JITSAI DATA · UPDATED 25 SEP 2026
Every jiu-jitsu belt from white to red: the stripes, the minimum ages and times from the IBJJF rulebook, and what 3,316 adult grapplers told us about training at each belt.
White belt
Where everyone starts. Any age, and no minimum time before blue.
Of 1,931 white belts we asked:74% have trained under a year37% haven’t sparred yet
No minimum time at white belt
Blue belt
From age 16. At least two years here before purple.
Of 818 blue belts we asked:61% have trained 2–5 years63% compete
The IBJJF minimum clock starts here
Purple belt
From age 16. At least 18 months here before brown.
Of 321 purple belts we asked:53% have trained 5–10 years25% train 5+ times a week
Usual minimum: 2 years after blue belt
Brown belt
From age 18. At least a year here before black.
Of 129 brown belts we asked:54% have trained 10+ years74% train gi and no-gi
Usual minimum: 3.5 years after blue belt
Black belt
Usually from 19. Six degrees over 24 years; coral at 31.
Of 117 black belts we asked:85% have trained 10+ years42% train 5+ times a week
Usual minimum: 4.5 years after blue belt
Red and black belt
The 7th degree, and the first coral belt. After 31 years at black belt.
Our sign-up question stops at black belt
Usual minimum: 35.5 years after blue belt
Red and white belt
The 8th degree coral belt. Seven more years.
Our sign-up question stops at black belt
Usual minimum: 42.5 years after blue belt
Red belt
The 9th degree, ten years after red and white. The 10th went only to the five Gracie pioneers.
The highest rank in jiu-jitsu
Usual minimum: 52.5 years after blue belt
The standard BJJ belt ranking system is the IBJJF’s. For adults, meaning anyone 16 or over, the order is white, blue, purple, brown, black. Those five are the belts almost every grappler will ever wear. After black belt the system adds three more, for a lifetime in the sport.
| Belt | Minimum age | Time at the belt |
|---|---|---|
| White | Any age | No minimum |
| Blue | 16 | 2 years |
| Purple | 16 | 18 months |
| Brown | 18 | 1 year |
| Black | 19* | 31 years, in six degrees |
| Red and black | 49 | 7 years |
| Red and white | 56 | 10 years |
| Red | 66 | None (the top rank) |
*18 for athletes who won the Adult World Championship at brown belt, a change in the IBJJF’s June 2026 revision. Times count from the day each belt is registered with the IBJJF, and world champions and kids moving up at 16 get shorter routes. Your academy can promote on its own schedule; the IBJJF only recognises promotions that meet these minimums. Source: IBJJF General System of Graduation.
Each adult belt has its own guide: what it means, the IBJJF rules, how people earn it, and how members at that belt train. New to the sport? Start with what BJJ is.
The rulebook sets the floor: for most people, 4.5 years from blue belt to black. Real careers run far longer. We asked 3,316 adult grapplers how long they've been training, and the answers climb like a staircase.
Read across a row: 61% of blue belts have trained for 2 to 5 years.
| Under 1 yr | 1–2 yrs | 2–5 yrs | 5–10 yrs | 10+ yrs | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| White | 74% | 18% | 7% | 1% | fewer than 10 people |
| Blue | 3% | 21% | 61% | 11% | 3% |
| Purple | fewer than 10 people | fewer than 10 people | 30% | 53% | 15% |
| Brown | fewer than 10 people | fewer than 10 people | fewer than 10 people | 42% | 54% |
| Black | fewer than 10 people | fewer than 10 people | fewer than 10 people | 9% | 85% |
This is total time training, not time to promotion: people join JitsAI at every stage of a belt. A dot marks a group of fewer than 10 people, which we leave out.
Three or four sessions a week is the most common answer at every belt. The difference is at the top end: 42% of black belts train five or more times a week, three times the rate of white belts (14%).
At the other end, 37% of white belts train once or twice a week, against 13% of black belts.
Most grapplers at every belt train both. No-gi only is mostly a white belt thing: 20% of white belts train only no-gi, against 9% of black belts. Training both climbs from 61% at white belt to 78% at black.
Brown belt no-gi only is left out: fewer than 10 people.
New to no-gi? Read no-gi jiu-jitsu explained: how it differs from the gi, what to wear and the rules.
63% of white belts say they want to compete but haven't yet, and 24% already do. From blue belt up, 63% to 76% compete.
Compete means often or sometimes.
Ready to enter one? Find BJJ tournaments near you in the US or BJJ competitions in the UK, on a map with dates and links to register.
Members pick as many reasons as they like. Discipline holds steady at every belt, at 60% to 69%. Fitness and self-defence fade at the top: fitness drops from 50% of white belts to 28% of black belts, and self-defence from 50% to 31%.
Share of members at each belt who picked each reason.
| White | Blue | Purple | Brown | Black | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Discipline | 60% | 66% | 63% | 69% | 62% |
| Competition | 63% | 59% | 59% | 57% | 54% |
| Fitness | 50% | 51% | 48% | 51% | 28% |
| Self-defence | 50% | 45% | 38% | 40% | 31% |
| Fun and friends | 41% | 48% | 46% | 46% | 42% |
| Weight loss | 25% | 24% | 22% | 26% | 19% |
White, blue, purple and brown belts carry up to four stripes each, on the black bar near the tip. The IBJJF calls them degrees and leaves them to each professor, so some academies use them and some don't.
