A quick guide to the court, the serve, and how points work.
On this page
01
The court
A pickleball court is 20 ft wide and 44 ft long, same size for singles and doubles. A net crosses the middle. The shaded strip 7 ft on each side of the net is the non-volley zone, better known as the kitchen.
Playing areaKitchen (7 ft each side)Net
02
Serving
The serve is made underhand, with contact below the waist.
Serve diagonally (cross-court) into the opposite service box.
The serve must clear the kitchen. It cannot land in the kitchen or on the kitchen line.
The first serve of the game starts from the right side.
After scoring a point, the same server switches sides and serves again.
The serve always travels diagonally to the box across the net and on the far side.
03
The two-bounce rule
After the serve, the ball must bounce once on each side before anyone is allowed to hit it in the air:
1. The serve bounces in the receiving team's box, then they return it.
2. The serving team lets that return bounce once, then plays it.
3. After those two bounces, either side may volley (hit it before it bounces).
This rule stops the serving team from rushing the net for an instant smash, so rallies last longer.
04
The kitchen (non-volley zone)
The kitchen is the 7 ft zone on each side of the net. You cannot volley (hit the ball out of the air) while standing in it, or while your momentum carries you into it.
You may step into the kitchen any time to play a ball that has bounced.
You must fully exit the kitchen before volleying again.
Touching the kitchen line during a volley is a fault.
05
How a point is scored
Only the serving team can score a point. If the serving team wins the rally, they get a point and serve again from the other side. If the receiving team wins the rally, no point is scored, but the serve passes over (a side-out).
A rally is won when the other team:
Hits the ball out of bounds,
Hits the ball into the net,
Volleys from inside the kitchen, or
Breaks the two-bounce rule.
In this app you just tap the team that won the rally. The big number is their running score, and the gold border shows who served last.
06
Calling the score
In doubles, the score is called as three numbers before each serve, for example "5–3–2":
The third number tells you whether the first or second partner is serving. When the first server's team loses the rally, the serve moves to the second partner. After both partners lose a serve, it is a side-out and the other team serves.
Keeping this app open means you never have to remember the call. Tap to track the running score, and read it off the board.
07
Faults
A fault ends the rally. Common faults:
Hitting the ball out of bounds or into the net.
Volleying the ball while standing in the kitchen.
Volleying the ball before it has bounced once on each side after the serve.
The serve landing in the kitchen or missing the correct box.
The ball bouncing twice before it is returned.
08
Winning the game
Games are usually played to 11 points, win by 2. Tournament matches sometimes go to 15 or 21, still win by 2. This app lets you pick 11, 15, or 21 on the setup screen and shows a winner automatically once a team is 2 points clear.