Learn / Official rules explained
Serve rules explained
The serve is underhand, diagonal and must clear the kitchen. Here are the requirements for the standard volley serve, where your feet must be, and the serving faults that catch beginners.
The big picture
Every rally starts with a serve. In pickleball the serve is not meant to be a weapon the way it is in tennis. The rules force an underhand motion and a diagonal path, so the receiver always gets a fair chance. There are two legal types: the volley serve, where you hit the ball out of the air, and the drop serve, where you let it bounce first. This page covers the volley serve and the rules shared by both. The drop serve has its own page.
Where the server stands
At the moment the ball is struck:
- At least one foot must be on the playing surface behind the baseline.
- Neither foot may touch the baseline or the court in front of it.
- Neither foot may be outside the imaginary extension of the sideline or the centerline. In other words, you serve from within the width of your own half.
Your feet can move during the motion, but where they are at contact is what counts.
The three volley serve requirements
For a volley serve, the rulebook requires all of the following at contact:
- Upward arc. Your arm must be moving in an upward arc when you strike the ball.
- Below the waist. The ball must be contacted below the server's waist (the navel is the reference point).
- Paddle head below the wrist. The highest part of the paddle head must not be above the highest part of the wrist at contact.
These rules together make a sidearm or overhead serve illegal.
Releasing the ball
The ball must be released without adding spin with your hand or fingers. Tossing tricks that spin the ball before contact were banned to keep the serve fair. You can still put spin on the ball with the paddle swing itself. See spin.
Where the serve must land
- Serve diagonally into the receiver's service court, crosscourt from where you stand.
- The serve must clear the net and land beyond the kitchen. A serve that lands on the kitchen line is short and is a fault, because the kitchen line is part of the kitchen.
- A serve that lands on the centerline, sideline or baseline of the correct service court is in.
Net serves
A serve that touches the net and still lands in the correct service court is in play. There are no "lets" on the serve in current rules. A serve that touches the net and lands short or out is a fault, like any other.
One serve, ten seconds
- You get one attempt per serve. There is no second serve as in tennis.
- Once the score has been called, the server has 10 seconds to serve.
- The score must be called before the serve. In recreational play, if the score is wrong, any player can stop play before the serve to fix it.
Who serves from which side
- In doubles, the first server of each side-out starts from the right-hand service court.
- After winning a point, the server switches sides with their partner and serves again from the other court.
- In singles, you serve from the right when your score is even and from the left when it is odd. See singles rules.
Common serving faults
| Fault | What happened |
|---|---|
| Foot fault | A foot touched the baseline or court at contact |
| Short serve | Ball landed in the kitchen or on the kitchen line |
| Long or wide | Ball landed beyond the baseline or outside the sideline |
| Wrong court | Ball landed in the service court on the same side |
| Illegal motion | Overhead or sidearm contact, ball hit above waist, paddle head above wrist |
| Into the net | Ball did not clear the net |
| Hits partner | Served ball touched the server's partner (if it hits the receiver's partner instead, the serving team wins the point) |
Getting it in
The rules reward consistency. A deep, steady serve that lands every time beats a fast serve that misses one time in five. The technique side, with targets and drills, is in serve and return technique.
Rules evolve. USA Pickleball updates its rulebook every year, so check the current edition for sanctioned play.
