Burpee Calorie Calculator

Estimate the calories your burpees burn from your body weight and either the number of reps or the minutes you train, using the standard MET formula for vigorous calisthenics.

Quick Facts

Method
MET formula: kcal/min = MET × 3.5 × weight(kg) ÷ 200
Burpees are vigorous calisthenics, MET 8.0 (Compendium of Physical Activities).

Your Results

Calculated
Total calories burned
-
Estimated kcal
Calories per minute
-
kcal/min at this pace
Calories per rep
-
kcal per burpee
Duration
-
Time under effort

Ready

Enter your body weight and reps or minutes, then calculate.

How the burpee calorie estimate works

Burpees are one of the most calorie-dense bodyweight exercises because a single rep chains a squat, a plank, a push-up, and a jump into one explosive movement, recruiting nearly every major muscle group. This calculator estimates the calories you burn using the MET (Metabolic Equivalent of Task) method, the same approach used by exercise scientists and fitness trackers.

The core formula is:

Calories per minute = MET × 3.5 × body weight (kg) ÷ 200

One MET is the energy cost of sitting quietly, defined as an oxygen uptake of 3.5 mL of oxygen per kilogram of body weight per minute. Multiplying by the MET value scales that resting rate up to your activity. Dividing by 200 converts the resulting oxygen consumption into kilocalories, because roughly 5 kcal are released per litre of oxygen consumed. Multiply calories per minute by the number of minutes you exercise to get your total burn.

Why burpees use a MET of 8.0

The Compendium of Physical Activities — the standard reference table maintained by exercise physiologists — lists "calisthenics (e.g. push-ups, sit-ups, pull-ups, vigorous effort)" at a MET of 8.0. Burpees fall squarely in this vigorous-calisthenics category, so 8.0 is the default here. If you perform them slowly and deliberately, drop the MET toward 6; if you do fast, plyometric burpees with a high jump, raise it toward 9–10. Intensity, not just count, drives the calorie total.

Reps, pace, and duration

MET-based burn depends on time under effort, not the raw rep count, so this tool converts reps into minutes using your pace. A common brisk pace is about 20 burpees per minute; a hard all-out effort might hit 25–30, while a controlled strength pace may be 10–15. If you prefer, switch the "Measure by" control to minutes and enter your workout duration directly.

Common reference points

  • A 70 kg (154 lb) person doing burpees at MET 8.0 burns about 9.8 kcal per minute.
  • At a pace of 20 reps/min, that works out to roughly 0.49 kcal per burpee.
  • 100 burpees at that pace (5 minutes) burns about 49 kcal.
  • A 90 kg (198 lb) person burns proportionally more — about 12.6 kcal/min, or ~63 kcal for the same 100 reps.
  • A 10-minute burpee session burns roughly 100–130 kcal for most adults, before counting the extra afterburn (EPOC) from the high-intensity effort.

Frequently Asked Questions

How many calories does one burpee burn?
Most people burn roughly 0.4 to 0.7 kcal per burpee. The exact figure scales with body weight and pace: a 70 kg (154 lb) person at a brisk 20 reps/min burns about 0.49 kcal per rep, while a 90 kg (198 lb) person at the same pace burns about 0.63 kcal per rep. Slower reps burn slightly more per rep but fewer per minute.
What MET value should I use for burpees?
Use 8.0 for a typical vigorous set — this is the Compendium of Physical Activities value for vigorous calisthenics. Lower it toward 6 for a slow, controlled tempo, or raise it toward 9–10 for fast, explosive burpees with a full jump. The MET value directly scales your calorie total.
Does the calorie total include the afterburn (EPOC)?
No. The MET formula estimates the energy burned during the exercise itself. High-intensity work like burpees also raises your metabolism for hours afterward (excess post-exercise oxygen consumption, or EPOC), which can add roughly 6–15% on top of the session burn. This calculator gives the conservative during-exercise figure.
Why does weight matter so much?
Calorie burn in the MET model is directly proportional to body mass, because heavier bodies require more oxygen and energy to move. Doubling body weight roughly doubles the calories burned for the same workout, which is why entering your real weight matters more than any other input.

Related calculators