Best BJJ Schools in Portland

Northwest Fighting Arts

In East Portland, Portlanders can find one of the oldest martial arts schools in the entire city – Northwest Fighting Arts. NWFA is not a pure jiu jitsu school and offers multiple other martial arts such as muay thai, boxing, karate, tai chi, MMA and jeet kune do.

The gym’s founder Jeff Paterson is a 2nd degree blackbelt under Rigan Machado, so despite focusing on other arts, NWFA’s jiu jitsu chops are still top notch. Potential new members can get a whopping 30 days of classes free + a free private lesson just to make sure you are interested before signing up full time.

Renzo Gracie Jiu Jitsu Portland

Over in Boise, Portlanders will find Renzo Gracie Academy of Portland. Renzo Gracie Academy is one of the most well respected affiliations in the world, and the Portland chapter continues the excellency of the school.

RGA Portland offers an astounding 34 adult BJJ classes per week, ranging from the mornings, afternoons and evenings. RGA Portland is also one of the most female friendly gyms we’ve encountered, offering 9 women-only classes per week. RGA also has an extensive kids program. RGA mainly focuses on jiu jitsu, but does also have wrestling classes. There are no striking classes offered. Potential members can get their first class free!

10th Planet Jiu Jitsu Portland

Also in East Portland you will find 10th Planet Jiu Jitsu. For those unfamiliar, 10th Planet is its own style of jiu jitsu founded by BJJ legend Eddie Bravo. All 10th Planet gyms are exclusively nogi, meaning you won’t need to buy a fancy gi to participate. 10th Planet still has a belt promotion system however, despite not wearing gis.

In Portland, the school is run by Phill Schwartz, a blackbelt directly under Eddie Bravo himself. The school offers 23 classes per week of adult jiu jitsu. They also offer muay thai classes. There is no kids program. Potential members can get their first class free!

Nemesis Jiu Jitsu

Over in Nob Hill is Nemesis Jiu Jitsu. Nemesis offers 13 adult jiu jitsu classes per week, some in the gi and some nogi. They have classes in the mornings, afternoons and evenings .

The school has a program called “Beginner’s Cycle” which restart every two months. The program is an eight week curriculum for brand new students to get up to speed with the fundamentals of jiu jitsu. Nemesis does not offer any striking classes, but does have classes dedicated to takedowns and wrestling. Potential members can get their first week free!

Unicorn Jiu Jitsu

In Montavilla is Unicorn Jiu Jitsu. What is special about Unicorn jiu jitsu is that it is the only school in Oregon and regrettably one of the few in the country to have a female head instructor. Hillary Vanornum, who runs the school with her brother, is a 1st degree blackbelt world champion.

Unicorn offers kick boxing, self defense and yoga classes in addition to its jiu jitsu classes. All classes are available to both adults and children. Members can pay on a month to month basis. Unicorn has an eight week intro to jiu jitsu curriculum.

Eastside Grappling

Another East Portland school is Eastside Grappling. Eastside Grappling focuses exclusively on adult jiu jitsu, offering 11 classes per week, some gi and some nogi. There are no kids classes.

Eastside Grappling offers a monthly rate of $80 per which is relatively cheap compared to most jiu jitsu schools. Potential members can get their first week free to give it a trial run.

Five Rings Jiu Jitsu

In West Slope you’ll find Five Rings Jiu Jitsu. Five Rings offers 11 adult jiu jitsu classes per week in both gi and nogi. The school is owned and operated by Tom Oberhue, a 4th degree blackbelt with 27 years of jiu jitsu experience. Overall Five Rings has 5 blackbelt instructors + one colored belt instructor.

Five Rings has a kids martial arts program (detailed here) that does not just focus exclusively on jiu jitsu. The program is subdivided by age group and also adds striking and self defense to the curriculum.

PDXBJJ

In Slabtown you’ll find PDXBJJ, which is also part of the Portland Judo. PDXBJJ offers 10 adult jiu jitsu classes per week – all in the Gi. If you are looking for nogi training, you will have to look somewhere else.

However, since PDXBJJ is also part of Portland Judo, the gym will have a strong takedown aspect to its jiu jitsu, making it ideal for those who want to compete in tournaments. All six instructors are judo blackbelts and 4/6 are also BJJ blackbelts.

PDXBJJ offers a low cost $100 per month for unlimited jiu jitsu and has a special deal for families. There are kids classes, but they are only judo classes – there are no pure BJJ classes for kids.

Industrial Strength Brazilian Jiu Jitsu

Industrial Strength in Slabtown is a hybrid strength training and Brazilian Jiu Jitsu gym. Founded by husband and wife Tony (a 1st degree blackbelt) and Mira Gracia and supported by a slew of other coaches, ISBJJ is perfect for those who want to train jiu jitsu, but also focus on their strength as well.

ISBJJ offers 8 adult jiu jitsu classes per week Monday thru Saturday. They also offer a handful of kickboxing classes as well. Potential members get their first martial arts class free. For $190 a month, members can get unlimited access to all martial arts and strength training classes.