The BJJ Belt System: Ranks, Ages, and Minimum Periods
The main BJJ belt sequence is white, blue, purple, brown, and black. IBJJF uses this sequence from age sixteen; younger athletes have a separate set of colored belts.IBJJF Graduation System [1]
Your instructor decides when to promote you. IBJJF sets age and time requirements for the ranks it recognizes, so a minimum period is an eligibility condition rather than a promotion date.IBJJF Graduation System [1]
Belts, ages, and standard minimum periods
This table follows the June 2026 IBJJF graduation document. Ages use the calendar year: current year minus birth year. Time in rank starts with completed IBJJF registration at that belt.IBJJF Graduation System [1]
The time column gives the standard adult requirements from age eighteen. The youth and title exceptions below can reduce them; sixteen- and seventeen-year-olds have no minimum at blue and cannot receive brown until the adult division.IBJJF Graduation System [1]
Exceptions to the standard periods
At blue: the minimum is one year for an athlete previously registered at grey, yellow, or orange. There is no minimum with previous green-belt registration, juvenile blue-belt registration, or an Adult World title at blue.IBJJF Graduation System [1]
At purple: previous juvenile blue registration reduces the minimum to one year. There is no minimum for an athlete previously registered at both orange or green and juvenile blue, previously registered at juvenile purple, or holding an Adult World title at purple.IBJJF Graduation System [1]
At brown: an Adult World title at brown removes the one-year minimum. It also permits black-belt recognition at eighteen under the 2026 age exception.IBJJF Graduation System [1]
For the difference between minimums and actual promotion time, read How long does a BJJ black belt take?.
Stripes and the ranks after black belt
IBJJF divides white through brown into four degrees, commonly shown as stripes. Adoption through brown is at the instructor’s discretion.IBJJF Graduation System [1]
Black belt has six degrees before the belt color changes: red-and-black marks seventh degree, red-and-white eighth, and red ninth. These later degrees require documented years of activity under the federation’s rules.IBJJF Graduation System [1]
Youth belts for ages four to fifteen
The youth sequence starts with white, then uses grey, yellow, orange, and green groups. Each color group has a white-striped, solid-color, and black-striped version. There is no minimum stay at each youth belt.IBJJF Graduation System [1]
Reading a person’s rank
For a named practitioner, look for the instructor, promotion date, and any separately issued certificate. Those details explain what a belt claim refers to.
Explore teacher connections in the lineage map and sourced biographies in the persons directory.
Frequently asked questions
What are the BJJ belts in order?
White, blue, purple, brown, and black are the main ranks from age sixteen. The senior ranks are red-and-black, red-and-white, and red.IBJJF Graduation System [1]
Does every academy use four stripes?
No. IBJJF divides white through brown into four degrees but leaves their adoption to the instructor.IBJJF Graduation System [1]
Can an eighteen-year-old hold an IBJJF-recognized black belt?
Yes, under the June 2026 exception for an athlete who has won the Adult World Championship at brown belt.IBJJF Graduation System [1]
Do the minimum periods guarantee promotion?
No. The instructor decides when to promote. IBJJF minimums determine whether the federation will recognize the graduation.IBJJF Graduation System [1]
Sources
- [1]IBJJF Graduation System — International Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Federation. Linked 20260611 Graduation System PDF; Articles 1-4 (belts, ages, periods, and degrees). Accessed .
Version note: The landing page links 20260611_IBJJF_Graduacao_EN.pdf; the document footer displays “VERSION 3.1 2025”.
- Relevant section: Article 1.2.
- Relevant section: Articles 1.1 and 2.1.1.
- Relevant section: Articles 3.1.1-3.1.3 and 3.2.1.
- Relevant section: Articles 3.2.2-3.2.3.
- Relevant section: Articles 4.1.2-4.1.5.
- Relevant section: Articles 2.1.2 and 2.2.1.