柔 · yawara
Learning jiu-jitsu in Manhattan
This guide covers the island's academies from the Financial District to Washington Heights: Marcelo Garcia's room, the Renzo Gracie flagship and its satellites, and the deepest independent bench in the country. The real story in this market is the door — what a visit costs, and which free trials are fenced to residents. For someone just starting, the real question is not "which academy is best" but "which one fits me." This guide exists to answer that question.
Map
Only academies with verified information appear on the map. Grey pins mark verified addresses for academies still being confirmed.
10th Planet Jiu Jitsu NYC
Who this academy suits
A beginner drawn to no-gi: the never-trained class runs five times a week, the room points you to it by name, and no gi stands between you and the mat
Why we say it: The FAQ names the class, the live calendar shows five weekly slots, and the uniform rule is rashguard and shorts (verified 2026-07-29)
A visitor who wants zero ambiguity: $50/day unlimited, $150/week, other-school students welcome in writing, and a live calendar showing how full each class is
Why we say it: Identical pricing on two owned surfaces, a verbatim welcome, and live capacity counters (verified 2026-07-29)
Schedule verified Pricing published Franchise networkPricing publishedDrop-ins welcomeNo-gi
Your first visit
- Free trial
- The trial policy contradicts itself on the room's own FAQ — a $50 credited mat fee in one answer, a free trial in the next. Both recorded, neither resolved: ask. What is unambiguous: visitors from other schools are welcome, and there are showers
- Class schedule
- A live calendar with per-class capacity counters; the never-trained 'Intro to Jiu Jitsu' runs five times a week — 'THE CLASS for you,' in the room's own words
Classes and cost
- Membership
- Fully published on two owned surfaces: $50 day, $150 week, $165 seven-class pack, $249 four-month Gold, $280 month-to-month
- Programs
- Kids all-levels, Saturday 10 AM
Location, instructors, contact
- Address
- 35 W 43rd St, 4th Floor, New York, NY 10036 — per the room's own channel; the network locator's 46th St address is superseded
- Instructors
- Head instructor Rey 'StingReyRey' De Leon, who trained directly under Eddie Bravo at 10th Planet HQ — rank unprinted, as the room's own site publishes none
Anderson's Martial Arts Academy (est. 1996) — a multi-art academy; BJJ is a real programme inside it, not the house identity
Who this academy suits
A traveller with a week: three free non-consecutive days, no residency test, no gi needed — then the $148 'travel-friendly' pack (the academy's own word), no contract
Why we say it: The own trial page publishes the structure with no residency condition; the freshest page on the site labels the pack travel-friendly (verified 2026-07-28)
A beginner who wants BJJ beside striking arts — eight BJJ classes a week in a multi-art house, with a dedicated women's jiu-jitsu instructor
Why we say it: The grid carries eight weekly BJJ cells; the instructor page names a women's jiu-jitsu instructor (verified 2026-07-28)
Schedule verified Pricing published Free trialNo-giKids classesStriking classes too
Your first visit
- Free trial
- A 3-day free trial with no residency test — the days need not be consecutive, just within one week. Full access, no gi needed, digital lockers. The most visitor-usable free offer in this pass
- Class schedule
- Eight BJJ classes a week — no-gi mornings and evenings, gi at 11 AM and 6 PM — but the site's grid doesn't let the days be read reliably; confirm which day carries which class
Classes and cost
- Membership
- Published in full: the $148 eight-class two-week pack is labelled 'travel-friendly' by the academy itself, no contract. Memberships carry a 60-day cancellation notice — the packs sidestep it. No single-class drop-in
- Programs
- A kids program (Little Dragons) is on the grid
Location, instructors, contact
- Address
- 12 East 14th St, New York, NY 10003
- Instructors
- Dan Anderson, a self-published 2nd-degree Gracie black belt — with a named BJJ bench of three, including a dedicated women's jiu-jitsu instructor; no ranks published below him
Brazilian Jiu Jitsu New York City — the Modern operator's Upper East Side adult room
