How Many Calories in Baby Formula?

Updated 2/18/2022

Your newborn will grow more in the first six months than they will at any other time. For the first months, the nutrition in baby formula or breastmilk will fuel this growth in body and mind.

Starting between 4 and 6 months of age, most babies will begin to be introduced to solid foods, but your chosen European baby formula should still provide the bulk of their calorie intake at this age.

Between 6−8 months, even as your little one’s menu becomes more diverse, it will still be important to provide organic formula several times a day to ensure all nutritional needs are met.

Moving into the toddler stage, 9−12 months, the number of times your baby takes a bottle may go down, but the amount in each feeding may go up. Solid nutrition becomes the majority of the daily food intake but it is vital to help the older infant to find nutritional balance.

Through each age and European baby formula stage it is not uncommon for families to wonder if their little one is eating enough and exactly how many calories should your baby have?

How Many Calories Should a Baby Have?

The number of calories a baby needs varies greatly depending on their age and if solid food has been incorporated into your littles diet. Keep in mind that all babies go through developmental stages at different rates.

We will use the suggested average caloric intake for our purposes. From birth to twelve months, it is approximately 90-120 calories per kg in body weight.

Pounds to Kilograms

In the United States we often see weight in terms of pounds; however at the doctor’s office they will also record your baby’s weight in kilograms (kg).

The most common reason for this change is that drug/medication weights are packaged, sold, and calculated in kilograms. So, it only makes sense that your doctor weighs your little one in kg and not in lbs.

The Math

To make the conversion the math is simple, approximately one pound (lb.) is equal to 0.45 kilograms (kg).

To convert your baby’s weight from pounds (lbs.) to kilograms(kg) simply multiply the number of pounds your baby weighs by .45.

For example, a newborn baby weighing 7 lbs. x .45 = 3.15 kg.

To find the amount of calories your baby needs all you have to do is multiply your baby's body weight times the approximate calories needed per kg in body weight

For example, if your baby weighs 3.15 kg x 100 kcal/kg needs 315 kcal a day.

Calculating How Many Calories in Baby Formula

My Organic Company carries fifty-six baby formulas. Each is uniquely designed to meet the nutritional needs and developmental stages of your infant.

As you narrow down the perfect European baby formula for your little one, you may want to know exactly how many calories are in this formula.

We have made it easier for you by listing each brand and stage along with the calories found in 100 ml or 3.38 oz of baby formula.

HiPP Baby Formula

Holle Baby Formula

Kendamil Baby Formula

Loulouka Baby Formula

Lebenswert Baby Formula

Jovie of Baby Formula

Nannycare Baby Formula

Kabrita Baby Formula

How Many Scoops of Baby Formula?

3 oz of water and 3 scoops of European baby formula mixed together equals about 3.2 or 3.3 oz of liquid, close to 100 ml of formula.
One 3 oz bottle will equal somewhere between 65 and 70 kcal.

By these numbers we see that a newborn baby weighing 7 lbs will need around 6 bottles in a 24 hour period to meet the daily requirements of calories for the day.

As your baby grows, so will their appetites. Their increase in eating will help you gauge when more calories are needed.

With each of these stages, it is just a matter of recalculating the needed calories.

Here is an example:

Your 5 month old weighs 16 lbs. 16 lbs x .45 kg = 7.2 kg
A 7.2 kg baby should be getting 7.2kg x 100kcal/kg/day = 720 kcal/day
720 kcal per day / 69kcal per100ml = 10.4 x 100 ml = 1040 ml/day
1040 ml per day / 29.5ml per oz = 35.25 or 35 oz/day
35 oz per day / 6oz per bottle = about 6 bottles a day

Calories Don’t Always Count

Unless you have a medical reason to count the exact calories your little one gets in one day, then it is not really necessary.

Rather than counting calories or measuring out portion sizes, it is more important to let baby take the lead. Fortunately, once you get into a rhythm and become familiar with your infants' feeding habits, it will become second nature.

Not to worry, babies will let you know when they are ready to eat. Just follow the clues:

Your little one may become fidgety or restless

They may open their little mouth and turn their head towards you
They may start to suck their fingers, or sometimes even their whole fist
Crying is a good indicator, especially in newborns

Here we have included a general idea of the number of baby bottles a baby will take during the day. As your baby gets older and begins to get calories from other foods the average number of feeding per day will decrease.

All Calories Are Not Equal

My Organic Company knows that not every calorie is created equal. That is why we only offer 100% organic European baby formulas.

Held to a higher standard than U.S. baby formulas, European baby formulas will never have hidden corn syrup, glucose syrup solids, or sugar.

You can feel confident knowing that your baby is getting the nutrition they deserve, no calorie counting necessary.