Pickleball Court Dimensions: Size, Kitchen and Lines

Every measurement

Part of the court	Size
Whole court	20 ft wide × 44 ft long (6.10 × 13.41 m)
Each half, net to baseline	22 ft
Non-volley zone (kitchen), each side	7 ft from the net × 20 ft wide
Each service court	10 ft wide × 15 ft deep
Lines	2 in wide, all the same color
Net height	36 in at the sidelines, 34 in at the center
Net posts	22 ft apart, inside to inside (about 12 in outside each sideline)
Space around the court	30 × 60 ft at least; 34 × 64 ft recommended

Singles and doubles use the same court. Unlike tennis, there are no extra alleys for doubles.

How the court is measured

The 20 and 44 feet are measured to the outside edge of the lines. That means the lines are part of the court: a ball that lands on a sideline or baseline is in. The kitchen is measured the same way, and its lines belong to the kitchen, which is why a foot on the kitchen line counts as being in the kitchen.

The centerline runs from the kitchen line back to the baseline on each side and splits the half into a right and a left service court. Each service court is half the width (10 feet) and runs from the kitchen line to the baseline (22 − 7 = 15 feet).

Lines and the serve

A serve has to clear the kitchen and land in the service court diagonally across from the server. That makes one line different from the others on a serve:

• A serve that lands on the kitchen line is a fault. That line is part of the kitchen.
• A serve that lands on the sideline, centerline or baseline of the right service court is in.

After the serve, any ball that lands on any line is in. The line calls page covers who calls the lines and what to do when you aren’t sure.

Room around the court

The rulebook sets the playing area, the court plus the open space around it, at 30 × 60 feet at least. For new courts and tournaments it recommends 34 × 64 feet, and 50 × 80 feet for a stadium court. For wheelchair play, the 2026 rulebook recommends 44 × 74 feet, so there’s room to turn.

On a tennis court

A tennis court is 36 × 78 feet for doubles, so a pickleball court fits inside its lines with room to spare. USA Pickleball’s guide to lining courts says two pickleball courts fit on one tennis court easily, and up to four if you don’t mind it packed. Use a different color from the tennis lines so players can tell them apart.

The tennis net is the catch. It’s 36 inches in the middle and 42 inches at the posts, so it’s 2 inches too high in the middle for pickleball and roughly 3 inches too high where the pickleball sidelines cross it. For a proper game, use a portable pickleball net set to 36 and 34 inches.

Building or lining a court

Mark the court at 20 × 44 feet to the outside of the lines, with the kitchen line 7 feet from the net on each side and the centerline down the middle. Check that it’s square by measuring both diagonals: they should be the same, about 48 feet 4 inches. USA Pickleball and the American Sports Builders Association publish a construction manual for permanent courts.