Who this academy suits
A UES beginner who wants spread: eight all-levels sessions including lunchtimes and weekend mornings, on a schedule that names its own validity window. Ask the three withheld things: the phone, the coach's rank, and any price beyond the residents-only $39.99
Why we say it: The self-dated graphic and accordion resolve the schedule; the conflicts and absences are equally the operator's own (verified 2026-07-28/29)
Schedule verified No-giKids classes
Your first visit
- Free trial
- The $39.99 trial is NYC-residents-only; visitors are welcomed at a drop-in rate you must ask for
- Class schedule
- A self-dated schedule (current through Sept 4, 2026, successor already published): eight adult BJJ sessions a week, separate from kids' — corroborated by a byte-matching accordion on the same page
Location, instructors, contact
- Address
- 220 E 86th St, 2nd Fl, New York, NY 10028
Clockwork Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu
Who this academy suits
A beginner who wants to see exactly who will teach them — eight ranked instructors published with beginner advice, and a white-belt class run beside, not inside, the blue-belt class
Why we say it: The own instructors page publishes the ranked roster; the live calendar shows the parallel white-belt class (verified 2026-07-29)
Someone whose deal-maker is a genuinely free first class — the only Manhattan anchor whose published trial carries no residency test
Why we say it: The own FAQ publishes the unconditional trial, against every peer's residency fence (verified 2026-07-29)
Schedule verified No-giKids classes
Your first visit
- Free trial
- 'Your first class is on us' — with no residency condition published anywhere, unique among Manhattan's anchors (confirm when booking). Bring workout clothes and water; no drop-in rate is published
- Class schedule
- A live monthly calendar; the 5:30 PM White Belt class runs beside the Blue Belt class, not mixed into it
Classes and cost
- Programs
- Kids 4–6 and 6–13, weekday afternoons
- Programs
- Gi and no-gi both on the live calendar
Location, instructors, contact
- Address
- 650 Broadway, 2nd Floor, New York, NY 10012
- Instructors
- Josh Griffiths, 4th-degree black belt and Pan Am champion — heading the deepest published instructor page in this pass: eight named, ranked, each with advice for beginners
Five Points Academy — a Muay Thai-led multi-art house; BJJ is a programme inside it
Who this academy suits
A beginner who wants the walk-in door — the only Manhattan room whose own page says show up, sign a waiver and train. The caveats: a 2022-dated price page, a widget-hidden timetable, one BJJ coach in sixteen
Why we say it: The drop-in page publishes the process (verified 2026-07-29); the live booking tenant and active Instagram show the business runs though the site froze in 2022
Schedule verified No-giKids classesStriking classes too
Your first visit
- Free trial
- Manhattan's only dedicated drop-in page: arrive a few minutes early, sign a waiver, walk in — the only room that says a walk-in is fine. Whether you can borrow a gi is unresolved on their own FAQ, and the page's newest date is 2022 — confirm before you go
- Class schedule
- Resolved by rendering the booking system: seven BJJ classes on four days with a named instructor per class — no beginner-specific class, and nothing Thursday, Saturday or Sunday
Classes and cost
- Programs
- Youth Muay Thai and youth BJJ are in the program list
Location, instructors, contact
- Address
- 148 Lafayette St Front A, New York, NY 10013
Phone +1 315-847-1899, as the academy publishes it Website Naver Map Apple Maps
Juntos Art Studio — the Hamilton Heights room that also hosts Harlem Free Fight Academy's classes
Who this academy suits
A Hamilton Heights local training after dinner: 8 PM BJJ three nights a week, one of only four adult mats verified above 110th St. Phone first — no price or trial exists in writing
Why we say it: The table publishes the hours; HFFA corroborates operation; the absences are the site's own (verified 2026-07-29)
Schedule verified Striking classes too
Your first visit
- Class schedule
- Adult BJJ three hours a week, all at 8 PM (Mon/Wed/Fri after the kickboxing hour); Tue/Thu closed, weekends unlisted. 'Beginners welcome'
