Pickleball vs Paddle Tennis: How They Differ
Pickleball vs paddle tennis is partly a mix-up of names. Paddle tennis is its own sport, and so are padel and platform tennis. Paddle tennis uses a 50 by 20 foot court, a 31 inch net and a punctured tennis ball. Pickleball uses a 44 by 20 foot court, a 7 foot kitchen and a perforated ball.
Pickleball figures come from the 2026 USA Pickleball rulebook and its Equipment Standards Manual. The others come from each sport's own rules, named in the tables. The rules page covers the pickleball book.
Which sport do you mean?
The names overlap. The American Platform Tennis Association's rules say platform tennis is "often referred to as" paddle tennis. Wikipedia reports that paddle tennis was rebranded POP Tennis in 2015 and 2016. Padel is a third sport again. Here are the four on court and net.
| Sport | Court | Net, centre | Walls |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pickleball | 20 x 44 ft (Rule 3.A.1) | 34 in (Rule 3.B.7) | None |
| Paddle tennis | 50 x 20 ft, service lines 3 ft inside the baselines (POP Tennis Rules, Rule 1) | 31 in, the same across the whole width (Rule 1) | Fence at least 10 ft high (Rule 1) |
| Platform tennis | 44 x 20 ft court on a 60 x 30 ft deck (APTA Rule 1a) | 34 in; 37 in at the posts (Rule 1b) | 12 ft screens, in play after a bounce (Rules 1a, 14s) |
| Padel | 10 x 20 m, or 32.8 x 65.6 ft (FIP, The Court) | 0.88 m, or 34.6 in (FIP, The Net) | Glass and mesh, in play after a bounce (FIP Rule 12) |
Now the ball, the bat, the serve and the score.
| Sport | Ball and bat | Serve | Scoring |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pickleball | Perforated ball, 2.87 to 2.97 in. Solid paddle, length plus width at most 24 in, no weight limit (Manual 2.D.3, Rules 3.D.2, 3.D.3) | Volley or drop serve, one try; may touch the net and stay in play (Rules 7.C, 7.D, 7.E) | Only the server scores; to 11, win by 2 (Rule 4.A, Part I) |
| Paddle tennis | Tennis ball with its pressure let out, bouncing 31 to 33 in from 6 ft. Solid paddle, no strings, about 9.5 x 18.5 in at most (Rule 1) | One try, hit no higher than 31 in off the ground; touching the net is a let (Rules 5, 11) | 15, 30, 40, game; sets of 6 games (Rules 22, 23) |
| Platform tennis | Rubber flocked ball, 2.4 to 2.5 in, 2.4 to 2.7 oz. Paddle up to 18 x 12 in, up to 500 g (Appendices A, B) | One try in doubles, two in singles; no service let (Rules 9g, 9h, 18) | Love, 15, 30, 40, game; sets of 6 games (Rule 6) |
| Padel | Rubber ball, 6.35 to 6.77 cm. Perforated racket, 45.5 cm long at most (FIP) | Bounce, then hit at or below the waist; two tries (FIP Rule 6) | Tennis count, sets of 6 games (FIP Rule 1) |
Padel gets one row here. The pickleball vs padel page has the full padel table.
What is different about paddle tennis?
Paddle tennis is a tennis-style game on a smaller court with a solid paddle. Against pickleball the court is 6 feet longer, the net is 3 inches lower at the centre (34 in minus 31 in), and the ball is a tennis ball. There's no kitchen, and the scoring is tennis scoring instead of points to 11.
The serve is the other big gap. A paddle tennis serve gets one try and a net touch is a let, which means a replay. Pickleball has no let on the serve. A serve that touches the net and lands in the right box is simply in play (Rule 7.E).
One caution. The only paddle tennis rules we found are published as POP Tennis Rules, the same game's new name, in an undated PDF on poptennisusa.com. The figures above are that document's. If your club uses another rulebook, check it.
Platform tennis is the odd twin
A platform tennis court is the same size as a pickleball court: 44 by 20 feet, with a 34 inch net at the centre. It sits on a 60 by 30 foot deck, which is the footprint of pickleball's minimum playing surface (30 by 60 feet, Rule 3.A.3).
The likeness ends there. Platform tennis is played inside 12 foot screens. The net is 37 inches at the posts, the ball is a flocked rubber one, and the paddle can weigh up to 500 grams. Pickleball puts no weight limit on a paddle.
Is padel paddle tennis?
No. Padel has its own international federation and a 10 by 20 metre enclosed court. The padel page has the rest.
A quick way to tell them apart
Look at the walls and the net. No walls and a net 34 inches high at the centre: pickleball. Screens 12 feet high: platform tennis. A net 31 inches high across the whole width: paddle tennis. Glass walls and a perforated racket: padel.
If you meant padel, go to the padel comparison. To see how pickleball's size compares with tennis, read pickleball vs tennis or the court dimensions. For badminton, racquetball, squash and table tennis, pickleball vs other racket sports sets all of them side by side. To try pickleball itself, play a game against the computer.