Understanding & Finding Your Level!

Your level isn’t about how many years you’ve played. It’s about what you can consistently execute when the game gets faster, more structured, and more demanding. Levels help create better—and safer—volleyball. When athletes are appropriately matched, rallies last longer, teammates can rely on each other, and everyone gets the quality of play they signed up for. When the gap is too wide, the game can break down quickly and the risk of collisions or injuries increases.

These classifications are commonly used across volleyball leagues, tournaments, and pickup communities. Exact definitions may vary, so rate yourself against the skills below—not against the players you happen to play with.

  • Beginner | Recreational: Still learning the game and developing basic ball control. The focus is keeping the ball alive, learning court movement, and beginning to understand three-touch volleyball.

  • B | Developing: Beyond the true beginner stage, but still building consistency. Understands basic positioning, can sustain rallies, and attempts three touches, but passing, setting, hitting, and serving may still break down regularly.

  • BB | Intermediate: Can execute all core skills and understands where to be on the court. Plays within basic systems such as a 4–2 or 5–1 and is beginning to specialize by position. The biggest separator within BB is consistency: lower BB athletes are still mastering their roles, while upper BB athletes execute them more reliably at a faster pace.

  • A | Upper Intermediate–Advanced: Consistently performs the skills required for their position at game speed. Reads the court earlier, understands offensive and defensive systems, and can contribute reliably in serve receive, transition, attack, blocking, or setting depending on their role.

  • AA | Advanced/Competitive: Highly experienced, position-specific athletes who execute with speed, power, efficiency, and control. Reads develop quickly, adjustments happen naturally, and high-level offensive and defensive systems are second nature.

  • Open | Highest Competitive Level: Elite-level competition. Athletes perform with exceptional precision, athleticism, and decision-making against top competition, often with extensive collegiate, semi-professional, or professional experience.

Not Sure Where You Fall?
That’s normal. Most athletes are stronger in some parts of the game than others, and many sit somewhere between two levels. This isn’t about the label. It’s about choosing the environment where you can compete, contribute, and actually get better. Answer a few quick questions about your game, track your A’s, B’s, and C’s—choosing what best reflects what you can do consistently in a game.