Padel · 7 min read
Padel vs Pickleball: What's the Difference?
Padel is played in a 20 m × 10 m enclosed glass court where walls are in play; pickleball is played on a 6.10 m × 13.41 m open court with no walls. Padel needs a structural build, pickleball needs a surfaced rectangle.
Both are racket sports growing fast worldwide, and both are arriving in Pakistan at roughly the same time. They are not variations of each other — they are genuinely different sports with very different construction requirements.
Side by side
| Padel | Pickleball | |
|---|---|---|
| Court size | 20 m × 10 m | 6.10 m × 13.41 m |
| Enclosure | Glass and mesh walls, in play | Open court, no walls |
| Net height (centre) | 0.88 m | 0.86 m |
| Racket | Solid, perforated, no strings | Solid paddle, no strings |
| Ball | Pressurised, similar to tennis | Perforated plastic |
| Serve | Underarm, after a bounce | Underarm, below the waist |
| Format | Almost always doubles | Singles and doubles |
| Build type | Engineered structure | Surfaced rectangle |
| Clear height | 6 m minimum | 5.5 m minimum indoors |
The walls change everything
In padel, the ball can be played off the glass after it bounces. That single rule is what makes rallies long, makes the sport forgiving for beginners, and makes it visually compelling to watch. It is also why a padel court has to be an engineered structure rather than a marked surface.
Cost and complexity
A pickleball court is fundamentally a well-built, well-drained, correctly-surfaced rectangle with a net and a fence. A padel court adds a galvanised steel frame, tempered glass and specialist turf. The gap in build cost and complexity between the two is large.
Can they share a site?
Very well. Their footprints are different enough that pickleball courts often fit into leftover areas of a padel facility, and the two sports share an audience. Multi-sport sites also smooth demand across the week.
Tell us what you want to build and we will work out the mix your site can support.
Plan a multi-sport facility →Frequently Asked
Written by CourtHub Editorial. Last updated 16 August 2026. Specifications quoted here follow the sport's standard playing dimensions. Where a figure depends on your specific site, market conditions or supplier, we say so rather than publishing a number we cannot stand behind.
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