Carbohydrate Calculator: Daily Carbs in Grams
Turn a daily calorie target into grams of carbohydrate, with the 45 to 65 % AMDR range from the US Dietary Reference Intakes in grams and presets for low-carb, balanced and low-fat diets. Nothing is sent anywhere.
Enter a calorie target, or your details, to see your macros.
About the Carbohydrate Calculator
The Carbohydrate Calculator turns your daily calorie target into grams of carbohydrate. It shows the grams for the diet split you choose and the Acceptable Macronutrient Distribution Range (AMDR) for carbohydrate, 45 to 65 percent of calories, expressed in grams, so you can see the range the US Dietary Reference Intakes consider healthy for adults. Type your calorie target, or estimate it from your age, sex, height, weight, activity level and goal, and pick a balanced, low-fat, low-carb, high-protein or custom split.
Nothing is uploaded; the calculation runs in your browser and never leaves your device.
This is an estimate, not medical advice. If you have diabetes or take medicine that lowers blood sugar, change your carbohydrate intake only with your care team, because it affects your doses.
How the grams are worked out
Carbohydrate provides about 4 kcal per gram, so:
At 2,000 kcal a day, the AMDR of 45 to 65 percent is 900 to 1,300 kcal, or 225 to 325 g. The balanced preset, 50 percent, gives 250 g.
Carbohydrate guidelines
AMDR
The Institute of Medicine set the AMDR for adults at 45 to 65 percent of energy from carbohydrate. Below this range, diets tend to be high in fat; above it, they tend to be low in fat and protein.
Minimum
The RDA for carbohydrate is 130 g a day for adults, based on the average amount of glucose the brain uses. Most diets provide well over this.
Low-carb diets
The low-carb preset in this calculator uses 25 percent of calories from carbohydrate, below the AMDR. Diets of this kind are used for weight loss and blood sugar control, but they are a departure from the general guideline and are best followed with advice.
Quality matters too
The number of grams is only part of the picture. The Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommend getting most carbohydrate from whole grains, vegetables, fruit and pulses, and limiting added sugars to less than 10 percent of calories, which is under 50 g at 2,000 kcal. Fibre, a type of carbohydrate, has its own adequate intake of 14 g per 1,000 kcal.
Related tools
The full Macro Calculator shows protein and fat alongside carbohydrate, the Calorie Calculator estimates your daily target, and the BMI Calculator shows where your weight sits.
Sources
- Institute of Medicine. Dietary Reference Intakes for Energy, Carbohydrate, Fiber, Fat, Fatty Acids, Cholesterol, Protein, and Amino Acids. National Academies Press, 2005 (AMDR, carbohydrate RDA, fibre adequate intake).
- U.S. Department of Agriculture and U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Dietary Guidelines for Americans, 2020–2025 (added sugars).
Open-source credits
The calculations are implemented in-house in TypeScript, with no third-party libraries. They follow the AMDR of the Institute of Medicine Dietary Reference Intakes and the Atwater factor of 4 kcal per gram of carbohydrate.