Way of Yawara

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Learning jiu-jitsu in the San Francisco Bay Area

The Bay Area trains deep, and it is far too big for one guide. We cover it area by area. Each area gets the same treatment: verified facts per academy, no rankings, and the evidence behind every claim.

What a first visit costs in San Francisco Bay Area

Of the 71 academies this guide covers, 42 print a free first class with no condition, 5 a free one with a condition, 5 print a price for it, 13 say to book and find out, 4 publish enrolment or enquiry details without a trial offer, and 2 have no readable first-visit terms.

The printed first-visit prices run from $19 to $150, for example:

  • Heroes Martial Arts (Downtown San Jose): $19 (The academy's own line: a $19 first week; it auto-converts to a regular membership if not cancelled)
  • Bay Jiu-Jitsu (Mill Valley): $39 (A local-student intro deal of 3 classes for $39, booked through the studio's Mindbody registration)
  • Skrap Pack Mission: $150 (A first class booked by form, with a $150 one time initiation that includes one Muay Thai and one jiu-jitsu lesson)

8 academies print a standard adult monthly rate: the median is $229, the lowest $180, the highest $265.

The median printed drop-in is $40, from 9 academies.

Conditions the pages state

Ask before you go

  • Is the first class free for a visitor, or only for someone who intends to join?
  • Is a gi lent for the first class, and what does one cost to buy?
  • What does a month cost without a contract, and is there a joining fee?

Figures from version 2026-09-05 of the first-visit study; the study explains the method and links to the academy sources. The first-visit study, city by city · What jiu-jitsu costs per month · the printable first-visit kit

The areas

  • San Francisco 19 academies

    The city itself: the Mission and SoMa out to the Sunset and the Richmond, anchored by Ralph Gracie's HQ and Carley Gracie's historic room.

  • East Bay 17 academies

    Oakland, Berkeley, and the shoreline cities: Ralph Gracie's home turf, with a deep independent bench.

  • The Peninsula 18 academies

    Daly City down to Palo Alto: the Charles Gracie corridor, Caio Terra rooms, and Jean Jacques Machado's only NorCal school.

  • South Bay and Silicon Valley 26 academies

    San Jose and Silicon Valley: the deepest scene in the Bay, from Caio Terra's HQ and AKA to the Morgan Hill rooms.

  • North Bay 7 academies

    Marin County and Petaluma, north of the bridge: an all-independent scene, no franchise flags.

Open mats in San Francisco Bay Area

Rooms whose published schedule prints an open mat, each with the complete recorded summary of that schedule, its source and the date it was read. What an open mat is, and what a beginner does with one

San Francisco

  • Colhado Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Kids run Mon and Wed 5-6pm plus Tue and Thu afternoons and Sat mornings, and a beginners class runs Tue and Thu 7:30-8:30pm, with adult, women's and open mat classes source · 2026-09-01
  • Magalit Jiu Jitsu Academy No-gi for adults and gi for kids 12 and under, on a BJJLink grid: all levels no-gi Mon/Wed/Fri 12 PM and 5 PM, Tue/Thu 6 PM; fundamentals Tue 5 PM; kids gi Mon/Wed 4 PM, Thu 5 PM, Sat 9 AM and 10 AM; competition class and open mat Sat 11 AM and 12 PM; members-only open mat Sun 11 AM; a trial is by sign-up link (the free wording of the July read is gone) and unannounced drop-ins are not allowed source · 2026-09-03
  • Parkside Jiu-Jitsu Adults Mon 6, Tue 6:30, Thu 6:30, Fri 6; kids Tue/Thu afternoons; Sunday open mat 10–11:30 — free source · 2026-09-23
  • Romulo Melo Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Classes run mornings, midday and evenings through the week, with a members open mat on Saturday source · 2026-09-01
  • Studio86 Jiu Jitsu Kids and gi run Mon and Thu evenings, with no-gi Wed and Fri, a Saturday kids class and no-gi open mat, and Sunday privates source · 2026-09-01

