The Best Martial Arts in Toronto

Major Omission - Ultimate Martial Arts in Scarborough and Brampton is a long standing Muay Thai and MMA gym. They have trained NUMEROUS UFC fighters. One of the first true Muay Thai places in the city.

A lot of these places are very "franchisey" and lack the one on one coaching. I go to a little known place called Synergy Martial Arts on Moore and Bayview and it's a smaller gym but with a great kickboxing/tae kwon do/muay thai instructor. I think it's great that there are SO many choices in Toronto though for all levels of experience.

...to be fair, the title is best in "Toronto"..not the GTA

Extreme Couture got closed a while ago. I heard it wasn't the cleanest location either.

I'm glad my cousin's school (Northern) was mentioned. Maybe I'm a little biased, but I think Southside Muay-Thai should be up there as well.

These BlogTO "Best of" lists are based on user feedback. If you're in a roid induced rage because your club isn't on the list, blame yourself for not nominating it in the first place, meathead.

Oh and by the way, I can kick all of your asses!

Wow, had no idea they closed down

I went to Northern Karate for years about a decade ago. It's a good school with instructors who care, but I agree with the "McDojo" assessment that was mentioned above. It's more of a club to get in shape and develop self-esteem, but not one that will actually teach you how to fight anyone.

I had a black belt there and I'm far from tough or in great shape.

As some one who has trained in martial arts for 15 years, both on a casual level, and competitive level, it is important to know your goals for training before you even step into a school. Looking at stats and rankings means nothing if you don't know what you want. Many people who train only want to better themselves and don't care about the competitive world. Some people enjoy the nature of competition and use that as a measure for how they are progressing. Some schools focus on individual training and betterment and do not take place in most tournaments. If your goals are to train and feel good, while learning to defend yourself, the best advice anyone can give you, is GO TO THE SCHOOLS AND TRY A CLASS!!!!!! You will figure out pretty quickly if that is the school for you. The biggest factor in a school is the teacher. There is no such thing as a bad art, ONLY BAD TEACHERS. Remember, just because a school has great rankings, it doesn't mean it is good. I can not stress enough the importance of physically being in the school before making any decisions. And remember if you are signing up your children it is just as if not more important to feel the head instructor is a suitable teacher for your children.

Great article by the way.

Folks, could you suggest a good place for recreational but quality martial arts (for someone in their early 40's)? I'd love to get back to it but not in a class of guys who are serious about it - I'd just get in their way. Thanks in advance.

Researchthisstuff, Rick and Alex: word. Northern Karate is a full-on McDojo. Their instructors happen to also be MBAs: all the better to conduct their high pressure sales tactics...And they're on commission. And they're totally pseudo style of advancement is just to placate the parents who pay hundreds and hundreds of dollars. "I respect myself!" "I respect my parents!" "I respect my sensei!" soooo lame.

Nice to see Siam.No1 made it on the list. Great instructors (Clifton Brown!), great atmosphere, great attitudes. Ajahn Suchart is an all-round inspiring guy.

A couple of the Toronto BJJ guys used to live in my area. Neighbours from hell.

I always wanted to try out a martial arts, but seeing pictures of completely hairless men and women sparring barefoot (I have a very light dusting of black hair on my feet) would make me extremely self-conscious as I'm a touch hairy. Like, do these guys have testosterone? I don't want to have to do extensive manscaping just to try out a martial art.

Capoeira is not familiar with us but because of the Capoeira team in our country. It was slowly known by people.

Hmm, tough list to come up with since there are so many martial arts out there, but an interesting read (especially the comments). Glad to read about the capoeira place; I've been itching to try capoeira for a few years now. Surprised there wasn't any mention of aikido so far though! I know MMA and BJJ are super popular now, but I'd be interested to hear people's recommendations for aikido, traditional jiu jitsu (i.e. not Brazilian), and judo. I train in jiu jitsu at the Kageyama dojo near Bloor and Lansdowne-- small place tucked away, but there's also a really neat ninjitsu school with an uchi-deshi program.

Thoughts on aikido/jiu jitsu/judo in Toronto?

Wow, lots of haters on the comments... But then again, a "top ten" list is bound to generate debate and controversy.

I agree with TB wholeheartedly. TRY A SCHOOL before criticizing. Hearsay is just that and should not formulate judgement.

I'm really glad to see Fight-Club on the list. But then I admit that I'm biased, I go there and the teacher Emmanuel is second to none!

what's an example of a place with better technique for mauy thai listed or otherwise? out of curiosity

I think this list is based on family atmposhere like martial arts gyms in Toronto. Most mma gyms in Toronto seem to be alot more business and team orineted. schools like Toronto BJJ, Siam, TKMKT and Krudar are very well family influenced atmospehre

What are the hardcore Marital Arts\Boxing gyms? I have trained before in gyms with women and they are a waste of time and money. Call me a meathead, thug, it doesn't matter. I prefer a gym, no women, no kids, not family oriented. Where are the gyms for real men and real men only?

I have trained at both of the top two schools and I can honestly say, that I have received better instruction and atmosphere at Lanna MMA, and it's a shame that they are not on the list.

Sinhá Bahia Has Capoeira classes in Scarborough, @ United Martial ARts Canada. they also Have Kempo, MMA. MMA striking and Matador BJJ

Theirs a lot of good schools around. I've been training at Takedown MMA for a while and i have to say, I love it. I feel that Im excelling at a great rate in there BJJ program.