Location, instructors, contact
- Address
- 3681 Broadway, New York, NY 10031
Kano Martial Arts — a judo house (the name is Jigoro Kano's) running a BJJ programme under a named head instructor
Who this academy suits
The beginner who wants takedowns: an Olympian-lineage judo house with a named BJJ head — and Manhattan's only free 1-on-1 first class
Why we say it: The instructor page names the lineage and BJJ head; the banner and Calendly flow publish the free 1-on-1 intro (verified 2026-07-29)
Free trialNo-giKids classes
Your first visit
- Free trial
- A free trial, bookable as a 1-on-1 or a group class through Calendly — the only free 1-on-1 option and the only Calendly flow found in Manhattan. No residency condition
Classes and cost
- Programs
- Kids judo, with a published 5-classes-free July web offer
Location, instructors, contact
- Address
- 149 West 27th Street, 1st Floor, New York, NY 10001
- Instructors
- Garry St. Leger heads the house; Brian Kwak is the named head BJJ instructor — though no belt rank is published for him
Marcelo Garcia Jiu-Jitsu NYC (MGJJ)
Who this academy suits
A total beginner who wants to know everything before walking in — the most legible academy in New York, with prices, the beginner class, the level ladder and the gi policy all published
Why we say it: The own site publishes full pricing, a dated grid with a printed no-experience tier, and a complete visitor FAQ (verified 2026-07-28)
A travelling white belt with honest expectations: $50 in the door, any gi, no reservation — but a never-trained visitor has one weekday class (7:15 PM), and the free trial is residents-only
Why we say it: The FAQ welcomes visitors, the published ladder confines beginners to L1's nine slots, and the trial page states the residency condition (verified 2026-07-28)
Schedule verified Pricing published Pricing publishedDrop-ins welcomeNo-giKids classes
Your first visit
- Free trial
- The free trial is for tri-state residents with ID — a traveller pays the $50 day pass, but is welcome anytime: no reservation, any academy's gi accepted, no rental gis, showers on site
- Class schedule
- Fully published, two mats, ~40 classes a week. True-beginner Fundamental L1 runs nine slots a week — all evening or Saturday morning; every daytime slot requires 50+ classes
Classes and cost
- Membership
- Fully published: visitor $50 day / $200 two-week; adults $250/month on a year or $350 month-to-month; kids $200
- Programs
- Kids 5–8 and 9–14, weekday afternoons and Saturday morning; kids membership $200/month, published
- Programs
- Gi and no-gi at every level, plus a Friday takedowns class
Location, instructors, contact
- Address
- 250 W 26th St, 3rd Floor, New York, NY 10001
Masterskya — 'workshop' in Russian: the SoHo network HQ whose founding-era adult program ran on pure donations
Who this academy suits
A beginner drawn to philosophy: monthly curriculums under a 3rd-degree Shaolin black belt, an everyone-on-the-same-mats design, a free intro for all — at an HQ whose own page still tells you it once ran on donations. Ask the price and the times
Why we say it: The about page publishes everything cited; the absences are the pages' own state (verified 2026-08-01)
Franchise networkFree trialStructured curriculum
Your first visit
- Free trial
- Free intro classes 'available to all' — booked through the site's widget, no conditions published
Location, instructors, contact
- Address
- 264 Canal Street #2W, New York, NY 10013
- Instructors
- Founder Alex Ecklin, a 3rd-degree black belt under Vitor 'Shaolin' Ribeiro and creator of the G-Roll system — with co-lead Van Allen Flores, a 2nd-degree under the same hand
NYC BJJ Academy — the adult-BJJ room of a three-brand, four-address operator; Midtown is the only address verified teaching adults
Who this academy suits
A beginner who wants the first visit demystified — the fullest what-to-bring and arrival walkthrough in Manhattan. The counterweight: a Fall-2025 grid, no beginners class, no named coach, and a residents-only bargain
Why we say it: The FAQ publishes the gear list and flow; the offer page the residency condition on a 2026 asset; the grid's filename its Fall-2025 vintage (verified 2026-07-28)
No-giKids classes
Your first visit
- Free trial
