Padel court dimensions — exact measurements and what they mean

The basic dimensions

A padel court is 20 metres long and 10 metres wide. The court is divided exactly in half by a net at the 10-metre mark. Each half is 10 × 10 metres. The court is fully enclosed by walls — back walls behind each baseline, side walls along the lengths. The total area inside the walls is 200 square metres. For comparison, a tennis court is 23.77 × 10.97m (singles) or 23.77 × 10.97m + doubles alleys.

The wall heights

Back walls (behind each baseline): 3 metres high. The bottom 3 metres are glass (called 'cristal' in Spanish). Side walls: total height of 3 metres in the back zone, stepped down to 2 metres in the front zone, then no wall above the front 2 metres of the side. The side walls are a mix of glass (typically the back portion) and metal mesh (the front portion). The exact layout: glass for the first 4 metres of side wall length from each back wall, then mesh for the remaining 12 metres in the middle.

The net

Net height is 88 centimetres at the centre and 92 centimetres at the posts. The slight droop in the middle is intentional — the same as in tennis. The net runs across the full 10-metre width of the court at the midpoint. Posts at each end support the net at the side walls.

Service lines and zones

Service lines are 6.95 metres from the net, parallel to it. The area between the net and the service line on each side is the service zone. A line down the centre divides each service zone into two service boxes (left and right, also called the 'deuce' and 'advantage' boxes). The serve must land in the diagonally opposite service box. The lines from the service line back to the baseline (which is 3.05m further back) are not divided — that whole rear zone is one area.

The door (entry to the court)

Padel courts have one or two doors in the side walls — typically in the centre of each side, at the net line. The doors are around 1 metre wide and 2 metres tall. They function both as entry points and as part of the playing area — balls that hit the door frame stay in play if they bounce inside the court. Some older courts have only one door (one side); modern courts typically have two for accessibility.

The surface

Almost all padel courts use artificial turf, typically with sand infill. The turf is 12–15mm tall and the sand level is set so that 8–10mm of turf shows above the sand. Indoor courts may use carpet (lower-pile artificial turf without sand) for faster play. The surface affects how the ball bounces — sand-infilled outdoor courts produce slower, more controlled bounces; carpet indoor courts produce faster, more responsive bounces. Hard surfaces (concrete or asphalt) are not used for padel — they damage the ball and reduce wall play.

The lighting

Outdoor courts typically have 4–8 light poles around the perimeter for night play. Indoor courts use overhead lighting. FIP standards require minimum 500 lux for amateur play and 1000+ lux for tournament play. Lighting placement matters — poorly placed lights cause shadows on the court that affect ball tracking, especially on smashes and bandejas where you're looking up.

Why these dimensions matter

The 20×10m size is the result of decades of refinement. It's small enough to make doubles feel intimate and tactical, large enough to allow the long rallies and movement padel is known for. The wall heights are tuned so that competitive shots stay in play but pure power shots can clear the wall (going over the wall is 'out'). The 88cm net is high enough to require lift on most shots but low enough that volley exchanges are aggressive. Every dimension is intentional.

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