Want to know how many calories your ride burned? The LebelBicycles cycling calorie calculator works it out for you. Enter your weight, your speed or effort, and how far / how long you rode. Pick your bike type, and you get the amount of calories burned; kilojoules and fat used.
Cycling Calorie Calculator
See how many calories you burn on the bike — instantly.
Using your speed above to work out how long that takes.
For road / outdoor riding
about a bagel
This is an estimate based on the MET method and the Compendium of Physical Activities. Actual burn varies with fitness, terrain, wind, and bike type.
How Many Calories Does Cycling Burn?
Cycling burns calories by converting stored body energy into the muscular work of pedaling. The amount depends on how long, how far, and how fast you ride, and on your weight. A typical 155-pound (70-kilogram) adult burns about 290 to 590 calories in an hour of steady road cycling, according to the Compendium of Physical Activities.
Speed sets the intensity that separates a gentle cruise from a hard effort. Mountain biking, a stationary bike, and an e-bike each burn at their own rate. Body weight scales every estimate, and burned calories are not the same as lost fat. The calculator above applies these factors to your ride.
How Many Calories Does Cycling Burn in 30 Minutes?
Cycling burns roughly 150 to 370 calories in 30 minutes for a 155-pound (70-kilogram) rider. A relaxed ride under 10 miles per hour burns about 150 calories. A moderate ride at 12 to 14 miles per hour burns about 290. A vigorous ride at 14 to 16 miles per hour burns about 370.
The Compendium of Physical Activities measures these efforts in METs, where one MET equals the energy your body uses at rest. Calories rise directly with the MET value, so a harder ride burns more.
How Many Calories Does Cycling Burn in an Hour?
Cycling burns roughly 290 to 740 calories in one hour for a 155-pound (70-kilogram) rider. Leisurely riding burns about 290 calories. A moderate hour at 12 to 14 miles per hour burns about 590. A vigorous hour at 14 to 16 miles per hour burns about 735, and an hour above 16 miles per hour can exceed 870.
An hour produces double the total of a 30-minute ride at the same effort, because calories rise with time.
How Many Calories Does Cycling Burn Per Mile?
Cycling burns roughly 40 to 55 calories per mile for a 155-pound (70-kilogram) rider at a moderate pace. A flat mile at 12 to 14 miles per hour burns about 50 calories, so a 10-mile ride burns about 500 and a 20-mile ride about 1,000.
Calories per mile stay fairly steady across speeds, because riding faster covers each mile in less time but at a higher intensity, and the two effects largely cancel. The bike pace and speed calculator turns a distance and ride time into your average speed.
How Does Riding Speed Change Cycling Calories?
Riding speed changes cycling calories by raising the intensity, measured as a MET value. A faster ride carries a higher MET, which burns more per minute. The Compendium of Physical Activities assigns a MET to each band of outdoor cycling speed.
| Riding intensity | Speed | MET value |
|---|---|---|
| Leisure | Under 10 mph (16 km/h) | 4.0 |
| Light | 10–12 mph (16–19 km/h) | 6.8 |
| Moderate | 12–14 mph (19–22 km/h) | 8.0 |
| Vigorous | 14–16 mph (22–26 km/h) | 10.0 |
| Fast | 16–19 mph (26–31 km/h) | 12.0 |
| Racing | Over 20 mph (32 km/h) | 15.8 |
Calories follow one equation: calories = MET × 3.5 × weight in kilograms ÷ 200 × minutes. A 70-kilogram rider at a MET of 8.0 for 30 minutes burns 294 calories. The speed you enter sets the MET, and the tool interpolates between bands.
How Many Calories Do Other Types of Cycling Burn?
The burn also depends on the kind of cycling. Open each type below:
How many calories does mountain biking burn?
Mountain biking burns about 625 calories per hour for a 155-pound (70-kilogram) rider. The Compendium of Physical Activities assigns general mountain biking a MET of 8.5, between moderate and vigorous road cycling, and also applies it to BMX. The burn runs higher than average speed suggests, because climbing, loose terrain, and constant body movement raise the effort.
How many calories does a stationary bike burn?
A stationary bike burns roughly 250 to 500 calories in 30 minutes for a 155-pound (70-kilogram) rider. The Compendium of Physical Activities sets indoor intensity by power output, not speed.
- Light, 50 watts. About 90 calories in 30 minutes at a MET of 3.5.
- Moderate, 100 watts. About 250 calories in 30 minutes at a MET of 6.8.
- Vigorous, 150 watts. About 320 calories in 30 minutes at a MET of 8.8.
- High, 200 watts. About 400 calories in 30 minutes at a MET of 11.0.
A spin or RPM class sits near the vigorous end at a MET of about 8.5. Resistance, not console speed, drives the burn.
How many calories does an e-bike burn?
An e-bike burns roughly 370 calories per hour for a 155-pound (70-kilogram) rider on light pedal assist. Assistance reduces the muscular work, so an e-bike burns fewer calories than the same ride on a standard bike. The Compendium of Physical Activities has no dedicated value for electric bikes, so the figure is an estimate around a MET of 4.0 to 6.0. E-bike commuters often reach a moderate intensity.
How Does Body Weight Affect Cycling Calories?
Body weight raises cycling calories in direct proportion, because weight sits directly in the MET equation. Doubling it doubles the calories. In a 30-minute moderate ride, a 130-pound (59-kilogram) rider burns about 250 calories, a 155-pound (70-kilogram) rider burns about 294, and a 200-pound (91-kilogram) rider burns about 380. Entering your own weight is the most important step.
What Is the Difference Between Calories Burned and Fat Burned Cycling?
Calories burned and fat burned are different measures, because not all the calories you burn come from stored fat. Burning one pound of body fat requires a deficit of about 3,500 calories, and burning one kilogram requires about 7,700 calories. The calories shown for a ride are total energy expenditure, drawn from both fat and carbohydrate, so a 590-calorie hour of moderate cycling equals roughly 0.17 pounds (76 grams) of fat. Actual fat loss also depends on diet.
How Do You Use the Cycling Calorie Calculator?
To use the cycling calorie calculator, choose your riding type, set your intensity or speed, enter your ride time or distance, and add your weight. Select road, mountain, stationary, or e-bike for the activity. Enter a speed for the tool to interpolate the matching MET, or pick a band directly. It then returns calories, kilojoules, fat burned, and the MET it used.
