Silverado Nippon Karate uses 6 colored belts and the black belt - a total of 7 belts. Colored belts are given the classification of Kyu, which means level. The black belt is classified by the term Dan, meaning degree of advancement. There are 10 Dans (or 10 degrees) within the black belt classification.

The following chart illustrates the relationship of colored belts to Kyu designations, and the start of the first black belt Dan/Degree:

10th Kiu
9th
8th
7th
6th
5th
4th
3rd
2nd
1st
1st-10th Dan

Color belts denote the level of ability and indicate the rank of the wearer. Our rank levels start with the beginner, who wears the white belt. There are the yellow and orange belts attained before the green belt, which is achieved after approximately one year's training. Next are two more levels of blue or purple belt followed by three levels of brown belt, and the black belt.