- The $39.99 two-class trial is NYC-residents-only — current policy on all three sites. Travelers are welcomed separately, at a drop-in rate you must ask for
Location, instructors, contact
- Address
- 780 8th Ave @ 47th Street, New York, NY 10036
Phone 212-957-4045 (the Midtown room's own line) Website Naver Map Apple Maps
Radical MMA — a BJJ-rooted MMA and self-defense academy, by its own description not a sport-BJJ room
Who this academy suits
The beginner who needs predictability: Fundamentals at the same hour five nights a week, a trial that starts with a private half-hour, no gi to buy — and a coach who built his system for bodies that don't cooperate
Why we say it: The 2026-07-23 grid shows weekday Fundamentals; the trial page the semi-private structure; the about page the system's origin (verified 2026-07-28)
A month-plus trainer: $249, no contract, all classes, sauna — six blocks from the Renzo flagship at nearly half its monthly rate
Why we say it: Two owned surfaces agree on $249/no contract; Renzo HQ's published ladder is $250–350 — a published-numbers comparison (verified 2026-07-28)
Schedule verified Pricing published Free trialNo-giStriking classes too
Your first visit
- Free trial
- A free trial for everyone: a 30-minute semi-private lesson, then the group class — the gentlest first-visit protocol found in Manhattan. No residency test, no gi. One hard rule: arrive more than 10 minutes late and the appointment is canceled
- Class schedule
- Fundamentals at 6:30 PM every weekday — the same class at the same hour five nights running, Manhattan's most predictable timetable — plus a daily evening open mat and Sunday midday
Classes and cost
- Membership
- $249/month, agreed by two owned surfaces — no contract, no cancellation fee, sauna included. But no drop-in or week pass exists: a short-stay visitor has no priced route in
Location, instructors, contact
- Address
- 235 W 29th St, New York, NY 10001
- Instructors
- René Dreifuss, a Gracie Barra-lineage black belt who built the 'Rat Guard' — a ground system for inflexible or injured bodies — after a car accident nearly paralyzed his own left leg
Range BJJ NYC — opened, by its founder's own account, into what he called one of the few NYC neighborhoods without a BJJ presence
Who this academy suits
A UES beginner who wants to know who's teaching: the only ranked, dated bench on the Upper East Side, a women's program, an itemised curriculum. The price of entry is your phone number — nothing else is published without the form
Why we say it: The about page names, ranks and dates the bench; the site publishes the women's track and curriculum; the form gate is the site's own architecture (verified 2026-07-28)
Schedule verified Pricing published Free trialNo-giKids classesStructured curriculum
Your first visit
- Free trial
- A free trial, stated in prose, with no residency condition — rare in Manhattan. Booking runs through the phone-capture form
- Class schedule
- The timetable sits behind a phone-capture lead form — you cannot see a single class time without handing over your number. Know that going in
Classes and cost
- Membership
- Resolved from an unlinked page in the site's own sitemap: $275/month on a 12-month program, $325 unlimited — while the nav's Prices item still leads to the phone-capture form. No drop-in or week pass exists
- Programs
- Kids 5–9 and teens 10–13, plus a private Executive Program
Location, instructors, contact
- Address
- 328 E 61st Street, Ground Floor, New York, NY 10065
- Instructors
- Eduardo Capeluto, a 4th-degree who names the year (2010) and the hand (Lucas Lepri) of his black belt — with a ranked bench below him: a 2nd-degree out of Gracie Humaitá and an Alliance brown belt
Renzo Gracie Academy — Midtown Headquarters
Who this academy suits
A beginner who wants the biggest name in New York with a real beginner door: free trial with gi and belt provided, a private intro on request, and a white-belt-only tier
Why we say it: The own site publishes the gi-and-belt trial, the intro path, and the printed white-belt-only tier (verified 2026-07-28)
A travelling student who plans the details: $45 in the door, every incidental priced — but pack a blank gi; a patched one is refused here and welcomed three blocks south at MGJJ
