Is the padel serve underarm?

Yes, in effect. You bounce the ball first, then hit it at or below your waist, with at least one foot on the ground.

Can you hit the glass in padel?

Yes, as long as the ball has already bounced on that side. It can come off your glass and you play it, and you can hit it into your own glass to send it back over. What you can't do is hit their glass or mesh before the ball has bounced on their side.

Can the serve hit the glass?

Yes. After it bounces in the box, the serve can hit the glass and the point carries on. If it hits the mesh instead, it's a fault.

Can you volley in padel?

Yes, except when you're returning a serve: that has to bounce first.

Is padel scored like tennis?

Yes: 15, 30, 40, game, sets to six games with a tie-break at 6–6, and usually best of three sets. The rules also allow a golden point at deuce instead of advantage.

What if the ball gets stuck in the mesh?

If it bounced on that side first and then goes through a hole in the mesh, sticks in it, or ends up on top of the wall, the point goes to the pair who hit it.

Who makes the rules of padel?

The International Padel Federation (FIP). In Britain, the LTA is padel's national governing body and plays its competitions under the FIP rules.

Padel rules: how to play, serve and score

Padel is played two against two, on a court with glass walls and wire mesh around it. The rules are close to tennis, plus the walls. Here's how a point works, from the official rulebook, in plain English.

Updated 20 October 2026, from the International Padel Federation's Rules of Padel (2026 edition), which LTA competitions use.

The serve: bounce the ball, hit it at or below the waist, diagonally into the box opposite. Two tries. The rally: your shot must land on their side before it touches their walls. After one bounce it can come off the glass, and they hit it back before it bounces again. The score: 15, 30, 40, game, and sets to six games, just like tennis.

How to serve in padel

Every point starts with a serve, and you get two tries, as in tennis.

Stand behind the service line, between the centre line and the side wall, without touching either line until you've hit the ball. The first point of each game is served from the right-hand side, then you swap sides after every point.
Bounce the ball on the ground behind the service line, on the side you're serving from.
Hit it at or below waist height, so in practice underarm, with at least one foot on the ground.
Serve diagonally, over the net and into the service box opposite. The lines count as in.

When the serve is a fault

It lands outside the box opposite.
It bounces in the box, then hits the mesh before bouncing again. Hitting the glass after the bounce is fine: the point carries on.
You miss the ball, or break one of the rules above.
It hits you or your partner.

Two faults in a row lose the point. If the serve clips the net and still lands in the right box, it's a let and you take that serve again. If it clips the net and then hits the mesh, it's a fault.

Taking turns to serve and receive

Each player serves a whole game, and the pairs take turns. At the start of each set, each pair decides which of them serves first and who receives first, and keeps that order for the whole set. So each of you always receives on the same side.

The receiver must let the serve bounce before hitting it: no volleying the return. If the serve hits the receiver or their partner before it bounces, the point goes to the serving pair.

The walls: when the ball can hit the glass

This is the part that's new if you've played tennis. The short version: your shot must bounce on their side before it touches their walls.

In playIt lands first, then hits the glass. They can still hit it back before it bounces again.

Point lostIt counts as out. The same goes for their mesh.

AllowedYou can send the ball into your own glass so it rebounds over. Off your own mesh, it's your point lost.

In play: your shot bounces on their side, then hits their glass, their mesh or both. They can still hit it back, as long as it hasn't bounced a second time.
Point lost: your shot hits their glass or mesh before it bounces.
Allowed: playing the ball off your own glass, so it goes back over the net. It's a normal way to get out of trouble.
Not allowed: your shot touching the mesh, or the floor, on your own side on its way over.
Volleys: you can hit the ball before it bounces, except on the return of serve.

The lines only matter on the serve. During a rally the walls are the edge of the court, so there's no line to call out.

When the ball leaves the court

If your shot bounces on their side and then leaves the court, over the walls or out through a door, you win the point. Some courts have room around them for out-of-court play: then, if the ball goes out through a door or over a side wall, the other pair can run out and hit it back before it bounces again. A ball that goes out over the back wall still wins you the point. It depends on the court (the rulebook asks for clear space outside and two openings on each side), so in a friendly game, agree it before you start.

How padel scoring works

Exactly like tennis.

