Pickleball is quick to learn, but a few rules make the game genuinely different from tennis or padel. The two-bounce rule and the kitchen are the two that trip up new players most often. Below are all the rules in one place.
The court and the equipment
A pickleball court is 13.41 by 6.10 metres, the same size as a badminton court for doubles. The net sits at 0.86 metres in the middle. You play with a solid paddle and a light plastic ball with holes in it. The same court is used for both singles and doubles.
The serve
The serve is underhand and diagonal, from behind the baseline into the opposite service box. In the classic serve you strike the ball out of the air below hip height. The drop serve, where you let the ball bounce first, is also allowed. The serve has to land beyond the kitchen, otherwise it is a fault.
The two-bounce rule
This is the most important rule for new players. After the serve the ball has to bounce once on the receiving side, and then once again on the serving side, before either team is allowed to hit it out of the air (a volley). Only after those two bounces can you start volleying. It stops the serving team from rushing straight to the net.
The kitchen (non-volley zone)
The kitchen is the 2.13 metre zone on either side of the net. You are not allowed to hit the ball out of the air inside that zone. You can stand in it to play a ball that has bounced, but volleying from the kitchen, or stepping into it on your momentum during a volley, is a fault. This rule keeps the game tactical instead of nothing but smashing at the net.
Scoring
The classic method is side-out scoring: only the serving team can score a point. You play to 11 points, with a margin of at least 2 points. In doubles the score is called with three numbers: the serving team's score, the receiving team's score, and whether you are the first or second server. Many social tournaments now use rally scoring, where every rally counts, to keep matches shorter and more predictable.
The most common faults
- The ball hits the net and drops on the wrong side, or goes out.
- Volleying from the kitchen or stepping into it on your momentum.
- Breaking the two-bounce rule by volleying too early.
- A serve that lands in the kitchen.
Singles and doubles
The rules are largely the same, but doubles is by far the most popular. The small court makes doubles social and tactical, with plenty of play around the kitchen. Singles is physically tougher and demands more running.
Done with the rules? See how levels and skill ratings work, how to run a pickleball americano, or read the broader beginner's guide to pickleball.