Why we say it: The FAQ publishes the visitor ladder, rentals, and the blank-gi rule verbatim — the documented opposite of MGJJ's policy (verified 2026-07-28)
Pricing published Franchise networkDrop-ins welcome
Your first visit
- Free trial
- A free trial with gi and belt provided (no residency condition stated) — or drop in at $45/day, $75 combo, $150/week. The gi rule is strict: blank gis only; a patched gi from your home academy means a $15 rental
Classes and cost
- Membership
- Visitor rates published to the dollar; membership deliberately by phone only. Published terms: no long-term contracts, month-to-month, freeze option, 30-day cancel notice
Location, instructors, contact
- Address
- 224 West 30th Street, New York, NY 10001
- Instructors
- Head professor Renzo Gracie, with 18 named instructors on their own pages — and the academy's own honesty: Renzo 'pops in sporadically', announced via Instagram
Renzo Gracie East Side — the UES network room, BJJ-primary since its Muay Thai went private-only in June 2026
Who this academy suits
The nervous beginner who wants to start alone first: a free private intro lesson, then observe that evening's classes — under a 5th-degree another room independently vouches for. And no wardrobe gate: any gi, any patches
Why we say it: The intro, observation rule, gi line and bench are all the room's own; the cross-corroboration is a second room's own channel (verified 2026-08-01)
The visiting practitioner: a day pass covering that day's classes, your own gi welcome as-is. Ask two things first: the pass's price, and the current grid
Why we say it: The mechanism, exclusion and gi welcome are the room's own; the price absence is measured (verified 2026-08-01)
Schedule verified Franchise networkNo-giKids classes
Your first visit
- Free trial
- A free private intro for the never-trained; visitors pre-register for a day pass covering that day's classes (price unpublished, mornings excluded) — and no gi-color or insignia restrictions at all, the counter-example to the borough's wardrobe gates
- Class schedule
- A self-dated page (updated 5.7.26): 6:30 AM fundamentals, every class open to all levels, a published arrive-late/leave-early culture, seven days — with mornings members-only for visitors
Classes and cost
- Programs
- A kids' program under a named lead, with its gear expectations published
Location, instructors, contact
- Address
- 1264 Lexington Avenue, 2nd floor (enter on 85th St), New York, NY 10028
- Instructors
- Mike Jaramillo, a 5th-degree black belt cross-corroborated on a second room's own channel — heading an eleven-name bench that includes woman co-founder Cynthia Yang
Phone 917-779-9876 — the room's own published SMS line (Gymdesk) Website Naver Map Apple Maps
Renzo Gracie Jiu-Jitsu Upper West Side, open since March 2019
Who this academy suits
The traveling practitioner: New York's best-documented visitor door — a five-rung ladder with per-day math, a loaner-gi pass, advanced classes open to visiting blues and up. Book ahead; walk-ins are refused twice in writing
Why we say it: The visitor-passes page publishes the ladder, the rule and the FAQ verbatim (verified 2026-07-28)
A UWS local starting from zero: a Fundamentals curriculum with real published structure, an eleven-name ranked bench, a capped women's class — and the residents-only free trial as the door
Why we say it: The site publishes the structure, the schedule and the trial condition (verified 2026-07-28)
Schedule verified Pricing published Franchise networkNo-giKids classesStructured curriculum
Your first visit
- Free trial
- Two doors, both conditional: the free trial is NYC-residents-only, the visitor pass is 'intended for practitioners with training experience' — and no walk-ins, ever; every first visit is booked ahead. The never-trained visitor should email first
- Class schedule
- A live HTML schedule with the coach per slot: 62 classes a week, Fundamentals 12 times a week on a published 8-week/50-technique cycle, and a semi-private women's class Tuesday and Thursday
Classes and cost
- Membership
- The full visitor ladder: $50 a day, $70 with a loaner gi, $175 the week ('most chosen'), $275 two weeks, $400 thirty days. Membership is published only as 'from around $300' — and HQ's ladder differs, so cite per room
- Programs
