What is my total daily MME?
Enter each opioid, the strength of one dose, and the doses per day to add up the total daily morphine milligram equivalents (MME) with the CDC 2022 conversion factors. It does not convert one opioid to another. For information only. This is not medical advice or a diagnosis. Do not use it to make treatment decisions without a clinician. No licensed clinician has reviewed this page.
- Total daily MME
- 30
The total is 30 morphine milligram equivalents (MME) per day.
- MME per opioid
- Oxycodone: 30 MME/day
Total daily MME: 30. The total is 30 morphine milligram equivalents (MME) per day.
This calculator gives general information only. It is not medical advice and does not replace a doctor or other health care provider. Talk with a professional about your results. Terms of use
How to calculate
Adds up the total daily morphine milligram equivalents (MME) of one or more opioids with the CDC 2022 conversion factors. It does not convert one opioid to another.
Example with the default inputs (Opioids taken [Opioid Oxycodone (mg), Strength per dose 10, Doses per day 2]): The total is 30 morphine milligram equivalents (MME) per day.
Method: MME per day = Σ (strength per dose × doses per day × CDC conversion factor). For a fentanyl patch: patch mcg/hr × patches × 2.4.
- Conversion factors from the CDC Clinical Practice Guideline for Prescribing Opioids for Pain, 2022.
- MME is for adding up opioid exposure. It is not a way to convert one opioid to another.
- Buprenorphine is not included, as in the CDC table. The total is rounded to 1 decimal, halves up.
Worked examples
Each example is checked against the calculator on every build.
- Opioids taken Oxycodone (mg) 10 2 gives Total daily MME 30, MME per opioid Oxycodone: 30 MME/day.Source: CDC 2022 guideline, Table footnote: oxycodone 10 mg twice a day is 20 mg a day, equivalent to 30 MME
- Opioids taken Hydrocodone (mg) 5 4 gives Total daily MME 20.Source: CDC 2022 guideline, Table footnote: hydrocodone 5 mg four times a day is 20 mg, equivalent to 20 MME
- Opioids taken Fentanyl patch (mcg/hr) 25 1; Oxycodone (mg) 5 3 gives Total daily MME 82.5, MME per opioid Fentanyl patch: 60 MME/day; Oxycodone: 22.5 MME/day.Source: CDC 2022 factors: 25 mcg/hr × 2.4 = 60
- Opioids taken Codeine (mg) 30 4; Tramadol (mg) 50 3; Methadone (mg) 5 2 gives Total daily MME 95.Source: CDC 2022 factors: 30 × 4 × 0.15 = 18
Medical disclaimer
This calculator is for information and education only. It is not medical advice, and its result is not a diagnosis. Do not use it to start, stop, or change a treatment without a clinician who knows your health history. No licensed clinician has reviewed this page. This site's editors checked the formulas and worked examples against published sources. If you think you have a medical emergency, call your local emergency number.
When this does not apply. The CDC 2022 guideline and its conversion factors are for adult outpatients (18 or older) with pain. They do not apply to pain from sickle cell disease or cancer, to palliative or end-of-life care, or to treatment of opioid use disorder. MME is not for switching from one opioid to another.
How MME is worked out
For each opioid row: MME per day = strength of one dose × doses per day × conversion factor. The total is the sum of the rows, rounded to 1 decimal place, halves up, read from the decimal value (within 1e-9, relative, of a half counts as the half). Each row in the breakdown is rounded the same way; the total adds the unrounded rows.
Conversion factors from the CDC 2022 guideline (doses in mg, except the fentanyl patch in mcg/hr):
| Opioid | Factor |
|---|---|
| Codeine | 0.15 |
| Fentanyl patch (mcg/hr) | 2.4 |
| Hydrocodone | 1.0 |
| Hydromorphone | 5.0 |
| Methadone | 4.7 |
| Morphine | 1.0 |
| Oxycodone | 1.5 |
| Oxymorphone | 3.0 |
| Tapentadol | 0.4 |
| Tramadol | 0.2 |
For a fentanyl patch, type the patch rate in mcg/hr as the strength and the number of patches worn at once as the doses per day. Buprenorphine is not in the CDC table and is not offered.
The CDC guideline gives cautions with the table: the factors are estimates that cannot account for differences between people; MME is not for converting one opioid to another; methadone and transdermal fentanyl need particular care; and the factors are not for dosing decisions in opioid use disorder treatment.
Inputs the calculator accepts
1 to 10 rows; strength 0 to 10,000; doses per day 0 to 48.
Worked examples by hand
Oxycodone 10 mg twice a day. 10 × 2 × 1.5 = 30 MME/day (the CDC table's own example).
Hydrocodone 5 mg four times a day. 5 × 4 × 1.0 = 20 MME/day (the CDC table's own example).
A 25 mcg/hr fentanyl patch and oxycodone 5 mg three times a day. 25 × 1 × 2.4 = 60; 5 × 3 × 1.5 = 22.5; total 82.5 MME/day.
Codeine 30 mg four times a day, tramadol 50 mg three times a day, methadone 5 mg twice a day. 30 × 4 × 0.15 = 18; 50 × 3 × 0.2 = 30; 5 × 2 × 4.7 = 47; total 95 MME/day.
Other questions people ask
What is MME?
Morphine milligram equivalents (MME) express the strength of different opioids on one scale, the milligrams of oral morphine with a similar effect. Adding the MME of every opioid a person takes gives one number for total daily opioid exposure.
How is MME calculated?
For each opioid, multiply the strength of one dose by the doses per day and by the CDC conversion factor, then add the results. Oxycodone 10 mg twice a day is 20 mg × 1.5 = 30 MME per day.
Can I use MME to switch from one opioid to another?
No. The CDC guideline says not to use MME to set the dose of a new opioid, because people do not tolerate a new opioid fully (incomplete cross-tolerance) and the new drug is usually started at a much lower dose. Switching is a decision for the prescriber.
Why does MME matter?
The 2022 CDC guideline notes that the risk of overdose rises with the total daily MME. The guideline uses MME to inform care, not as a hard limit, and it warns against applying the numbers rigidly to any one patient.
How is a fentanyl patch counted?
Patches are dosed in micrograms per hour, not milligrams per day. The CDC factor is 2.4, so a 25 mcg/hr patch is 25 × 2.4 = 60 MME per day. Type the patch strength and the number of patches worn at once.