A black belt's bar is red, edged in white, and carries up to six degrees. From black belt on, the IBJJF sets the clock, counted in years of recognised activity at black belt:
Only a black belt with at least two IBJJF degrees can promote someone to black belt.
The red and black belt (7th degree) and the red and white belt (8th degree) are the coral belts. The IBJJF calls them masters' belts, and their bar is white, edged in silver. The red belt is the grand master's belt, for the 9th and 10th degrees, with a white bar edged in gold.
| Belt | Degree | Years at black | Min. age |
|---|---|---|---|
| Red and black | 7th | 31 | 49 |
| Red and white | 8th | 38 | 56 |
| Red | 9th | 48 | 66 |
The 10th degree was only ever given to the pioneers of Brazilian jiu-jitsu: Carlos, Oswaldo, George, Gastão and Helio Gracie.
Under 16 there are 13 ranks. After white, each colour comes in three versions: with a white line, plain, then with a black line. Each colour has an age range, and there's no minimum time at any kids' belt.
WhiteAny age
Grey4 to 15
Yellow7 to 15
Orange10 to 15
Green13 to 15
At 16, kids move onto the adult belts. A white belt can stay white. Grey, yellow and orange belts move to blue. A green belt moves to blue or purple, the professor's call.
UK academies use the same belt colours as everywhere else: white, blue, purple, brown and black for adults, and white, grey, yellow, orange and green for children. Your instructor awards them. The UK’s national governing body, the UKBJJA, doesn’t publish a separate belt syllabus that we could find (we checked its website on 29 September 2026). What it does set are standards for the people who teach.
Grading varies from club to club. Ask how stripes are given (on a schedule, at grading days or when the coach decides), and whether promotions are registered with the IBJJF. That matters if you plan to compete at IBJJF events such as the London opens: IBJJF entry needs active membership under your current belt and academy, and its minimum times count from the day each belt is registered.
Sources: UKBJJA About, club membership, rankings and home page; IBJJF General System of Graduation. All read 29 September 2026.
For adults (16 and over) the IBJJF belt order is white, blue, purple, brown and black. After black belt come the red and black belt (7th degree), the red and white belt (8th degree) and the red belt (9th and 10th degree). Kids aged 4 to 15 have 13 ranks: white, then grey, yellow, orange and green, each in three versions.
The jiu-jitsu belt system is a ladder of five adult belts: white, blue, purple, brown and black. White, blue, purple and brown belts can carry up to four stripes, and a black belt carries up to six degrees. The IBJJF sets minimum ages, and minimum times at blue (two years), purple (18 months) and brown (one year). The promotion itself is up to your professor. After decades at black belt come the coral belts and, at the top, the red belt.
For most people the IBJJF minimums add up to 4.5 years from blue belt: two years at blue, 18 months at purple and a year at brown (world champions at those belts can skip them). White belt has no minimum. Real careers run far longer: 85% of the black belts in our data have trained for 10 years or more.
The IBJJF sets no minimum time at white belt, only a minimum age of 16 for blue. In our data, 74% of white belts have trained for under a year, and 82% of blue belts have trained for between one and five years.
White, blue, purple and brown belts carry up to four stripes each. The IBJJF calls them degrees and leaves them to each professor, so some academies use them and some don’t. A black belt carries up to six degrees on its red bar.
Coral belts are the red and black belt (7th degree) and the red and white belt (8th degree). The first needs 31 years at black belt and a minimum age of 49. The second needs seven more years and a minimum age of 56.
The red belt. It marks the 9th degree, 48 years into black belt, with a minimum age of 66. The 10th degree was given only to the pioneers of Brazilian jiu-jitsu: Carlos, Oswaldo, George, Gastão and Helio Gracie.
Usually 19: brown belt starts at 18 and needs at least a year. Under the IBJJF’s June 2026 rules, athletes who won the Adult World Championship at brown belt can get black belt at 18.
In our data, 42% of black belts train five or more times a week, against 14% of white belts. Three or four times a week is the most common answer at every belt.
At 16, kids move onto the adult belts. A white belt can stay white. Grey, yellow and orange belts move to blue. A green belt moves to blue or purple, at the professor’s discretion.
The members. 3,316 adults (18 and over) who joined JitsAI between 16 October 2025 and 24 September 2026 and told us their belt when they signed up. Snapshot taken 25 Sep 2026. Everything is self-reported.
Who they are. Most found JitsAI through our ads in the US and UK, which speak to grapplers who want to improve and compete. That makes this a big sample but not a random one, and it leans towards competitors. 9% of our adult members are women; see BJJ for women for their numbers specifically.
What we publish. Totals only. The smallest belt group is 117 people, and any share that rests on fewer than 10 people is left out. Founder accounts are excluded, and percentages are rounded.
The rules. Belt order, ages, times and degrees come from the IBJJF General System of Graduation, June 2026 revision. Competitors are also split by weight class, gi and no-gi.
Free to use with a link to this page
JitsAI (2026). BJJ belts in order: how 3,316 grapplers train at each belt. https://www.jitsai.com/bjj-belts/