By Logan McClure, Restore Suite. Updated October 2026. Sources listed at the bottom of the page.
How many calories does a sauna burn?
Sitting in a sauna burns roughly 1.5 to 2 times the energy you use sitting still. For a 160 lb adult that works out to about 43 calories in 20 minutes, 65 calories in 30 minutes and about 130 calories in an hour in a moderate traditional sauna. Infrared sessions land a little lower and very hot traditional sessions a little higher. The heat raises your heart rate, which can climb to about 120 to 150 beats per minute according to a 2018 review in Mayo Clinic Proceedings, but your muscles are not working, so the calorie cost stays modest.
Sauna calories burned by body weight and time
Moderate traditional sauna (160 to 175°F), standard MET method. Use the calculator above for infrared, hotter rooms or a personalized estimate.
| Body weight |
15 min |
20 min |
30 min |
45 min |
60 min |
| 130 lb (59 kg) |
26 |
35 |
53 |
79 |
105 |
| 160 lb (73 kg) |
32 |
43 |
65 |
97 |
130 |
| 190 lb (86 kg) |
38 |
51 |
77 |
115 |
154 |
| 220 lb (100 kg) |
45 |
59 |
89 |
134 |
178 |
Most people should not sit in a sauna for 45 to 60 minutes straight. The longer columns are there to compare with figures you may see elsewhere. For session length, see our sauna session calculator.
How this calculator works
Calories are calculated as MET x resting burn per minute x minutes in the heat.
-
MET (metabolic equivalent): how many times your resting energy use an activity takes. We use 1.5 for infrared, 1.7 for a moderate traditional sauna and 2.0 for a hot traditional sauna, with a likely range of 0.3 either side.
-
Resting burn: by default, the standard definition of 1 MET, 3.5 ml of oxygen per kg of body weight per minute, which is about 1 calorie per kg per hour. If you add height, age and sex, the calculator swaps in your predicted resting metabolic rate from the Harris-Benedict equation. That is the "corrected MET" method the Compendium of Physical Activities recommends, because the standard value overestimates resting burn for many adults (Kozey and colleagues, 2010).
-
Extra burn: the session total minus what you would burn sitting still for the same minutes, the true cost of the heat.
Why we are transparent about the MET values: no published study has measured sauna energy expenditure with a metabolic cart across sauna types. The Compendium of Physical Activities lists walking and resting, but not sauna sitting. Our MET values are a conservative estimate based on the heart rate response reported in the research, and the calculator shows a range for that reason. Treat the result as a realistic ballpark.
Worked example
A 180 lb, 40 year old man who is 5'10" sits in a hot traditional sauna (2.0 METs) for 20 minutes.
- Harris-Benedict resting metabolic rate: about 1,809 calories a day, or 1.26 calories a minute.
- Session: 2.0 x 1.26 x 20 = about 50 calories.
- Extra over sitting still: (2.0 minus 1.0) x 1.26 x 20 = about 25 calories.
- Without the personal details, the standard method gives about 57 calories. A 20 minute walk at about 3 mph would burn about 95.
Why some sites claim 300 to 600 calories per session
Many sauna sites and calculators repeat 300 to 600 calories per hour, or even per half hour, without showing a formula or a measured study. Two things usually drive the inflated numbers:
-
Counting sweat as burned calories. In a study of sedentary young adults, two 10 minute dry sauna sessions at about 194°F (90°C) produced an average body mass loss of about 0.37 kg for women and 0.50 kg for men (Podstawski and colleagues, 2014). That loss is almost entirely water. Converting it to calories as if it were fat (about 7,700 calories per kg of fat) gives big numbers that do not reflect energy burned.
-
Assuming the heart rate response equals exercise. Heart rate can rise to exercise-like levels, but the review authors note there is no active muscle work during sauna bathing. Calorie burn tracks oxygen use, and that stays far below a workout.
That is why this calculator lands well below those figures. If a tool does not show its formula, assume it is guessing.
Infrared vs traditional sauna calories
Infrared saunas run cooler air temperatures, so most people's heart rate rises less than in a hot traditional sauna, and the calorie difference is small: about 114 vs 152 calories in a full hour for a 160 lb adult using our values. Claims that infrared sessions burn several hundred calories more are not supported by measured data. Choose the type you enjoy and will use. Our sauna type quiz can help.
Does a sauna help with weight loss?
Not directly. The weight you lose in a session is water and comes back when you rehydrate. Fat loss comes from a sustained calorie deficit through diet and activity. Where a sauna can fit is the routine around it: many people use regular sessions for relaxation and recovery between workouts. Read our guide to saunas and weight loss and saunas for athletes for what the research does and does not show. Replace the fluid you sweat out, and use our sauna hydration calculator to estimate how much.
Frequently asked questions
How many calories does a sauna burn in 30 minutes?
About 45 to 105 calories for adults between 130 and 220 lb, depending on body weight and heat. That is roughly 15 to 50 calories more than sitting still for 30 minutes.
How many calories does a sauna burn in an hour?
About 90 to 210 calories for adults between 130 and 220 lb. Few people should stay in that long in one sitting; most sessions are 15 to 20 minutes, sometimes repeated with cool-down breaks.
Does sitting in a sauna burn fat?
Only a small amount of energy, and not in any way that targets fat. The quick drop on the scale is sweat.
Do infrared saunas burn more calories than traditional saunas?
No. Infrared rooms are cooler, so the calorie cost is similar or slightly lower than a hot traditional sauna.
Why do I weigh less after a sauna?
You lose water through sweat. In one study, two 10 minute sessions at about 194°F cost adults about 0.4 to 0.5 kg (roughly 1 lb) of body mass, nearly all of it water. It returns when you drink, which you should.
Is a sauna better than walking for burning calories?
No. A 20 minute walk at about 3 mph burns roughly twice the calories of 20 minutes in a sauna. They do different jobs: walking is exercise, the sauna is heat and relaxation. Our steps to calories calculator estimates your walking burn.
Written by Logan McClure, owner of Restore Suite. Calorie figures are estimates from published metabolic equations and are for general information, not medical or weight-loss advice. If you are pregnant, have a heart condition or low blood pressure, talk with your doctor before using a sauna. See our editorial standards.
