistance training. The recommended protein intake for maximizing muscle growth is 0.7 to 1.0 grams per pound of body weight per day (17).

Moreover, macro counting is more beneficial for healthy weight gain than calorie counting alone as it emphasizes the consumption of adequate protein, carbohydrates, and fats in a calorie surplus.

So, is it better to count calories or macros for weight loss?

In the macros vs. calorie debate for weight loss, macros win. While both counting calories and counting macros can support a weight loss goal, counting macros has more benefits as, in addition to creating a calorie deficit, it can help to improve nutrient balance, increase satiety signals, improve body composition, support athletic performance, and support hormone balance.

Regardless of which method you choose, be sure to prioritize healthy food choices by consuming a good balance of lean protein sources, fiber-rich carbohydrates, and healthy fats in your diet.

Do you need to count macros or calories for weight loss?

While counting calories and macros are very helpful dietary approaches for weight loss goals, you don’t need to count calories or macros for weight loss to occur. There are many ways to lose weight without counting calories including prioritizing whole foods, following hand portion sizes, and volume eating.

The Bottom Line

Calorie counting is a method of food tracking that tracks how many calories a person consumes per day; while counting macros tracks how many grams of carbohydrates, protein, and fat a person consumes per day. Although both counting calories and macros can help with weight loss, counting macros has more benefits as it supports macronutrient balance, satiety signals, muscle maintenance, athletic performance, and hormone balance, and can increase metabolic rate through the thermic effect of food.