Padel has become one of the fastest-growing racket sports in Europe and beyond, and many players now split their time between padel and tennis. The two sports share a scoring system and a lot of vocabulary, but on court they feel very different. Here is a clear comparison for tennis players who are curious about padel — and for padel players thinking about trying tennis.
At a glance
| Tennis | Padel | |
|---|---|---|
| Court size | 23.77 × 8.23 m (singles), 10.97 m wide (doubles) | 20 × 10 m, enclosed |
| Walls | None — ball out once it lands outside the lines | Glass and mesh walls are part of play |
| Players | Singles or doubles | Almost always doubles |
| Serve | Overhead, two attempts | Underhand, after a bounce, at or below waist height |
| Racket | Strung, 27 in (68.5 cm) for adults | Solid, perforated, max 45.5 cm long |
| Ball | Pressurised tennis ball | Similar ball with slightly lower pressure |
| Scoring | 15-30-40, games, sets, tiebreaks | Same, often with a deciding point at deuce |
| Learning curve | Slower start, rewards technique | Quick start, rewards tactics and positioning |
The court and the walls
A padel court is about a third of the area of a tennis doubles court and fully enclosed by back walls of glass and side walls of glass and wire mesh. That is the single biggest difference. In padel, the ball may bounce once on the ground on your side and then hit a wall and still be played — so a shot that would be a clean winner in tennis can come back. Learning to read the ball off the back glass is one of the first new skills for tennis players.
The ball must still land in the opponents' court first: hitting the opponents' walls directly, before the ground, is a fault. You may, however, play the ball against your own walls to send it back over the net.
Serving
The padel serve is underhand. The server bounces the ball behind the service line and strikes it at or below waist height, diagonally into the opponent's service box. As in tennis, there are two attempts. Because the serve is not a weapon in the same way, holding serve is less dominant in padel than in men's tennis, and breaks are frequent.
Rackets and balls
A padel racket (often called a "pala") has no strings. It is a solid, perforated paddle with a foam or EVA rubber core and a carbon or fibreglass face, limited by the rules to about 45.5 cm long and 38 mm thick, and it is attached to the wrist by a cord. Shapes vary:
- Round — large sweet spot, maximum control, ideal for beginners.
- Teardrop — a balance between control and power.
- Diamond — head-heavy, powerful, smaller sweet spot, for advanced attacking players.
The ball looks like a tennis ball but has slightly lower internal pressure, so it bounces a little less — important in an enclosed court.
If you are choosing your first padel racket, our sister app Padel Rackets lets you browse and compare models by shape, balance and level: get it on Google Play or the App Store.
Scoring: almost identical
Padel uses the tennis system: love, 15, 30, 40, game; six games for a set with a two-game margin; a tiebreak at 6-6; usually best of three sets. The main difference in many competitions is a deciding point at deuce (as in no-ad tennis) rather than playing advantages. If tennis scoring is new to you, see tennis scoring explained.
How the game feels
Tennis
Tennis rewards technique and power. Long swings, heavy topspin and a big serve can dominate, and in singles you cover a large court alone. The early learning phase is the hardest part: beginners spend a lot of time picking up balls until their strokes become reliable.
Padel
Padel is shorter, more compact and social. Strokes are mostly short swings, the walls keep rallies going, and teamwork matters enormously: the classic tactic is for both partners to win the net position together, using lobs to push opponents back. Power alone rarely wins points; patience, placement and positioning do.
For tennis players switching to padel: shorten your swing, keep the ball low, let it come off the back glass instead of rushing it, and use the lob. The most common habit to unlearn is hitting hard and flat from the back — in padel, that usually gives the opponents an easy volley.
Fitness and physical demands
Both sports are excellent exercise. Tennis singles involves longer sprints and more running; padel involves short, explosive movements, lots of bending and quick reactions at the net. Padel is often seen as gentler for beginners and older players because of the smaller court and slower pace, but lunges, twisting and smashes still put real load on knees, shoulders and elbows. A warm-up and suitable shoes matter in both sports — padel courts are usually artificial grass with sand, which calls for an omni/clay-type outsole (see shoes by surface).
Cost and access
Padel courts are almost always booked as a group of four, which splits the court fee and makes it a natural social activity. Tennis can be played with one partner and, in many places, on public courts. Equipment costs are comparable at entry level; padel rackets are sometimes replaced more often because the face wears or cracks with heavy use.
Which should you play?
- Choose padel if you want quick fun with friends, a social format and a short learning curve.
- Choose tennis if you enjoy technical progression, singles competition and following the professional game.
- Or play both — many club players find the net skills from padel help their tennis volleys, and tennis footwork helps in padel.
To follow the professional tennis tours, see our live scores, ATP and WTA rankings and calendar.
Frequently asked questions
Is padel easier than tennis?
Padel is generally easier to start: the court is smaller, the serve is underhand and the walls keep the ball in play, so beginners rally within minutes. Playing it well is a different matter — positioning, wall play and tactics take years to master.
Can I play padel with a tennis racket?
No. Padel uses a solid, stringless, perforated racket that is shorter than a tennis racket. Padel balls look like tennis balls but have slightly lower pressure, and are not interchangeable for serious play either.
Is padel scored like tennis?
Yes, padel uses the same 15-30-40 scoring, games, sets and tiebreaks as tennis. Many padel competitions use a deciding point at deuce instead of advantage.
Can you play padel singles?
Padel is almost always played as doubles on a standard 10-metre-wide court. Singles courts (around 6 metres wide) exist but are rare.