- Kids in three age bands from 3
Location, instructors, contact
- Address
- Subcellar, 246 Columbus Ave, New York, NY 10023
- Instructors
- Renzo Gracie (coral belt) co-owns and heads the room, over a published bench of ten more black belts with stripes stated — the academy's own account
Renzo Gracie Jiu-Jitsu Wall Street, open since August 2023 — the same operating company as the UWS room
Who this academy suits
A FiDi worker training before dinner: the 5 PM weekday class the room itself calls unusually early, plus pre-6 AM doors — a schedule built around a trading day. Enter via Exchange Place
Why we say it: The site publishes the 5 PM differentiator, the hours and the access instruction verbatim (verified 2026-07-28/29)
A downtown parent: 21 kids' classes every day in three bands, with the adult 5 PM deliberately parallel — the parent-trains-while-child-trains design, in the room's own words
Why we say it: The room's own counts and the parallel-session framing are on the live schedule (verified 2026-07-28/29)
Schedule verified Pricing published Franchise networkNo-giKids classes
Your first visit
- Free trial
- Same doors as the UWS sibling: a residents-only free trial, visitor passes for the experienced, and no walk-ins — every first visit is booked ahead
- Class schedule
- 45 classes a week, 21 of them kids, every day — and the room's own differentiator: a 5 PM adult class every weekday, run parallel to the kids' session so a parent trains while the child trains
Classes and cost
- Membership
- The visitor ladder, identical to UWS: $50/$70/$175/$275/$400. Membership only as 'from around $300'. HQ's ladder differs — cite per room, never average
- Programs
- 21 kids' classes a week across three age bands, every day — the room's own count
Location, instructors, contact
- Address
- 22 New Street, New York, NY 10005
- Instructors
- Renzo Gracie co-owns; Luca Atalla (5-stripe black belt) co-owns and heads — the whole bench publishes its ranks, as the academy's own account
Ronin Athletics — a Gracie-curriculum room in Midtown
Who this academy suits
A New York-based absolute beginner: a named beginners program, a member base that mostly started from nothing, a weekly beginner blog — but book the appointment; walk-ins and watching are both off the table
Why we say it: The FAQ describes the program, the schedule page the closed-door policy, and the blog published for beginners three days before the sweep (verified 2026-07-28)
A traveling Gracie CTC member — 30 free days a year and a $10 gi rental, the most generous door in Manhattan. For everyone else the same policy is a closed one; the guide says both
Why we say it: The FAQ publishes the 30-day offer and the $10 rental verbatim (verified 2026-07-28)
Schedule verified Structured curriculumKids classesStriking classes too
Your first visit
- Free trial
- Drop-ins are limited, in writing, to Gracie University-affiliated members (who get 30 free days a year) — a beginner with no home academy cannot drop in at any price. The real door is the appointment-only paid intro class, price unpublished
- Class schedule
- Resolved from the room's own API: Gracie Combatives six slots across five days (no Sunday, no mornings), with three of four adult tracks closed to a first-timer — but the rows date 17–23 months back, so confirm the grid; and you cannot come and watch
Location, instructors, contact
- Address
- 265 Madison Ave, 5th Floor, New York, NY 10016
- Instructors
- Christian Montes, head coach — a black belt under Felipe Costa; the competition record is printed as the academy's own account
Studio X — an East Village independent, self-described as opening in 1995 under Fabio Clemente (Team Fabio Clemente)
Who this academy suits
The beginner with no kit: a free gi loan, a Basics tier that encourages first-timers, private changing rooms — and a women's world champion on the bench
Why we say it: The FAQ publishes the loan, the program page the per-tier policy, the team page the world-champion instructor (verified 2026-07-28)
Free trialNo-giStructured curriculum
Your first visit
- Free trial
- A free trial and a published free gi loan — 'a free rental… for your first couple of visits until you get your own' — the only one found in Manhattan. Bring a T-shirt and shorts
Location, instructors, contact
