Brazil Climbing Grades Explained: How to Read the Brazilian Grading System
Brazilian routes use a hybrid system that confuses most visiting climbers. Here is how it maps to YDS and French — and why the numbers are not what you expect.
Every visiting climber in Brazil hits the same wall at some point: they pull up a route on the local database, see a grade that reads something like "VIsup" or "7a/b" or "6c+" and cannot tell whether it is a warm-up or an all-day project. The Brazilian grading system is a hybrid that evolved separately from both the Yosemite Decimal System and the French system, and it does not map cleanly to either. Understanding it before you arrive will save you from either sandbagging yourself on routes that are harder than they look or missing objectives you could have climbed.
The traditional Brazilian system uses Roman numerals with suffixes, running from I (easiest walking terrain) through VII (extreme technical difficulty). The suffixes are: inf (inferior, easier end of the grade), med (medium, middle of the grade), and sup (superior, harder end). So IVsup is harder than IVmed, which is harder than IVinf. Above VI, the system becomes more variable — you will see grades like VIsup, VIsup/VIIsup, and the newer numerical additions borrowed from the French system.
The complication is that Brazil adopted the French sport climbing scale for most bolted routes established from the 1980s onward. So on any well-bolted crag — Sugarloaf Urca, Serra do Cipo, Chapada Diamantina — you will see grades like 5c, 6a, 6b+, 7a. These are direct French grades and map straightforwardly: 5c is approximately 5.9 YDS, 6a is 5.10a, 6b is 5.10c/d, 6c is 5.11b/c, 7a is 5.11d/5.12a, 7b is 5.12b/c.
For multi-pitch routes and trad climbing — specifically the classic routes on Pedra da Gavea, Morro Dois Irmaos, and Pedra Azul — the Roman numeral system still dominates. The Gavea Via Normal is listed as VIsup in the traditional Brazilian system, which maps to approximately 5.9 YDS or 5c French. Morro Dois Irmaos Northeast Ridge is VIIsup, which translates to approximately 5.11a YDS or 6c French.
Why the YDS numbers on this site? We have chosen to display both YDS and French grades throughout because the majority of our readers plan their climbing in YDS at home and use French grades when travelling in Europe. The Brazilian Roman numeral grade is included where it appears in local guidebooks, but it is not the primary reference. When in doubt, trust the French grade — it is the most consistent reference point for routes established after 1980, which covers the majority of accessible objectives in Brazil.
One practical note on grade inflation and feel: Brazilian granite is notoriously friction-dependent, and Brazilian grades were often set by local climbers with years of familiarity with the specific rock texture. Many visiting climbers, particularly from North America where granite tends to be more featured, find Brazilian grades to feel stiff by one-third of a grade — a 5.10a on Brazilian granite can feel like a North American 5.10c if you are not calibrated to smeary footwork. Factor this in when choosing your objectives, especially on your first day on local rock. The Sugarloaf Urca warm-up exists precisely to calibrate you before you commit to routes deeper in the grades.