The open BJJ knowledge base
Learn BrazilianJiu-Jitsuwithout the paywall
205+ free technique breakdowns, belt-by-belt roadmaps, IBJJF rule explainers, gyms, and events. Start at white belt or jump straight to what you drilled this week.
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- Original, sourced guides
- Techniques
- 205+Techniques
- Guides & FAQs
- 74+Guides & FAQs
- Gyms
- 106+Gyms
- Events & camps
- 126+Events & camps
Your path
What belt are you?
Pick your rank and get a structured roadmap: the positions, escapes, and submissions to focus on before your next promotion.
White Belt
Foundational 12-week roadmap to build posture, base, escapes, and core guard skills.
- Timeline
- 12 weeks
- Techniques
- 9 core
Blue Belt
Advance beyond foundational survival with combinations, pressure passing, and guard retention upgrades.
- Timeline
- 16 weeks
- Techniques
- 12 core
Purple Belt
Build a connected game: a primary guard, a passing identity, and finishing chains from dominant positions.
- Timeline
- 16 weeks
- Techniques
- 12 core
Brown Belt
Refine pressure, counters, and high-percentage finishes while closing the holes in your existing game.
- Timeline
- 16 weeks
- Techniques
- 12 core
Black Belt
Turn experience into a teachable system: connections, rule-set choices, and long-term training habits.
- Timeline
- 16 weeks
- Techniques
- 12 core
Technique library
Train by position
Every technique is organized by where the fight is: guards, top control, escapes, sweeps, and the submissions that finish them.
56 techniquesAll Positions
Every core BJJ position, from closed guard and half guard to mount, side control, and back control, with attacks and escapes.
47 techniquesAll Submissions
85 techniquesAll Transitions
17 techniquesFundamentals
1 techniqueBottom Positions
30 techniquesChokes
33 techniquesGuards
26 techniquesSweeps
Full library205Browse every techniqueOn the calendar
Upcoming events & camps
Tournaments, seminars, and training camps coming up next. Dates are sourced from organizers.
Planning a trip? Browse training camps
Start here
The fundamentals
Eight techniques most coaches teach first. Work through them in order to survive, escape, and finish in your first months on the mat.
beginnerStep 01
Closed Guard
Fundamental defensive guard with strong control and high-percentage attacks.
Learn technique
beginnerStep 02
Hip Escape
Core shrimping movement that creates space with the hips to recover guard, escape pins, and reset frames under pressure.
Learn technique
beginnerStep 03
Mount
The most dominant top position in BJJ with strong control and finishing options.
Learn technique
beginnerStep 04
Side Control Escape
Frame-and-shrimp escape from bottom side control to recover knee shield, half guard, or full guard.
Learn technique
beginnerStep 05
Scissor Sweep
Classic closed-guard sweep that uses opposing forces to topple a kneeling opponent.
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beginnerStep 06
Armbar
Classic elbow hyperextension attack from guard, mount, and back — one of the first submissions every white belt learns.
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beginnerStep 07
Kimura
Figure-four shoulder lock that controls the arm from guard, side control, and north-south — a staple sweep and submission.
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beginnerStep 08
Rear Naked Choke
The most fundamental and high-percentage submission in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu.
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Lineage
Legends of the art
Study the people who built Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, from the Gracie family to today's champions. Every profile is sourced.
LegendHelio Gracie
Brazilian pioneer who adapted judo groundwork into Gracie Jiu-Jitsu, fought Masahiko Kimura in 1951 and died in 2009 as a 10th-degree red belt.
Brazil · Gracie Jiu-Jitsu
LegendCarlos Gracie Sr.
Patriarch of the Gracie family who learned from Maeda's circle in Belém, taught his brothers including Hélio, and helped found Brazilian jiu-jitsu.
Brazil · Gracie Jiu-Jitsu
LegendRickson Gracie
Hélio Gracie's son, two-time Vale Tudo Japan champion and 9th-degree red belt who retired from MMA undefeated at 11–0.
Brazil · Rickson Gracie United · Middleweight
LegendEddie Bravo
American founder of 10th Planet Jiu-Jitsu and the EBI, famous for submitting Royler Gracie at ADCC 2003 and for the rubber guard and twister.
United States · 10th Planet Jiu-Jitsu · Lightweight (−66 kg)
Community
Find your people
Great jiu-jitsu happens in great rooms. Explore editorially ranked academies and the coaches worth following.
Find a gym
106+ academies with locations, affiliations, instructors, and sources.
Browse gymsTop 10 gyms
An editorial ranking weighing competition history and global reach. Never paid placement.
See the rankingCreators to follow
50+ coaches and athletes teaching jiu-jitsu on YouTube, Instagram, and beyond.
Meet the creatorsGuides
Fresh from the blog
Rule explainers, technique comparisons, and honest advice for every stage of your training.
ADCC rules explained: points, legal moves and Opens
ADCC scoring, the no-points half, guard-pull penalties, match times from Worlds to the Opens, and which submissions each ADCC Opens division allows.
What is reaping in BJJ? Reap and false reap rules
The IBJJF definition of a knee reap, how the false reap differs, and where reaping is legal in IBJJF, ADCC, NAGA and Grappling Industries.
White belt tournament rules: IBJJF, NAGA, GI and ADCC
First BJJ tournament? White belt rules at IBJJF, NAGA, Grappling Industries and ADCC Opens: legal submissions, match length, points and weigh-in.
New to the mats
Beginner questions, answered
Straight answers to what every first-timer asks. Each one links to a full guide.
Do I need to be in shape before starting BJJ?
No. You can start BJJ at your current fitness level and build conditioning through consistent, well-paced classes.
Read the full answerHow many times a week should I train BJJ?
Most beginners should train BJJ 2 to 3 times per week, while progressing students can often train 3 to 5 times per week if they recover well.
Read the full answerHow long does it take to get a blue belt in BJJ?
Most adults reach blue belt after about 1.5 to 3 or more years of consistent training, but the timeline varies by attendance, instruction, competition experience, and gym standards.
Read the full answerShould beginners start with gi or no-gi?
Beginners can start with either gi or no-gi because both build real grappling skills, and most students benefit from trying both over time.
Read the full answerIs BJJ safe for beginners?
It can be, especially in gyms that teach tapping culture, control intensity, and fundamentals before hard sparring.
Read the full answerWhat should I wear to my first BJJ class?
Wear clean athletic clothes without pockets, zippers, or jewelry unless the gym provides or requires a gi.
Read the full answerStay on the mat
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