- Address
- 6 St Marks Place, 2nd Floor, New York, NY 10003
- Instructors
- Founder Fabio Clemente (self-published 3x Pan Am champion) with a seven-name bench — including Vedha Toscano, 2019 IBJJF No-Gi world champion, the only world-champion woman found teaching in Manhattan this pass
UWS Kenshikai — a Kyokushin-lineage karate dojo of twenty-plus years that runs a serious adult no-gi BJJ programme inside it
Who this academy suits
A beginner staying uptown: the only adult mat above 86th on the west side, and the room that publishes everything others hide. All no-gi — nothing to pack. One free class, then membership or nothing
Why we say it: The site publishes price, ranks with promoting professors, and a dated table the live widget verified on the sweep day (verified 2026-07-28/29)
The intimidated beginner: a dozen to a class, seniors who walk you through the basics, open mats after every session, and an explicit inclusivity commitment
Why we say it: The adult-BJJ page publishes all four statements verbatim (verified 2026-07-28)
Schedule verified Pricing published Free trialNo-giKids classesStriking classes too
Your first visit
- Free trial
- One free introductory class, booked ahead by phone or text — after which 'there are no drop-ins', stated twice. The trial itself carries no residency condition
- Class schedule
- A dated Summer 2026 HTML table: nine grappling sessions a week, all no-gi — Manhattan's only verified all-no-gi adult programme, so there's no gi to pack. A live today's-classes widget proves the day mapping
Classes and cost
- Membership
- Published in full: adults $225/month, no contract, cancel any time by email, payments transferable and never expiring, unlimited freezes — the cleanest membership terms of any Manhattan room in this pass
Location, instructors, contact
- Address
- 928 Columbus Avenue, New York, NY 10025
- Instructors
- The most precisely-evidenced bench in the pass — ranks and promoting professors both published: the owner is a karate 6th dan and BJJ 1st-degree black belt of Renzo Gracie lineage, teaching beside a second black belt and a brown belt
Phone (212) 222-1172 to call — and a separate published SMS line, 718-249-6263 Website Naver Map Apple Maps
Unity Jiu-Jitsu School
Who this academy suits
A beginner or visitor counting dollars: Manhattan's cheapest door — $25 weekend days, $100 weeks, a $10 rental gi, no reservation
Why we say it: The own FAQ publishes the visitor ladder, the $10 rental, and the no-reservation welcome (verified 2026-07-28)
A never-trained local: first day free (tri-state), including a 40-minute private intro, with a 3-month beginner's program after
Why we say it: The own FAQ defines the free first day, the 40-minute intro format, and the beginner's program (verified 2026-07-28)
Schedule verified Pricing published Drop-ins welcomePricing publishedKids classesStructured curriculum
Your first visit
- Free trial
- 'Everyone is welcome — you don't need to ask.' First day free for tri-state residents; otherwise $40 weekdays, $25 weekends, $100/week — Manhattan's cheapest visitor ladder, with the city's cheapest gi rental ($10)
- Class schedule
- Studio hours published; classes on a live booking widget the room vouches for — and if the widget glitches, their own advice is 'just show up'
Classes and cost
- Membership
- Visitor rates fully published; membership priced only in person — the site says so itself, with unusual candour. Discount categories are published
- Programs
- Kids 4–14 — first Saturday always free, $35 drop-ins after
Location, instructors, contact
- Address
- 144 W 14th St, Stair Door A — basement of Pratt; ring the bell with the Unity sticker
Phone 917-409-5550 — leave a voicemail; they answer after 5 PM weekdays Website Naver Map Apple Maps
Uptown Hive — a multi-art school with a real BJJ programme inside it
Who this academy suits
A visitor who wants one honest number: $30 buys the day, in nine words. Confirm reservation-only classes; know the two silences — no named instructor, no weekly grid
Why we say it: The prices page publishes the pass and card; the schedule page the instruction and dated events (verified 2026-07-29)
Pricing published Free trialStriking classes tooKids classes
Your first visit
- Free trial
