How to play

The court, the serve, the score. Get the feel before your first game.

Book our courts

FirstGameStarts here.

Two friends playing pickleball together
Start
here
01 / The first rally

Your quick start

Small court.
Big good times.

A paddle, a ball, a few friends. That’s all it takes to get started. Let’s get you from “never played” to your first rally.

Get to know the court
An orange-edged pickleball paddle and a perforated ballNo experience
required.

The essentials

A paddle

A solid face. A light grip. You’re good to go.

A pickleball

Lightweight, full of holes, made for a good rally.

Court shoes

Supportive, non-marking, ready for side steps.

01 / The playing fieldSame court. Singles or doubles.

Meet your
court.

Small enough to learn your way around. Big enough for a very good game.

20 × 44feet · singles or doubles
Your pickleball court, from aboveThe court is 44 feet long and 20 feet wide. Four blue service boxes sit behind two orange kitchen zones. Each kitchen extends seven feet from the net.44 FT20 FT123SERVICE BOXSERVICE BOX7 FT
44 ft long20 ft wide7 ft kitchen
1

Service boxes

Serve diagonally into the opposite box, beyond the kitchen line.

2

Meet the kitchen

The 7-foot zone on either side of the net. No hitting the ball out of the air here.

3

The net

The net is 36 inches at the sidelines and 34 inches at the centre.

02 / How a rally beginsOne bounce on each side.

Two bounces.
Then it’s on.

Before anyone volleys, the serve must bounce and the return must bounce. After that? Find your rhythm.

Volley / hitting the ball before it bounces.

One bounce on each side before volleysAn orange path shows the serve travelling diagonally from behind the baseline to the opposite service box, where it bounces. A dark path shows the return bouncing on the serving side. Then the rally opens up.12SERVINGTEAMRECEIVINGTEAM01 — SERVE + BOUNCE02 — RETURN + BOUNCE
Follow the paths: serve first, return second.
  1. 01

    Serve.

    Start behind the baseline. Serve diagonally, clear the kitchen, and let the ball land in the opposite service box.

  2. 02

    Return.

    The receiving team lets the serve bounce, then hits it back. The serving team lets that return bounce too.

  3. 03

    Rally!

    Now you can volley or play after a bounce. Keep it going, and remember the kitchen rule.

Make your first serve simple.Try a drop serve: release the ball naturally, let it bounce, then hit it. No throwing or pushing it down.
03 / Keep scoreAgree on your format before you play.

Make every
point count.

Start with traditional scoring. Once you’ve got the feel, try a rally-scoring game with your group.

Traditional doubles

Only the serving team scores.

Usually to 11 · win by 2

Say it before you serve
4Your team’s
score
2Their team’s
score
1Server number
(1 or 2)
“Four, two, one.”
Serving team wins5–2–1
Serving team loses4–2–2

After both partners lose their serve, it’s the other team’s turn. The first service turn of a game starts at 0–0–2.

A casual rally-scoring option

Every rally earns a point.

Pick a target together · agree how to win

A simpler way to count
0–0Before the rally
1–0After you win
Win the rally. Add a point.
Serving team wins+1
Receiving team wins+1

Rally formats have different serving and winning rules. Choose one together before you start; check the event rules for organised play.

Your courtside cheat sheet

A little less thinking.
A lot more playing.

Keep these three in your back pocket.

Mind the kitchen.

Let it bounce before hitting from inside the zone.

Give it two bounces.

One after the serve. One after the return.

Call the score first.

Make sure everyone’s on the same page.

All set? We’ll see you on court.

Your first game
starts here.

Bring your curiosity. Start with a few gentle rallies. The rest comes one good game at a time.

Book a court
Two friends ready to enjoy a game of pickleball
Good games start with good company.

Wait until everyone’s ready. Give close calls the benefit of the doubt. Wait for a break before crossing another court.

A beginner’s starting point. For complete rules and organised play, see USA Pickleball’s rules summary.

See you at Pop & Paddle.