Is There a Let in Pickleball? Serve Hits the Net (2026)
Is there a let in pickleball? No. A serve that touches the net and lands in the correct service box is live, so you play it (Rule 7.E, 2026 USA Pickleball rulebook). If it lands anywhere else, it's a fault. A rally shot that clips the net also stays in play (Rule 13.A).
In tennis, a serve that touches the net and lands in is replayed. Pickleball used to work that way too, and USA Pickleball dropped it a few years ago. The 2026 rulebook doesn't use the word "let" at all. It says the serve must clear the kitchen "with or without touching the net." The rules page covers the rest of the book.
What happens when a serve hits the net?
It depends only on where the ball lands. The net itself doesn't matter.
| The serve touches the net, then... | Ruling | Rule |
|---|---|---|
| lands in the correct box | In play, no replay | 7.E |
| lands short, in the kitchen | Fault | 7.E.2 |
| lands on the kitchen line | Fault, the line belongs to the kitchen | 3.A.4.c, 8.C |
| lands in the wrong box or out | Fault | 7.E.1 |
| hits a net post first, even if it lands in | Fault | 7.E.3, 13.B.1 |
| hits the receiver or partner before landing | Fault on the receiver, server wins the rally | 7.E.5 |
A fault ends the serve. The serving rules list every serve fault, and the kitchen rules explain why the line counts.
Here's one serve. The ball ticks the top cord and drops four feet past the kitchen line, inside the box. The receiver lets it bounce and the rally goes on. Now take the same serve, but it dribbles over the net and stops five feet from it. That's in the 7-foot kitchen. Fault, and the serve is over.
What about a rally shot that hits the net?
A ball that touches the net, or the cord along the top, stays in play (Rule 13.A). Touching the net isn't a fault by itself. What counts is where the ball ends up. Players are different. You can't touch the net yourself while the ball is live, and the pickleball net rules list those cases with rule numbers.
| The shot... | Ruling | Rule |
|---|---|---|
| clips the cord and drops over | Play on | 13.A |
| clips the net and falls back on your side | Fault on the hitter | 10.C.2 |
| touches a net post before it crosses | Fault on the hitter | 13.B.1 |
| has bounced on your side, then hits a post | Fault on you, the hitter wins | 10.C.5 |
When is a rally replayed?
A replay restarts the rally with no point scored and the same server. Real replays are rare, and none of them is a let. Here are the ones that involve the ball or the net.
| Replay | Rule |
|---|---|
| A return crosses the net and gets caught in it, touches net lying on the ground, or touches a deflecting net | 13.A.1 |
| A return crosses and hits a crossbar or other support inside the court | 13.B.2 |
| The net system fails mid-rally | 13.J |
| A hinder, such as a stray ball from another court. Any player may call it | 9.C.1, 9.C.2 |
| The receiver can't see the serve release, or spin was added on release, and says so before returning | 7.B.3.a, 7.B.2.a |
The full list is Appendix A.2 of the rulebook.
The word turns up in another sense too. "Let the serve bounce" is the two-bounce rule, not a let. And dropping the ball and letting it bounce before you hit it is the drop serve (Rule 7.D).
Do pro events have lets?
Some pro events set their own rule for a serve that clips the net, so check the rulebook of your event. USA Pickleball's rules, which this page follows, have no let.
Next time you serve, stop worrying about the net and aim at the far corner of the box. If it clips the net and drops in, play it. The referee in Pickleball Game rules on a serve that clips the net the same way, so you can see it in a free singles or doubles game against the computer.