Pickleball rules for beginners
The official text is the USA Pickleball Official Rulebook (PDF). The basic rules summary is the short version of the same organization. This page is the handful of rules that decide a rec game.
The court and the net
A standard court is 20 feet wide and 44 feet long for singles and doubles. The net is 36 inches high at the sidelines and 34 inches high at the center. Each end has a non-volley zone 7 feet deep. All lines that bound that zone are part of the zone.
The serve
You serve diagonally into the opposite service court. The ball has to clear the kitchen and land in the correct box. On a volley serve, the paddle has to be moving upward, the paddle head must not be above your wrist, and the ball must not be above your waist when you hit it. A drop serve is the other legal motion: you drop the ball and hit it after it bounces, without propelling the ball on the way down. In singles, you start on the right when your score is even, and on the left when it is odd.
Two bounces, then anything
The receiver has to let the serve bounce. The serving side then has to let that return bounce. After those two bounces, either side may volley or play a groundstroke. Hitting the ball before the required bounce is a fault. Letting the ball bounce twice on your side is a fault.
The kitchen
You can stand in the kitchen. You cannot hit a volley while touching it. If you volley from behind the line and your momentum carries you, your paddle, or your hat into the zone, that is still a fault, even if the ball is already dead. A ball that lands on a line is in, except a serve that lands on the kitchen line, which is short. The dink guide is the soft shot people hit into this zone once the two bounces are done.
Scoring
Standard scoring gives a point only to the serving side, and only if that side wins the rally. A typical game in the rulebook's introduction is the first to 11, with a lead of at least 2. Tournament sections also list games to 15 or 21, still win by two. Call two numbers in singles: server's score, then receiver's score. The game starts at zero-zero. Call three numbers in doubles: serving team's score, receiving team's score, then the server number. A doubles game starts at zero-zero-two, because the first server of the game is treated as the second server. When in doubt, ask before the serve. The rulebook says a player may ask who the correct server or receiver is before the ball is hit.
Ready to look at gear after the rules make sense? Choose a paddle from the specs we have, or see which pro events are on the calendar.
Questions
Who can score a point?
In standard scoring, a point is scored by serving the ball and winning the rally. If the receiving side wins the rally, it does not get a point. Rally scoring, where either side can score, is a separate option in the rulebook.
What is the kitchen?
The non-volley zone, called the kitchen, is the 7-foot area on each side of the net. You may not volley the ball while you, or anything you are wearing or carrying, are touching that zone, including its lines. Your momentum after a volley counts too.
What happens if the serve clips the net?
Under the USA Pickleball rulebook, the serve must clear the kitchen and land in the correct service court, with or without touching the net. A serve that lands in the kitchen is a fault. A pro tour can publish its own deviations, so check that event's sheet before you play it.