Burpees are one of the most demanding bodyweight exercises you can do — a squat, a plank, a push-up, a jump, and another squat all squeezed into one fluid rep. Because they recruit your legs, core, chest, arms, and shoulders at once, they burn calories quickly. This Burpees MET Calculator estimates how many calories you burn during a burpee session using standard MET (metabolic equivalent of task) values from exercise research, combined with your body weight and workout duration.
Enter your weight, choose how long your session lasted, and set an intensity level that matches your pace — from a light warm-up version to a full-speed max-effort set. You can even add a custom MET value if you are following a specific fitness tracker or research source. The result includes calories per minute, per hour, and per 100 reps, plus a simple step-by-step breakdown of the calculation, so you can see exactly how the estimate is built.
Estimate the calories you burn during a burpee session using MET intensity values and your body weight.
⚙️ Your Details
⏱️ Session Length
💪 Intensity & MET
Quick Start
Using the calculator takes under a minute. Start by entering your body weight in kilograms or pounds, then set the duration of your burpee session in minutes. Choose an intensity level that honestly matches the way you performed the exercise: a warm-up pace with no jumping, a steady full-range burpee, or an all-out interval pace. If you know a specific MET value from a study, fitness test, or heart-rate monitor, enter it in the custom MET field and it will override the dropdown. Finally, add your average reps per minute if you want per-rep and per-100-rep calorie numbers.
- Enter your weight and select your preferred unit.
- Enter the total session time in minutes, including only actual work time if you are using interval training.
- Pick an intensity level or type a custom MET value.
- Optionally enter reps per minute for extra breakdowns.
- Press Calculate Calories to see total, per-minute, per-hour, and per-100-rep estimates.
The MET Formula Behind the Calculator
MET stands for metabolic equivalent of task. One MET is the energy your body uses at rest, roughly 3.5 millilitres of oxygen per kilogram of body weight per minute. When you do burpees, your body works at several times that resting rate. The MET value represents that multiplier.
The standard calorie formula used by researchers is:
Calories per minute = MET × 3.5 × body weight in kg ÷ 200
To get the total, multiply that by the number of minutes you exercised. The 200 is a conversion constant derived from the energy equivalent of oxygen, and 3.5 is the resting oxygen consumption in millilitres per kilogram per minute.
The table below shows reasonable MET ranges for burpee-style bodyweight training:
| Pace / Style | Approx. MET | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Light | 6.0 | Step-back burpees, no jump, slower tempo, warm-up sets |
| Moderate | 8.0 | Full burpees with a small hop, steady continuous reps |
| Max | 10.0 | Fast competitive burpees, explosive jump, short intense sets |
These figures sit within the range the Compendium of Physical Activities assigns to vigorous calisthenics and conditioning exercise. For more background, see the metabolic equivalent of task article on Wikipedia.
Worked Examples
80 kg person, 12 min moderate burpees (MET 8)
Per minute = 8 × 3.5 × 80 ÷ 200 = 11.2 kcal/min.
Total = 11.2 × 12 = 134.4 kcal.
At 10 reps per minute, each rep burns about 1.12 kcal; 100 reps would burn about 112 kcal.
65 kg person, 10 min max-effort burpees (MET 10)
Per minute = 10 × 3.5 × 65 ÷ 200 = 11.375 kcal/min.
Total = 11.375 × 10 = 113.8 kcal. A short but intense session still adds up quickly.
90 kg person, 6 min light no-jump burpees (MET 6)
Per minute = 6 × 3.5 × 90 ÷ 200 = 9.45 kcal/min.
Total = 9.45 × 6 = 56.7 kcal. A gentle warm-up burns less than a full-speed set, but is still a useful active start.
Accuracy Notes and Practical Limitations
MET calculations are averages, not precise measurements. Your actual burn depends on how smoothly you move, your muscle mass, your fitness level, how much rest you take between reps, and even room temperature. Use the number as a planning tool rather than a medical measurement.
- Work time vs. rest time: The calculator assumes continuous effort throughout the minutes you enter. For HIIT with rests, either enter only work minutes or lower the MET value.
- Form matters: Deep squats, full push-ups, and high jumps require more energy than shallow modified versions. A no-jump burpee may be closer to MET 6 than MET 8.
- Gross vs. net calories: The result is total calories burned during the session, including the calories your body would have burned anyway at rest.
- Body composition: Heavier people generally burn more calories performing the same movement because more mass is moved, but muscle mass and efficiency shift the exact number.
To compare burpees with other bodyweight movements over a 10-minute window, try the bodyweight calories per 10 minutes calculator.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many calories does one burpee burn?
It depends on your weight and pace. A 70 kg person doing moderate burpees at 10 reps per minute burns about 0.98 kcal per rep. A 90 kg person doing the same pace would burn about 1.26 kcal per rep. The per-100-reps box in the calculator gives this directly.
Should I count rest periods in the duration?
No, or only partly. If you rest 15 seconds between every 45 seconds of work, consider entering 45 seconds as 0.75 minutes for each work block, or reduce your MET value by 20–30 percent to average in the recovery periods.
Is a burpee MET value the same for everyone?
No. MET values describe the average oxygen cost of an activity for the population. Individual differences can be 10–20 percent or more. This calculator is an estimate, not a lab measurement.