Bumping this old thread. Interested in joining a BJJ gym. Total beginner. I don't make a whole lot of money so I'm interested in what the going rates are for attending say Gracie Barra gym?
Depends on your situation. But, if the rates I pay CA to a GB gym are any indication here is what I've got:
- $156/mo was the "standard" rate.
- Get a discount if you pay in full rather than monthly
- If you're a student, you also get a discount
At the end of the day, I ended up paying just a tad over $120/mo. This was cheaper than most places in my area, especially given the schedule of available classes 7 days a week, from AM to PM, and I believe you can visit / attend any GB school you'd like after signup.
The annoying stuff is having to buy all of their gear.
- Gi's are like 160/each. if you plan on training more than a couple times a week, you'll probably need two Gi's. But, I believe they'll give you half off if you buy at signup. They did for me. Quality seems pretty weak. My $65 fuji seems considerably better--and this is after their supposed Gi upgrade.
- Rash guards they didn't give me half-off for, and they were like $45 each or something... they also require you wear a rash guard.
Somehow I got a belt in one of my Gi bags when I signed up, so maybe they gave it to me? I thought we were supposed to buy them.
There is a lot of dislike for GB it seems, and I can understand to some degree that their corporate focus is kind of taking the spirit and some of the fun / individualism out of BJJ, but in the end they're usually good schools with a friendly environment and their monthly dues are actually on the lower side from what I've seen.
There were other schools in my area I would have preferred to attend if my schedule had agreed with theirs, but such is life.
Just go try a few places out, assume they'll probably all be between $100 and $150/mo.
