Above black belt, BJJ has three more belts: the red and black belt at 7th degree, the red and white belt at 8th degree (together known as coral belts) and the red belt at 9th degree. Below blue, kids under 16 wear grey, yellow, orange and green. Every figure on this page comes from the 2026 IBJJF graduation system poster. For the adult order from white to black, see the BJJ belt order.
Coral and red belts: minimum years after black belt
Black belt degrees, coral and red belts are all earned on time. The IBJJF sets a minimum wait between each rank; the chart adds them up from the day of black belt.
| Rank | Belt | Minimum wait to reach it | Total years after black belt |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st degree | Black | 3 years | 3 |
| 2nd degree | Black | 3 years | 6 |
| 3rd degree | Black | 3 years | 9 |
| 4th degree | Black | 5 years | 14 |
| 5th degree | Black | 5 years | 19 |
| 6th degree | Black | 5 years | 24 |
| 7th degree | Red and black (coral) | 7 years | 31 |
| 8th degree | Red and white (coral) | 7 years | 38 |
| 9th degree | Red | 10 years | 48 |
Earliest age for coral and red belts
The IBJJF age chart starts the red and black belt at 49, the red and white belt at 56 and the red belt at 66.
- Those ages are black belt at 18 plus 31, 38 and 48 years.
- Only athletes who won the adult world title at brown belt can get black belt at 18. For everyone else the minimum is 19, so the earliest ages are one year later.
- The times are minimums, not a schedule. The IBJJF leaves the pace to each athlete’s professor, but each minimum is mandatory.
What the coral and red belts look like
Each belt has a bar near one end where the degrees go.
- Red and black belt (7th degree): alternating red and black sections.
- Red and white belt (8th degree): alternating red and white sections.
- Red belt (9th degree): solid red.
- Black belts carry up to six degrees on the bar. Colored adult belts carry up to four.
- The 2026 IBJJF chart ends at the red belt, 9th degree. It sets no requirement for a 10th degree.
Kids belts (ages 4 to 15)
Kids belts follow age as well as skill. Each color comes in three belts: with a white stripe, plain, and with a black stripe.
| Belt group | Belts in order | Open from age | Last age |
|---|---|---|---|
| White | White | 4 | Continues into adult belts |
| Grey | Grey and white, grey, grey and black | 4 | 15 |
| Yellow | Yellow and white, yellow, yellow and black | 7 | 15 |
| Orange | Orange and white, orange, orange and black | 10 | 15 |
| Green | Green and white, green, green and black | 13 | 15 |
Kids stripes: three IBJJF systems
The IBJJF suggests three ways to give kids degrees (stripes): a monthly, a triannual and a quarterly system. Your academy picks one.
- Monthly system: on most belts, up to 11 degrees, one a month, with the 12th month being the promotion to the next belt (the white and grey-white belts run 6 months). The first four degrees are white, the next four red, and the last three the color of the next belt.
- Kids belts carry their degrees on a black bar, the same as adult colored belts.
- These are suggestions for academies, not competition rules. Many schools use their own stripe system.
Turning 16: from kids belts to adult belts
Kids belts stop at 15. Blue and purple open at 16, brown and black at 18 and 19.
- Kids belts end at 15 on the IBJJF chart, so at 16 every kids belt moves to an adult belt. Which adult belts each kids color can move to is listed in our BJJ belt order guide.
- For practitioners aged 16 and 17, the IBJJF sets a 2-year minimum at purple before brown. Adults need 18 months.
- In competition, 16 and 17 year olds compete as juveniles. See IBJJF kids and teen age divisions.
Key Takeaways
- Coral belts are the red and black belt (7th degree) and the red and white belt (8th degree). The red belt is 9th degree.
- Minimum time after black belt: 31 years to red and black, 38 to red and white, 48 to red.
- Earliest ages on the IBJJF chart: 49, 56 and 66, one year later unless you got black belt at 18 as a brown belt world champion.
- Kids belts: grey from 4, yellow from 7, orange from 10, green from 13. All end at 15.
- Adult belts start at 16: blue and purple from 16, brown from 18.
Further Study
IBJJF graduation system
Official page with the 2026 graduation guidelines, the belts poster and the three kids degree systems.
BJJ belt order with IBJJF minimums
White to black belt, with minimum ages and time at each belt.
How belt promotions work in BJJ
Who decides, what stripes mean and what coaches look for.
How to tie a BJJ belt
The standard double wrap and square knot, in five diagrams.
