The Jiu-Jitsu Mindset · Data Study

Gi vs. No-Gi: Which Produces More Submissions? The Data Is Surprising

Everyone “knows” no-gi has more submissions — all those slippery scrambles and legal heel hooks. But when you actually count the finishes at the elite level, the submission rates are almost identical. The real difference is not how often people tap — it is what they tap to.

Submission rate: gi vs. no-gi

Share of elite black-belt matches ending in a submission.

At the 2026 IBJJF World Championship, 34% of black-belt matches ended in a submission. At ADCC 2024, the figure was — you guessed it — also 34%. Whatever your gym says, the two rulesets finish at nearly the same clip at the top level.

So what is the difference? The weapons

Rear naked choke and back attacks as a share of finishes.

Leg locks as a share of finishes.

Here is where the rulesets diverge hard. In the gi, the rear naked choke and other back chokes account for nearly 45% of finishes; in no-gi that drops to about 20%, because leg locks — essentially absent from IBJJF gi — soak up roughly 22% of the finishes.

Why the gi changes the game

The jacket is a weapon. Grips let you attack with collar and lapel chokes that simply do not exist in no-gi — the bow-and-arrow choke alone finishes at roughly an 89% success rate when locked in at Worlds. All that friction also slows scrambles, rewarding patient, control-based submissions from dominant positions.

Why no-gi changes the game

Strip the gi and you strip the grips. Sweat and speed make positions slippery, which favors the rear naked choke, the guillotine, and — crucially — leg locks, which are legal and heavily hunted. The inside heel hook alone made up about 21% of ADCC 2023's finishes.

The verdict

Neither format “submits more.” At the elite level they finish at essentially the same rate; they just get there differently. Train the gi for grips, chokes, and control; train no-gi for scrambles, the back, and the legs. The complete grappler does both.

Frequently asked questions

Does gi or no-gi have more submissions?

At the elite level they are nearly equal — about 34% of matches end in a submission in both the IBJJF gi Worlds and ADCC no-gi. The bigger difference is which submissions finish the match.

Why are there no leg locks in the gi?

Most leg locks, especially heel hooks, are banned or restricted under IBJJF gi rules, so they barely register in gi finishes. In no-gi, where they are legal, leg locks account for roughly 22% of submissions.

What is the most common submission in the gi?

The rear naked choke and other back attacks, which made up about 45% of finishes at the 2023 IBJJF Worlds, followed by the armbar at around 21%. Collar chokes like the bow-and-arrow are gi-only weapons with very high success rates.

Sources & method

Figures from IBJJF's 2023 Worlds submission breakdown, BJJ Heroes, and ADCC data. Rates reflect elite black-belt divisions. Current as of July 2026.

Related reading: Are leg locks taking over jiu-jitsu? · The most common submissions in jiu-jitsu · Is wrestling the key to winning? · Catch The Jiu Jitsu Mindset on YouTube and Spotify.