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Macronutrient & Ethanol Energy Estimate

Estimate energy from carbohydrate, protein, fat and ethanol, with reversible gram-to-kilocalorie calculations and optional beverage volume and ABV.

  • Formula & worked example
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Calculator inputs

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How to use this calculator

  1. Enter the known values in the units shown. Results update as you type.
  2. Where results are editable, change one to solve backwards. Lock a value to hold it fixed.
  3. Use the worked example to check the method. Reset restores the starting fields.

Private by default

Inputs and results stay in this browser tab. Bookify does not upload or store the values you enter.

Formula and method

Using general factors of 4, 4, 9 and 7 kcal per gram, 100 g carbohydrate, 25 g protein and 10 g fat provide 590 kcal before any ethanol contribution.

Energy (kcal) = 4 × carbohydrate g + 4 × protein g + 9 × fat g + 7 × ethanol g

Worked example

Enter these known values and leave the other values blank.

Carbohydrate
100 g
Protein
25 g
Fat
10 g
Calories from carbs
400 kcal
Calories from protein
100 kcal
Calories from fat
90 kcal
Total estimated energy including retained ethanol
590 kcal

Assumptions and limitations

  • The general 4/4/9/7 factors estimate metabolizable food energy. Fiber, sugar alcohols and some specific foods need different factors; this is not a nutrition-label certification calculation.
  • One food Calorie is one kilocalorie. Unit selectors can display energy in other units without changing the underlying estimate.
  • Beverage mode assumes ethanol density of 0.78924 g/mL and ABV between 0% and 100%. Other beverage nutrients must be entered separately.
  • The ethanol selector controls displayed inputs. Hiding them preserves the entered ethanol contribution in the total; set ethanol mass to zero before hiding to exclude it. The initial ethanol mass is zero.
  • This estimates food energy, not blood alcohol concentration, impairment or an individualized calorie target.

Common questions

Does ABV represent grams of ethanol?

No. ABV is a volume percentage. Beverage volume times the ABV fraction gives ethanol volume; the captured density converts that volume into an estimated mass.

References

Bookify bounds alcohol by volume at 100 percent while retaining the captured food-energy and ethanol-density equations. The US fluid ounce uses one 128th of the exact US liquid gallon, replacing the rounded captured reciprocal factor. Bookify replaces the captured rounded US gallon with the exact 3.785411784-liter definition.

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