Calories burned shoveling snow

Snow clearing calories for the entry selected

Working out the half hour example

Calories equals MET times body weight in kilograms times hours. The Compendium definition of MET, checked October 12, 2026, is 1 MET = 1 kcal/kg/hr.

The pound conversion is division by 2.2046. For time in hours, minutes are divided by 60. The example starts with 175 pounds, or 79.38 kilograms, and 30 minutes, or 0.5 hours. Multiplying 5.3 times 79.38 times 0.5 gives about 210 calories.

For a separate calculation, see active and total calorie estimates.

Six snow descriptions in the lawn and garden list

Of the 54 entries on the Compendium lawn and garden page, checked October 12, 2026, these six name snow.

The page explains the markings with this note. "Specific Activity Codes in red are estimated MET values. All other values are supported with published literature."

Riding snow blower, code 08180, and Raking roof with snow rake, code 08170, have estimated MET values. The other four snow codes are not marked as estimated.

Hand shoveling across minutes and body weights

The cells below are calorie estimates rounded from each full calculation.

The hand shoveling tables span 75 calories for 08195 at 125 lb and 15 minutes to 765 for 08202 at 225 lb and 60 minutes. At 175 lb, the three entries give 210, 238 and 298 calories for 30 minutes, then 421, 476 and 595 for 60 minutes.

At 150 lb, the same entry order gives 180, 204 and 255 for 30 minutes and 361, 408 and 510 for 60 minutes. Rounding each product independently means doubling the time does not always double the displayed number. Code 08195 at 125 lb gives 150 for 30 minutes and 301 for 60 minutes.

For any one entry, minutes and body weight multiply the result, so increasing either increases the unrounded estimate in step.

Snow blowers and a roof rake alongside shoveling

Both the riding snow blower, code 08180, and the roof rake, code 08170, use estimated MET values.

For 175 lb and 30 minutes, the walk-behind snow blower gives 99 calories, the riding snow blower 119 and the roof rake 159. The hand shoveling entries give 210, 238 and 298 for that weight and time. For 60 minutes, the snow blower and rake entries give 198, 238 and 318, beside 421, 476 and 595 by hand.

The walking snow blower entry at 2.5 MET is the lowest of the six, while vigorous hand shoveling at 7.5 MET is the highest. Before rounding, 7.5 divided by 2.5 gives three times the estimate for equal minutes and body weight. The riding snow blower's estimated 3.0 MET is above the walk-behind entry's 2.5 MET.

These entries describe energy per unit of time. They give no amount of snow cleared in that time.

Hand shoveling, walking and mowing in METs

The two walking rows come from the Compendium walking list, checked October 12, 2026. The shoveling and mowing rows come from its lawn and garden list.

Moderate hand shoveling at 5.3 MET is above walking at 3.8 and 4.8 MET and just below moderate mowing while walking at 5.5 MET. Hand shoveling at 6.0 and 7.5 MET is above all three. This comparison contains MET values only.

Walking calculations are on calories burned for a mile of walking. A step count can be entered in the step count calorie calculator.

Snow conditions the descriptions do not specify

Snow depth, wet or dry snow, shovel size and temperature are absent from these descriptions, so there are no calculator inputs for them. Code 08200 contains no effort word. The moderate and vigorous hand shoveling entries do not define those terms beyond the words themselves.

The Compendium's stated scope

On its corrected METs page, checked October 12, 2026, the Compendium states the following.

"The Compendium was not developed to determine the precise energy cost of activities within an individual."

"However, the Compendium is frequently used outside of its original scope."

"It does not correct the MET levels for age, body mass, and sex."

Calculations for a trail, weights or a day

See calorie estimates for hiking, calories for lifting weights or the daily energy expenditure calculation. For skiing or snowboarding on winter days, there are ski and snowboard calories by effort and body weight.

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Questions about snow clearing numbers

How many calories does shoveling snow burn?

For 175 pounds and 30 minutes, the formula gives about 210 calories with moderate effort code 08195, 238 with code 08200, Shoveling snow, by hand (Taylor Code 610), and 298 with vigorous effort code 08202.

Does the calculator include wet or heavy snow?

The six descriptions do not state wet or dry snow, snow depth or the weight of snow. The calculator has no input for those details.

Which snow clearing entries have estimated MET values?

The Compendium marks code 08180, Riding snow blower, and code 08170, Raking roof with snow rake, as estimated MET values. The other four snow entries are not marked as estimated.

Source pages checked for snow clearing

• Lawn and garden activity entries, checked October 12, 2026.
• Walking activity entries, checked October 12, 2026.
• Unit conversions and the MET definition, checked October 12, 2026.
• Corrected METs and the scope of the Compendium, checked October 12, 2026.