Training guide
Judo Belt Order: Kyu, Dan, Adult, and Junior Ranks
Understand kyu and dan progression while keeping national federation, club, age, and 2026 IJF validation differences clear.
Judo AI: Dojo Partner helps you review a filmed technique while you work through the correct belt-order question: kyu grades generally mark progression before black belt, while dan grades mark progression after black belt. The exact belt colours, promotion requirements, junior divisions, and recognition process depend on your national federation, club, school, age group, and event rules.
The short answer
Do not treat one belt chart as universal. Start by identifying the organization that will recognize your grade. Then check whether its current syllabus separates junior and adult promotions, whether it uses intermediate colours, and whether it follows the International Judo Federation’s current reference framework.
The IJF describes its project as an effort toward a universal reference for judo grades, but that does not automatically replace every national federation’s promotion system. Use the IJF universal reference for judo grades as governing context, then confirm the rule that applies to your promotion.
Kyu and dan progression
| Rank group | What it usually represents | What can differ |
|---|---|---|
| Kyu | Student grades before black belt | Number of grades, colour order, examination content, and minimum time |
| Dan | Black-belt grades | Technical, competitive, teaching, service, examination, and time requirements |
| Junior grades | Developmental progression for children or teenagers | Colour sequence, age thresholds, certificates, and conversion to adult grades |
| Adult grades | The system used for adult practitioners | National federation rules, club authority, examination routes, and recognition |
“Kyu” does not guarantee one fixed colour sequence worldwide. A federation may use white, yellow, orange, green, blue, and brown, but it may also add intermediate belts or arrange colours differently. A junior may receive a colour that does not convert directly to the equivalent adult rank.
Dan grades also do not follow one universal promotion route. Some systems emphasize examination performance, while others include competition record, technical demonstration, teaching, service, or formal recommendation. Check the relevant federation document rather than inferring requirements from another country’s chart.
How to identify the correct order
- Name the recognizing body. Ask whether your grade comes from your club, national federation, regional body, or another authorized organization.
- Identify your category. Record whether you are a junior or adult, and note any age or transition rule.
- Find the current syllabus. Use the federation’s published promotion document, not an undated club graphic.
- Separate colour from rank. A belt colour may signal progression, but the certificate and official record determine recognition.
- Confirm the promotion route. Check examination, recommendation, competition, time-in-grade, and registration requirements.
- Ask before purchasing or changing belts. Your coach or federation office can confirm what you may wear at training and competition.
The IJF documents page provides the broader governing-body document context. Read the specific current document for your country and category because publication scope and local implementation matter.
Common mistakes
Treating an online colour chart as official
A chart can combine several countries or simplify junior and adult systems into one sequence. Compare its publisher, date, and jurisdiction with your federation’s current document before relying on it.
Assuming junior and adult belts map one-to-one
Junior programmes often use age-based stages and may not transfer each colour directly. Ask your federation how your recorded junior grade converts when you enter the adult system.
Confusing a club syllabus with a federation promotion
A club may teach a local curriculum and award an in-house belt without granting a nationally registered grade. Confirm whether the promotion appears in the federation’s official record.
Wearing a belt before recognition
Buying or wearing the next colour does not create a promotion. Follow your coach’s instruction and the event’s uniform rules until the authorized body records the grade.
Mixing technical advice with rank advice
A strong-looking throw does not prove eligibility for a promotion. Rank decisions may include formal requirements that video cannot establish.
What the calculator and video can decide
Use the judo scoring calculator to organize a scoring or rules-related question and compare the inputs you provide. It cannot decide your official belt rank, verify your federation’s current promotion process, interpret an incomplete event rule, or replace a coach, examiner, referee, or federation administrator.
Video review can help you inspect posture, foot placement, gripping sequence, balance, timing, and repetition. It cannot confirm what happened outside the frame, diagnose pain, establish competition eligibility, or prove that a technique satisfies every promotion criterion. Keep the camera wide enough to show the whole movement and compare several ordinary attempts, not only your best repetition.
For submissions, choking or joint-lock practice, maximal lifting, rapid weight changes, or any painful movement, work with qualified in-person guidance. Stop immediately for pain, dizziness, numbness, breathing difficulty, unsafe pressure, or loss of control.
Use Judo AI: Dojo Partner for one next action
After you confirm the applicable syllabus, open Judo AI: Dojo Partner, film one representative technique from a stable angle, and review whether your first visible movement matches your coach’s cue. Save one observation, then repeat the technique with only that cue changed.
FAQs
Is there one worldwide judo belt order?
No. The IJF supports a universal reference effort, but national federations, clubs, age groups, and events can apply different systems.
Does a brown belt always come before black belt?
Many systems place brown kyu grades before shodan, the first dan grade. Confirm the exact sequence and requirements with the federation that recognizes your promotion.
Can an app award or validate my belt?
No. An app can organize information or review recorded movement. An authorized federation, examiner, or club must determine recognition under the applicable rules.
What should I do if sources disagree?
Use the newest document from the body that will recognize your grade. Ask your coach or federation office to resolve any remaining conflict before an examination or competition.