Points: 15, 30, 40, game. At 40–40 it's deuce, and you need two points in a row to win the game: advantage, then game.
Sets: first to six games, two clear. At 5–5 you play on to 7–5. At 6–6 there's a tie-break.
Tie-break: first to seven points, two clear, and the set goes 7–6. The player due to serve takes one point, then each player serves two in turn. Change ends every six points.
Match: best of three sets.
Changing ends: after the first game, the third, and every odd game after that.

The golden point, and the star point

The rules offer a quicker way to finish a game, the golden point: at deuce, the next point wins it. The receiving pair choose whether to take that serve on the right or the left. In mixed games, the player receiving must be the same sex as the server.

The rulebook also has the star point, in between: a game can go to deuce and advantage twice, and if it reaches deuce a third time, one deciding point settles it.

Shorter formats

For less court time, the rules allow sets to four games, with a tie-break at 4–4, or a tie-break instead of the third set: first to 7 points, or a "super tie-break" first to 10, two clear either way.

Ways to lose a point

As well as letting the ball bounce twice or hitting it into the net, you lose the point if:

your shot hits their glass or mesh before it bounces, or touches your own mesh or floor on the way
you, your racket or your clothes touch the net or the posts, or the other side of the court, while the ball is in play
you hit the ball before it has crossed the net
the ball touches you, your partner or anything you're wearing (only the racket counts)
you hit the ball twice, or you and your partner both hit it
you throw your racket at the ball
you drop your racket, or the wrist cord breaks: your pair loses the point there and then

When a point is played again

A point is replayed, a let, if the ball splits, something comes onto the court, or something else unexpected stops play. If your shot hits a stray ball lying on their side, it still counts, unless that ball moves and could get in the way or hurt someone. Then it's a let.

Putting an opponent off as they play a shot is interference. If it's deliberate, they win the point. If it's accidental, the point is replayed, but a second accidental one by the same pair loses the point.

The court, the net and the kit

The court from above, to scaleThick lines: glass. Dashed: mesh. The serve goes diagonally, from behind the service line into the box opposite, and must bounce in it.

Court: 20 m long and 10 m wide, inside the walls.
Net: 88 cm high in the middle, 92 cm at the posts.
Lines: A service line 6.95 m from the net on each side, and a centre line between them. Those are the only lines.
Walls: At each end, 3 m of glass or solid wall with 1 m of mesh on top. Along the sides, wall or glass for the first 4 m from each end, mesh in the middle.
Racket: No strings. At most 45.5 cm long, 26 cm wide and 38 mm thick, with a wrist cord you must wear. How to choose one.
Ball: 6.35 to 6.77 cm across, 56 to 59.4 g, with lower pressure than a tennis ball. Padel balls explained.

Before a friendly: agree these first

Our suggestion, not a rule: settle a few things before the first serve, so nobody's arguing at 40–40.

Advantage or golden point at deuce.
How long you're playing for. If the court's booked for an hour, a super tie-break instead of a third set means you finish.
Out-of-court play, yes or no, if the court has the room.
Who serves first. The rulebook says toss a coin: the winners choose to serve or receive, or which end to start at.

In competitions

The rules are written by the International Padel Federation (FIP). The LTA, padel's national governing body in Britain, uses them for its competitions. Matches add some timings: a 3-minute warm-up, 20 seconds between points, 90 seconds at a change of ends (none after the first game of a set, or during a tie-break) and 2 minutes between sets. A pair that isn't on court 10 minutes after the start time can lose the match.

Questions people ask

Is the padel serve underarm?: Yes, in effect. You bounce the ball first, then hit it at or below your waist, with at least one foot on the ground.
Can you hit the glass in padel?: Yes, as long as the ball has already bounced on that side. It can come off your glass and you play it, and you can hit it into your own glass to send it back over. What you can't do is hit their glass or mesh before the ball has bounced on their side.
Can the serve hit the glass?: Yes. After it bounces in the box, the serve can hit the glass and the point carries on. If it hits the mesh instead, it's a fault.
Can you volley in padel?: Yes, except when you're returning a serve: that has to bounce first.
Is padel scored like tennis?: Yes: 15, 30, 40, game, sets to six games with a tie-break at 6–6, and usually best of three sets. The rules also allow a golden point at deuce instead of advantage.
What if the ball gets stuck in the mesh?: If it bounced on that side first and then goes through a hole in the mesh, sticks in it, or ends up on top of the wall, the point goes to the pair who hit it.
Who makes the rules of padel?: The International Padel Federation (FIP). In Britain, the LTA is padel's national governing body and plays its competitions under the FIP rules.