Stripes are the short strips of tape wrapped around the black bar of a BJJ belt to mark progress, up to four on each belt from white to brown. A three-stripe blue belt is further along than a new blue belt.
- How many: four degrees on each belt from white to brown and six on the black belt, per the IBJJF General System of Graduation.
- Who gives them: the head instructor, often at the end of a class.
- At black belt: stripes mark degrees and are earned over years.
What do BJJ stripes mean?
Belts in BJJ take years, and stripes break that wait into steps. Each stripe says your instructor has seen progress since the last one: your escapes are sharper, your guard holds longer, you have stopped making the mistake they kept correcting. Four stripes on a coloured belt usually means the next belt is in sight.
The stripe itself is nothing more than athletic tape. What it stands for is the instructor's judgement.
How many stripes are on each belt?
The IBJJF General System of Graduation divides the white, blue, purple and brown belts into four degrees each, and leaves using them to the professor. The black belt has six degrees, placed on its red bar and earned over years.
For children the IBJJF suggests three schemes. A quarterly system gives three stripes and graduates at the fourth step; a four-monthly system gives two; a monthly system gives eleven, with the first four in white, the next four in red and the last three in the colour of the next belt.
How are stripes given?
- At the end of class, the instructor calls your name and wraps the tape on while the room claps.
- At a formal grading or belt ceremony, along with the belt promotions.
- Some academies give stripes on a timetable; most give them when the instructor decides.
- Some academies skip stripes entirely and promote straight from belt to belt.
How should you treat your stripes?
Take them as feedback, and do not count them. A stripe is your instructor saying keep going in a way you can see on your belt. People who chase stripes train for the instructor's eye; people who ignore them train for the roll, and the stripes come anyway. If a stripe falls off in the wash, re-tape it or ask your coach, and never add one yourself.
A new stripe is a small milestone worth a small gift. Our BJJ gifts collection has plenty at that scale.
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Related terms
Belt, Promotion / grading, White belt (BJJ), Blue belt (BJJ), Black belt (BJJ).