- A free trial class plus the epic's plainest visitor line: '$30 Day Pass for visiting and non-members.' No conditions
Classes and cost
- Membership
- Published: a $30 day pass, $270 ten-pack, and a $200 two-month welcome plan rolling to $185
Location, instructors, contact
- Address
- 534 W 178th Street, Washington Heights
Workshop NYC — a jiu-jitsu and Muay Thai academy
Who this academy suits
The visiting beginner: $35 a class, $100 the week, no residency test, Fundamentals five times a week — and the FAQ tells you which class to take. Bring a white, black or blue gi and book ahead
Why we say it: Two owned surfaces publish the same ladder verbatim; the live calendar showed the current week with five Fundamentals classes (verified 2026-07-28)
A morning-and-noon trainer — four 7 AM classes and five weekday noons, the deepest daytime grid verified in Manhattan this pass
Why we say it: The live calendar lists 7 AM Mon–Thu and noon Mon–Fri, instructor per slot (verified 2026-07-28)
Schedule verified Pricing published No-giKids classesStriking classes too
Your first visit
- Free trial
- The free week is NYC-residents-only; everyone else pays the $35 drop-in or $100 week. No gi rentals — but a donation bin at the door lends gear free. Gi colours: white, black or blue, no exceptions
- Class schedule
- A live calendar with the instructor named per class: Fundamentals five times a week (four weekday evenings plus Saturday morning), four 7 AM classes, five weekday noons, Sunday open mat. Classes are strictly capped — book ahead
Classes and cost
- Membership
- Published in full: $35 drop-in, $100 unlimited week, $300 unlimited month — one-time, no contract, no residency test. Monthly recurring $250. The first published drop-in rate in the New York pass
- Programs
- Kids from 5, with a published youth scholarship program
Location, instructors, contact
- Address
- 92 Delancey St, New York, NY 10002
- Instructors
- Jin Yung, co-founder and head jiu-jitsu instructor — a named four-person bench, though no belt rank is published for anyone
Academies being verified
We are re-confirming the essentials: class schedules and trial mechanics. Each academy joins the full guide once its facts meet the bar.
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Brazilian Jiu Jitsu of Washington Heights — the only room in this epic maintaining its own Spanish-language site · Official site4450 Broadway, 2nd floor, New York, NY 10040 · (201) 256-5481 · Jorge Valencia, who publishes his own rank — a purple belt under Vitor 'Shaolin' Ribeiro — with a candour almost no room shows. Listed for the honesty; not promoted, for the rankLast checked: 2026-07-29
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GrappleBox, trading also as East Side BJJ · Official site66 Frankfort St, community room basement, New York, NY 10038 · +1-888-912-5199, labelled 'Call Center' by the room itselfLast checked: 2026-07-28
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Harlem Free Fight Academy — a 501(c)(3) teaching boxing and BJJ FREE to ages 13–21. Not a drop-in academy; recorded as the neighbourhood's answer to 'what if I can't afford this' · Official site3681 Broadway, New York — the Juntos BJJ venue · Free boxing and BJJ for ages 13–21; the 'affordable' adult training is unpriced · FREE for ages 13–21 — the only free BJJ found anywhere in this epic; the adult rate is unpublishedLast checked: 2026-07-29
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Training Zone NYC — a multi-art room where BJJ is one component of the MMA curriculum, not a standalone programme · Official site329 1st Avenue, New York, NY 10003 · (212) 505-9663 (the Manhattan room's line) · The honest line, in the room's own FAQ: most students are beginners and welcome — 'although we don't have a beginners class'. A room saying so is worth more than any 'all levels welcome' · A free week — published on every page, with no residency condition: on its face the most generous trial found in ManhattanLast checked: 2026-07-29
I'm a complete beginner. Can I just show up?
It differs by academy. Entries show where a fundamentals program and first-visit process are verified. For the rest, check with the academy before visiting. For what a first class actually feels like, see the beginner posts on our blog.