Pickleball Court Layout
Understanding court dimensions, zones, and line markings
📏Court Dimensions
Standard Court Size
Same size as badminton court!
Much smaller than tennis (78' × 36'), making it perfect for quick games and smaller venues.
Court Layout Diagram
🍳The Kitchen (Non-Volley Zone)
The most important area to understand in pickleball. This 7-foot zone on each side of the net prevents players from dominating the game with aggressive net play.
🚫 Kitchen Rules
- • Cannot hit ball out of the air (volley) while in the Kitchen
- • Cannot step in Kitchen during or after a volley
- • Kitchen line is part of the Kitchen (touching = in)
- • Momentum cannot carry you into Kitchen after volley
✅ What You CAN Do
- • Hit balls that bounce in the Kitchen
- • Stand in Kitchen while ball bounces
- • Walk through Kitchen when not playing ball
- • Re-establish position outside before volleying
💡 Kitchen Strategy Tips
Positioning:
- • Stand just behind Kitchen line
- • Move up for dinks (soft shots)
- • Step back for defensive shots
Shot Selection:
- • Use dinks to draw opponents forward
- • Wait for balls that pop up to attack
- • Be patient - let opponents make errors
🎯Service Areas
Each side of the court has two service areas, divided by the centerline. Understanding these zones is crucial for legal serving.
Service Court Dimensions
- Each service court: 15ft × 10ft
- Distance from baseline to Kitchen: 15 feet
- Four total service courts (2 per side)
Serving Direction
- →Always serve diagonally cross-court
- →Right service court to right service court
- →Left service court to left service court
⚠️ Service Faults
Target Faults:
- • Serving to wrong service court
- • Ball lands in Kitchen/NVZ
- • Ball lands out of bounds
- • Ball hits net
Position Faults:
- • Stepping on/over baseline
- • Serving from wrong position
- • Foot fault during serve
- • Serving out of turn
📐Court Lines & Markings
Baselines
Back boundaries of court (44ft apart)
Sidelines
Side boundaries of court (20ft apart)
Centerline
Divides left/right service courts
Service Line
7ft from net, Kitchen boundary
Kitchen Line
Non-volley zone boundary
Net Line
Center court division
📋 Line Rules
- •All lines are IN - if ball touches any part of line, it's good
- •Kitchen line exception - touching Kitchen line during volley is a fault
- •Line width - typically 2 inches wide, usually white or yellow
- •Close calls - benefit of doubt goes to opponent if you can't clearly see
🏗️Court Setup & Surfaces
Common Court Surfaces
Outdoor Courts
Concrete, asphalt, or sport court surfaces with weather-resistant lines
Indoor Courts
Wood, vinyl, or rubber surfaces with gym-style line markings
Temporary Courts
Tennis courts with portable nets and tape lines
Setup Requirements
- •Clearance: 10ft minimum around court
- •Net height: 36" at posts, 34" at center
- •Net length: 22ft wide with 6" extensions
- •Surface: Level, non-slip, good drainage
- •Lighting: Uniform, shadow-free (indoor)
Ready to Learn the Rules?
Now that you understand the court layout, learn the official rules and scoring
