Jiu-Jitsu Belt Ranks Explained

The jiu-jitsu belt order

Brazilian jiu-jitsu uses a colored-belt system to mark a student's skill, knowledge and time on the mat. The adult ranks run in this order:

• White belt — every adult starts here. The focus is survival, escapes and learning the fundamentals.
• Blue belt — a broad, solid game and a real understanding of position and submission.
• Purple belt — advanced. Refined technique and the start of a personal style.
• Brown belt — sharpening and consistency, the last step before black.
• Black belt — mastery of the fundamentals and deep technical knowledge. Black belts then earn degrees (stripes) over the years, eventually reaching coral and red belts at the highest levels.

What the stripes mean

Between belts, instructors award up to four stripes as smaller milestones — a way to track progress within a rank. Four stripes at blue, for example, signals you're closing in on purple.

How long does each belt take?

There's no fixed timeline — it depends on how often you train, your athleticism and your consistency. As a rough guide, many students reach blue in 1–2 years and black in roughly 10 years of steady training. The honest answer most coaches give: stop counting time, just keep showing up.

Do kids use the same belts?

No — kids and teens have their own belt system (white through green, with intermediate colors) designed for their age group, before they transition to the adult ranks. See our kids jiu-jitsu program.

Belts in no-gi and 10th Planet

Yes — 10th Planet is a no-gi system, but it still uses the standard Brazilian jiu-jitsu belt ranks. You earn the same belts; you just train without the gi. Founder Eddie Bravo is a black belt under Jean-Jacques Machado.