Swimming Calories Calculator: Calories Burned by Stroke and Weight
Enter your weight, swim time and stroke to estimate the calories you burned in the pool.
- Nothing you type is stored
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Calories burned
260Calories burned
- Effort (MET)
- 8 MET
- Extra over resting
- 228 Calories burned
- Per hour
- 520 Calories burned
An estimate for general information, not medical advice. Real burn varies with fitness, terrain and body size.
Compendium of Physical Activities 2024, code 18290: 8 MET.
By duration
| Minutes | Calories |
|---|---|
| 15 | 130 |
| 30 | 260 |
| 45 | 390 |
| 60 | 520 |
| 90 | 780 |
How to use
- Enter your body weight in kg.
- Enter how many minutes you swam.
- Pick your stroke and effort and read the calories.
Good to know
Calories = MET × body weight in kg × hours. MET values come from the 2024 Adult Compendium of Physical Activities (Herrmann et al.), the standard research list of activity costs. "Extra over resting" subtracts the 1 MET you would burn sitting still.
Effort matters more than the stroke name: recreational breaststroke is 5.3 MET while training-pace breaststroke is 10.3. Freestyle at a medium pace (about 45 m a minute) is 8 MET. A 60 kg swimmer doing butterfly for 30 minutes burns about 414 kcal.
Rest breaks at the wall lower the real number, so count only time actually swimming. Pool temperature, technique and body fat also change how hard swimming is.
Questions
How many calories does 30 minutes of swimming burn?
For a 65 kg adult, about 190 kcal of easy freestyle and about 260 kcal at a medium pace.
Which stroke burns the most calories?
Butterfly (13.8 MET), then fast freestyle and training-pace breaststroke. Easy backstroke burns the least.
Is swimming good for weight loss?
It is a full-body, low-impact workout and good for joints. Some people feel hungrier after swimming, so watch portion sizes.
Should I include rest time?
No. Enter only the minutes you were actually swimming for a fair estimate.
Is my data saved?
No. Everything is calculated on your device.