Padel's rules are simpler than they look from the outside. If you've ever played tennis, you already know most of it. If you haven't, don't worry — most first-timers are playing real points within their first ten minutes on court. Here's everything you need.
How scoring works
Padel uses the same point system as tennis: 0 (love), 15, 30, 40, game. If both teams reach 40, it's called deuce, and you need to win by two clear points to take the game. Games are grouped into sets (first to 6 games, win by two), and a full match is normally best of three sets. Matches are almost always doubles.
How to serve
The serve in padel is hit underarm, not overhead like tennis. The ball must bounce once inside the server's own service box before being hit, and the serve is struck below waist height, diagonally into the opponent's service box. You get one fault before losing the point — same as tennis, just underarm.
The wall rule (this is the big one)
This is padel's signature rule: after the ball bounces once on the ground on your side, you're allowed to let it rebound off your own back or side wall before hitting it back. It can't touch a wall before it bounces on the ground — the sequence has to be ground first, then wall. Balls that go over the fence on the opponent's side and come back into play off an exterior structure are typically playable too, depending on the specific court and local rules, but the basic ground-then-wall sequence is universal.
Common faults
- The ball bounces twice on your side before you return it
- Your return lands outside the court boundaries
- The ball hits a wall before bouncing on the ground first
- A serve lands outside the diagonal service box
- The ball goes over the perimeter fencing without landing in play first
Doubles positioning
Because padel is (almost) always doubles, positioning matters a lot. The standard setup has each team with one player covering the left half of the court and one covering the right, both generally trying to move up toward the net together as a team once the point allows it — net position is where points are usually won in padel, similar to doubles tennis.
Ready to play?
That's genuinely most of what you need — the scoring is tennis, the serve is underarm, and the wall rule is ground-first. For technique, grip and a full training breakdown once you've got the rules down, read our guide on how to play padel from basics to pro-level preparation.