East Bay

  • 510 Renegade MMA The timetable image on the class-schedule page reads: adult no-gi Mon and Wed 7 to 8:30 PM, gi Tue and Thu 7 to 8:30 PM, kids BJJ Mon and Wed 5 PM, a members-only open mat Fri 5:30 PM and a Saturday BJJ review class 9:30 AM; Muay Thai and MMA fill the 6 PM hours; no Sunday source · 2026-09-03
  • F3 Academy / SBG Oakland Jiu-jitsu Mon and Wed 7–8 PM plus Saturday 11–2; judo Monday; the Friday open mat is published as invitation-only source · 2026-09-02

The Peninsula

  • 10th Planet Daly City The schedule image (dated June 15) reads: jiu-jitsu all levels Mon, Wed and Fri 6 AM and 4:30 PM plus Mon and Wed 12 PM, a beginners class Mon to Thu 6 PM, wrestle-jitsu Tue and Thu 7 PM and Sun 12 PM, women's Fri 5:30 PM, open mat Sat 10 AM; the page says visitors must book a visit, unscheduled drop-ins are not allowed source · 2026-09-03
  • Caio Terra Academy Palo Alto Adults run morning (from 6:15am) through evening daily, with no-gi and an open mat; kids run age-graded afternoon classes and a Saturday family class source · 2026-09-01
  • MBJJ | Minc Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Academy Adult gi and no-gi from 6:30am to 9:00pm most weekdays with daily beginners classes, a Friday open mat, Sunday no-gi competition, and women's-only sessions; kids in age tracks afternoons and weekends source · 2026-09-01
  • Marco Nascimento BJJ The 2026 table: Fundamentals open to all belts at 9 AM every weekday and 11 AM Mon/Wed/Fri/Sat, 7 AM Tue/Thu, noon Tue/Thu and 7 PM Tue/Thu; no-gi 10 AM Tue/Thu/Fri; Beginner Fundamentals (white and green belts) Mon and Wed 6 PM beside an advanced room; open mats daily; the Wednesday 6 PM women's class stands source · 2026-09-02

South Bay and Silicon Valley

  • Daruma Dojo (Milpitas) Classes run Monday to Saturday, with weekday sessions at 11 AM, 4:30, 5:30, and 6:30 PM, plus Friday/Saturday kids, judo, and open mat source · 2026-09-01
  • Solidarity Jiu Jitsu The schedule page now shows a public Gymdesk timetable: gi Mon to Thu 6:15 AM, Tue and Thu 11:30 AM, Mon to Fri 6:30 PM and Sat 10:45 AM; intro to BJJ Tue 6:15 PM; no-gi Mon and Wed 7:30 PM; kids and teens weekday afternoons and Saturday mornings; members-only open mat after the last class; no Sunday; the trial is still booked online source · 2026-09-03
  • Triune Jiu-Jitsu and Self Defense Morning and evening adult classes weekday, a daily evening Fundamentals class, noon classes Tue/Thu, Saturday self-defense, Friday judo, and a Sunday open mat source · 2026-09-01

North Bay

  • North Bay Jiu Jitsu Adult classes run early mornings (6am), mid-mornings (9am), and evenings across the week, with a women-only class Saturday 9am and an open mat after it; kids run by age Monday to Thursday afternoons source · 2026-09-01
  • Rolling Oak Jiu Jitsu A full weekly grid: gi fundamentals and sparring Monday to Wednesday, no-gi fundamentals and sparring Tuesday and Thursday, judo Friday and Saturday, wrestling on weekends, a women's no-gi group, and a free Sunday open mat source · 2026-09-01

A schedule is what the page printed on the day it was read. The academy's card carries the visitor and price facts recorded for it; where admission to an open mat, or its cost, is not published, ask the academy.

Women's classes in San Francisco Bay Area

Rooms whose published schedule or programme page prints a women's or women-only class, each with the complete recorded summary of that fact, its source and the date it was read. What academies publish for women, and what to ask before a first class

San Francisco

The Peninsula

South Bay and Silicon Valley

North Bay

A summary records what the page printed on the day it was read. Whether a class is women-only or mixed, and who may join, is in the summary where the academy publishes it; visitor and price facts are on the academy's card; where something is not published, ask the academy.

What a first class costs, city by city: the study