Pickleball Court Dimensions Explained in Feet and Meters

A pickleball court is 20 feet wide by 44 feet long, which is 6.10 by 13.41 meters, and those numbers do not change between singles and doubles. The net sits 36 inches high at the sidelines and 34 inches at the center, or 0.91 and 0.86 meters.

Everything else on the court is measured off those two lines.

The Full Measurement Set

• Court: 20 ft by 44 ft (6.10 m by 13.41 m), measured to the outside of the lines
• Non-volley zone, the kitchen: 7 ft from the net on each side (2.13 m)
• Service courts: 10 ft wide by 15 ft deep each (3.05 m by 4.57 m)
• Net height: 36 in at the posts, 34 in at center (0.91 m and 0.86 m)
• Line width: 2 in (5.1 cm), included inside the court measurement

There is no separate service line at the back. The baseline is the service boundary.

How Much Space You Actually Need

The playing surface is 20 by 44, but you cannot build a usable court in exactly that footprint. USA Pickleball lists a minimum total area of 30 by 60 feet and prefers 34 by 64 feet for tournament play.

For a home court, 30 by 60 feet is the number to measure your driveway or yard against. That gives you 5 feet behind each baseline and 5 feet outside each sideline.

Overhead clearance matters too. Indoor venues generally want 18 to 20 feet above the surface so lobs stay playable.

The Kitchen Is the Line That Trips People Up

The 7-foot non-volley zone runs the full 20-foot width and includes its own line. Touching that line while volleying is a fault.

Momentum counts as well. Carrying yourself into the zone after a volley is still a fault even if contact happened behind the line.

Marking a Court Yourself

Set the two baselines and two sidelines first, then check the diagonals. Both diagonals on a correct 20 by 44 rectangle measure about 48.3 feet, and if they disagree, the court is skewed.

Chalk works for a one-off game. Painter’s tape survives a session or two on a driveway, and court tape or paint is what lasts a season.

Converting an existing surface is the common route, and a single tennis court fits several pickleball courts with the right layout. The steps in how to convert a tennis court into a pickleball court cover the net height problem too.

Nets and Portable Setups

Portable nets are the practical answer for shared or temporary space. Measure the actual height at the center after tensioning, since plenty of portable systems sag below 34 inches.

Driveway play brings its own constraints around slope and surface, which the best portable pickleball net for driveway courts guide handles. For a permanent backyard setup, a heavier freestanding frame holds tension better than a folding one, and the best portable pickleball net roundup breaks down the tradeoffs.