Padel is a racket game for pairs, played on an enclosed court 10 metres wide and 20 metres long, where you can play the ball off the walls once it has bounced on your opponents' side. Scoring uses the tennis count of 15, 30, 40 and game, a set goes to the first pair to win 6 games by a margin of 2, and a match is the best of three sets.
Everything here follows the FIP rules, as of November 2026: the International Padel Federation's Rules of Padel, in the version that applies from 1 January 2026. Clubs and casual groups sometimes bend the details for a friendly, so check the house rules before you start. If you've never held a padel racket, my guide to getting started with padel covers finding a court and a partner. This page sticks to the rules.
How a padel point works
Two pairs face each other across a net, one pair on each side. One player serves, and the player diagonally opposite receives. After that the pairs hit the ball alternately, and only one member of a team may play the ball on each return.
You can let the ball bounce once on your side, and you can let it come off your own walls, but it has to go back over the net before it bounces a second time. The point ends when someone can't make a legal return. Win points to win games, games to win sets, and two sets to win the match.
Court, net, ball and racket sizes
The FIP rules set these measurements. You won't need a tape measure to enjoy a game, but they explain why every court you book looks the same.
| What | What the FIP rules say |
|---|---|
| Court | A rectangle 10 metres wide by 20 metres long, measured on the inside |
| Net | 10 metres long, 0.88 metres high at the centre and 0.92 metres at the ends |
| Service lines | 6.95 metres either side of the net, with a central line splitting each half into two service boxes |
| Enclosure at each end | 4 metres high in total: the first 3 metres are wall and the last 1 metre is metal fence |
| Ball | Rubber, 6.35 to 6.77 cm across, weighing 56.0 to 59.4 grams |
| Racket length | No more than 45.5 centimetres in total, head plus handle |
| Safety cord | Non-elastic, a maximum of 35 cm, fixed to the handle and worn round the wrist |
The ball can be white, yellow or another colour that contrasts with the court surface. The racket has no strings: its hitting surface is perforated with holes. And the wrist cord isn't optional. The rules make it obligatory, and it matters for scoring too, as you'll see further down.
Pairs, the coin toss and changing ends
A flip of a coin decides the ends and who serves first. The winners of the toss can choose to serve or receive first, choose which side of the court to start on, or ask the other pair to choose first.
The receiver can stand anywhere on their half of the court, and so can the receiver's partner and the server's partner. Before each set, each pair decides which player serves first in that set, and that order can't change until the next set.
Players change sides after the 1st, the 3rd and every later odd game of the set. In a tie-break, you change after every 6 points. Between points, the rules allow a maximum of 20 seconds, so a long chat about the last rally isn't really on.
Serving: bounce, hit low, land it diagonally
Every point starts with a serve, and you get two chances. Here's the order the FIP rules set out:
- Stand with one foot behind the service line, between the imaginary extension of the central line and the sidewall. Don't touch the service line or the imaginary central line.
- Bounce the ball on the ground.
- Hit it at or below waist level, with at least one foot in contact with the ground.
- Send it diagonally over the net into the opposite service box. The lines count as good.
- Serve from the right side first, then alternate sides after each point.
A serve is a fault if it bounces outside the receiver's service box, hits the server or the server's partner, or if the server misses the ball. It's also a fault if it bounces in the box and then touches the metal fence before its second bounce. Two faults in a row lose the point.
If the serve clips the net or posts and lands in the right box, it's a net serve and a let is replayed. A let on the first serve means the whole point is replayed with two serves. A let on the second serve means only the second serve is played again.
Playing the ball off the walls
This is the rule that makes padel feel different, and the one beginners get wrong most. A ball that bounces on your opponents' side and then hits their wall or fence is still in play. They can wait for it to come off the wall and return it, as long as they do it before the second bounce.
What you can't do is hit the ball straight into their wall or fence. If your return, either directly or after coming off your own walls, hits the opponents' walls or fence without bouncing on their ground first, you lose the point. So the order is everything: their ground first, then their wall, and the ball's live.
The fence catch is worth repeating because it flips between serve and rally. On a serve, a ball that lands in the box and touches the metal fence before its second bounce is a fault. In open play, the same contact is fine once the ball has bounced on the other side.
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Ways to lose a padel point
- The ball bounces twice on your side before you return it.
- You hit the ball twice on one shot (a double hit).
- You or your racket touch the net, the net posts or the opponents' court while the ball's in play.
- Your return hits their walls or fence before it has bounced on their ground.
- You hit the ball before it has come over the net to your side.
- You drop your racket or break the safety cord during a point.
- You serve two faults in a row.
The racket one surprises people. Losing grip mid-rally isn't just embarrassing: the rules say a player who drops the racket or breaks the cord during a point loses that point straight away.
Games, sets, tie-breaks and deciding points
A game uses the tennis count: 15, 30, 40 and game. The FIP rules then give three ways to settle a game when both pairs reach three points, and the event decides which one you use.
| Option | What happens when it's three points each |
|---|---|
| Advantage | It's deuce. The next point wins advantage, and the same pair has to win the following point to take the game |
| Star Point | Play goes to deuce 1 and advantage 1, then deuce 2 and advantage 2. At deuce 3 a single deciding point, the Star Point, settles the game |
| Golden point | A single deciding point is played straight away at the first deuce, and whoever wins it takes the game |
In both deciding-point options, the receiving pair chooses which side to receive on, and the pair can't swap positions for that point. In a mixed match, the player receiving the deciding point is the same sex as the server.
A set goes to the first pair to win 6 games with a lead of at least 2. At 5 games all, two more games are played so a set can finish 7-5. At 6 games all, it's a tie-break, won by the first pair to 7 points with a 2 point lead. The player due to serve starts the tie-break with one serve from the right side, and after that each player serves two points in a row.
The match is the best of three sets. The rules also list shorter formats an organiser can choose: a four-game mini set, a 7-point tie-break instead of a deciding set, or a 10-point super tie-break instead of a deciding set.
My verdict on learning padel
I'd learn three things before your first game: the bounce-then-hit-low serve into the diagonal box, the ground-first-then-wall rule on their side, and the 15, 30, 40 count you'll know from tennis scoring. Those cover nearly every argument a new group has.
I'd skip the Star Point, the mini set and the super tie-break until you're entered into a club event or league that uses them. The organisers will tell you which option applies. And wear the wrist cord every single time: a dropped racket costs the point. If you're coming over from squash, the big adjustment is that here the ball has to bounce on the floor before it can use the walls on the far side.
Frequently asked questions
How big is a padel court?
A padel court is a rectangle 10 metres wide by 20 metres long, measured on the inside, with a net across the middle and the service lines 6.95 metres either side of the net.
How do you score a padel game?
The count is 15, 30, 40 and game. The first pair to win 6 games with a lead of 2 wins the set, a tie-break is played at 6 games all, and the match is the best of three sets.
Can you hit the ball off the walls in padel?
Yes, but only after the ball has bounced on your opponents' side. A ball that bounces on their ground and then hits their wall or fence is still in play, and must be returned before its second bounce.
What is the golden point in padel?
It's one of three scoring options. At three points each (deuce) a single deciding point is played, the receiving pair chooses which side to receive on, and whoever wins that point wins the game.
How do you serve in padel?
Bounce the ball and hit it at or below waist height with at least one foot on the ground and behind the service line, sending it diagonally over the net into the opposite service box. You get a second serve if the first is a fault.