This is probably the only place in the east end of town that offers Capoeira. Not that I don't mind travelling west or downtown, but this place is also a great gym and place to learn. Highly recommended.

If anybody is interested in choosing a bjj club based on how many of its members compete in tournaments and how well they do, the club rankings are available at nationalrankings.ca.

I am looking for a mix martial arts for women not so intense but just a regular class to toned my body any suggestion...is there any location here in Sheppard and Yonge or Bathurst and Yonge...I cant search it please help

Does anyone have an opinion on CenterLine Martial Arts on the Danforth at Coxwell?

Honestly, if you want to see the caliber of a school, take a look at the tournaments its fighters go to and the rankings/championships they claim. Also go to their gyms and participate in a trial class. I'm also a little bit surprised that Southside Muay Thai didn't show up on the list nor did Lin Martial Arts for its BJJ

TKMT markets itself as attitude free and friendly but some of its instructors where I train, the uptown location, are far from attitude free. The owner needs to put his foot down IMO. All the instructors need to be like Mo, then the place would be as advertised.

STAY AWAY from these SCAMMERS!!! My experience with Ultimate Martial Arts was TERRIBLE!! These guys post nice looking pictures and offer cheap deals to attract people. Once you sign up...to cancel the membership you need to give a minimum of 2 months notice. Even after giving the notice they don't cancel your membership and 6 months later send a letter from collection agency asking you for money. The collection agency says you don't have any proof that you cancelled the membership...so you have to pay the full amount for the past 6 months!! They are asking me $288 for nothing! Stay away from these SCAMMERS!! this is how they make money!

This post should be titles, best mma/muay thai not best martial arts

TKMT was ok I enjoyed it , sadly the mow roof was to much for me to continue as I am 6'6".

Toronto BJJ I tried twice. First time I went they wanted me running and rolling never doing martial arts before that turned me off. a few years later I wanted to give it another go. Same thing except this time one of the instructors tried to sell me some pyramid nutrition products. Was also supposed to arrange a hour with me to get comfortable with rolling, never bothered to call.

I am headed tomorrow to try out Xtreme Couture I hope its better then the other places.

I have trained at both of the top two schools and I can honestly say, that I have received better instruction and atmosphere at Lanna MMA, and it's a shame that they are not on the list.

Hey Matts. Go attend a class at Black Dragon Self-Defence. 5094 Dundas St W in Etobicoke

for Toronto, it's definitely Krav Maga Toronto at Dundas and Dovercourt. The instructors there are great, they even make people do trial classes before allowing people to sign up. Probably the only self defence/mma gym that I have been to that wasn't trying to get me signed up for a membership before I even had a chance to check out a class. If you google Krav Maga Toronto, they come up as the first result i'm pretty sure if you are looking for their site.

either way, it's a free class, so why wouldn't you check it out

This list is ridiculous, if you ask me. There are a couple decent schools on that list, but in no way is that the top 10 of Toronto! We have some amazing talent for martial arts in this city, but this list doesn't show it.

@Xman - I've been training for almost a decade and have trained at several of the schools on that list, as well as several not on the list. I've also trained at Lin, and in regards to your question... their curriculum is the BEST and most organized I've ever seen! For that matter, how many other places do you even see a PROPER learning system at all? Most of the other places I trained at (including almost all of the ones on that top 10 list) are just random when it comes to teaching. Whatever the instructor feels like teaching you that day, is what you get. There's no rhyme or reason.
The system at Lin Martial Arts is proven.. their guys are beasts. Not quite sure why you think that it's slow, because in my experience, people advance there so much faster than in other places. Good balance of technical skill and a great workout. Instructors are amazing, everyone is professional, and it's CLEAN! Yes, a martial arts gym is clean. I'd definitely recommend it there.

cmac was good. Trained there a couple years ago.

I tried NKS after reading this article and I didn't like it. Too many kids wearing black belts, very short classes (1 hour), lots of emphasis on behavior or "self-improvement" vs real athletic skills, everything watered down and seemingly so easy.... I understand that it can be good for families or for people who value fitness over fighting. By saying this I mean no disrespect to anyone, but I found it very far from my previous MA experience and after some research, I decided to enroll elsewhere (and in a different system). I doubt it's the best club you could recommend.

Check out Bell's Martial Arts on the east end, for tai chi, and Goju-Ryu style karate: http://bellsmartialarts.ca

As far as Muay Thai goes many are missing off this list:

SouthSide Muay Thai
York Muay Thai
Brampton Muay Thai
Warrior Muay Thai
Old School Muay Thai
Ultimate Muay Thai

The list would be better served it was the 10 WORST Martial Arts Clubs. That would be easier...

The fact remains that Ontario had some of the BEST Muay Thai schools in the country. It really comes down to WHAT it is that you are looking for.

Some gyms are known for their positive and friendly vibe, some are known for their amateur fighters, some known for their pro's, some known for the teaching style, some known for the price or promo's.

Point is WHATEVER YOU WANT IN TORONTO MARTIAL ARTS, YOU CAN FIND. Just be patient, and try a bunch of places out.

Also, we need to stop discrediting each other. It will get us nowhere. Sure one guy might have hated Tor BJJ or TKMT, but I bet there is another person who has made that place their family members and long time home. It's all about how your vibe mixes with theirs.

All of the gyms named in my list and the blog are close friends of mine, each one is skilled in their own specific way.

Happy Shopping Martial Artists!