If you train jiu-jitsu, you know the feeling of landing in a new city and wondering where you can get a round in. Maybe you're there for a few days. Maybe you just moved and need a new home gym. Either way, you start piecing things together: ask friends, check Yelp and Reddit, open a bunch of gym websites and Instagram pages, and message someone to find out whether the schedule is current or visitors are welcome.
I thought there should be an easier way to answer a pretty simple question: where can I train? That's why we made GrappleMaps.
What is GrappleMaps?
GrappleMaps is a free tool for finding Brazilian jiu-jitsu gyms. Start with a city or your current location, see the gyms nearby, and look at the details that matter when you're deciding where to train: distance, class times, drop-in fees, showers, and what other grapplers have said about the place. Some details depend on what we've been able to collect or what the community has shared, so you won't see every field filled in for every gym.
The point is to help you get from “there are a bunch of gyms here” to “this one might actually work for me.” A gym can look great on a map and still have no class during the one evening you're free. Or it might have the right schedule, but you need to know whether there's a shower before you head straight to work. Those small things can decide whether you train at all.
Why we made it
Jiu-jitsu has a great habit of making unfamiliar places feel familiar. You can walk into a gym in a city you've never visited, introduce yourself, and find people who speak the same strange language of guards, grips, and getting stuck under side control.
Finding that gym shouldn't be the hard part. Friends can give you a recommendation, and Yelp or Reddit might turn up a useful opinion, but you're still left checking which gyms are nearby, when they train, and whether you can drop in. Gym websites have more detail, but you have to check them one by one, and the information you need may be buried or missing. We made GrappleMaps to put the practical details you're hunting for in one place and make it easier to find a room that fits your trip, your schedule, and what you're looking for.
We also want it to be honest. A missing drop-in price isn't a free drop-in, and a schedule pulled from a gym's website isn't a promise that tonight's class is happening. If something is unknown, treat it as unknown and check with the gym before you go.
How to use it
Go to GrappleMaps and search for the city you're in or headed to. Browse the nearby gyms, then open a listing to check its location, website, contact details, and any other information available. If you have a narrow window to train, use the iOS app to look at class schedules and find a time that works. You can also use it to compare gyms when you're looking for a regular place to train.
Once you find a promising gym, check its site or contact it to confirm the current schedule, visitor policy, and drop-in fee. Then pack your gear and go meet some people.
GrappleMaps is still growing, and the information will get better as more gyms and grapplers contribute. For now, I hope it saves you a few tabs and helps you find your next roll.