As pickleball grows in popularity, purpose built courts are showing up more and more. in communities around the country and beyond. However, many times we still find ourselves setting up on random sports courts. People commonly set up pickleball courts on tennis courts. Did you know that you can also easily add pickleball court dimensions to basketball courts, parking lots and big driveways?
Setting up temporary courts does not have to be a big hassle. Once you do it a few times it becomes second nature. Before going out and setting up your pickleball court, you’ll need to know the pickleball court dimensions. In this article we will go over a pickleball court’s dimensions and some tips on how to best lay out a pickleball court.
What You Need To Set Up Pickleball Court Dimensions
First of all, we should mention it’s much easier to lay out a pickleball court with someone else. There are multiple measurements you need to take and working with someone else makes it much easier.
Here are the tools we’d suggest to make it easy:
1. (3) 50’ tape measures like this one.
2. A couple bricks or something to weigh down the ‘dummy end’ (the zero end of the tape measure) of the tape measures. If you have a friend with you you only need one brick.
3. If you’re playing outdoors, temporary court markings like these will help you know where the lines are. If you are playing indoors you can use temporary indoor marking tape.
How To Set Up Pickleball Court Dimensions Step By Step
Setting up a DIY pickleball court for the first time can be stressful. As avid pickleball players, we’ve been in the same situation and were frustrated by the lack of information. That’s why we created this step by step guide for you. Our hope is that while it may take you a while on the first try, it’s easy to assemble, just like following a simple recipe.
Choose Your Spot
The first step to laying out a pickleball court is to roughly choose where the court will be. The overall dimensions of a pickleball court are 44’ long x 20’ wide. In a perfect world, try and find an area approximately 64’ long x 40’ wide to give you some additional playing space around the court. However, as you know with pickleball you can make do with less space if need be.
Create Your Marking Lines
Now that you’ve chosen your area, let’s talk about the thickness of the lines. The dimensions of a pickleball court are inclusive of the lines, so you want to make sure you are placing the outside of your marking lines at your measurement points. So for example, if you are using standard 2” marking tape on an indoor basketball court, your 20’ court width will be 2” tape+19’-8”+2” tape for a total width of 20’.
Establish The Court Perimeter
Next, measure out the 44’ length along one of the court edges and set the tape measure down. Go back to the ‘dummy’ end of the tape and measure out the 20’ length of one of the baselines. This measurement will not be at a perfect 90 degree angle, but just set the tape down where you think it’ll be pretty darn close.
You will want to weigh down the two ’dummy’ ends of the tape measures together so you can pull the other measurements taught.
Now take the third tape measure and go to the end of the 44’ measurement. Pull the 44’ tape measure taught and have your partner hold the dummy end of the third tape measure exactly at the 44’ measurement. If you’re alone, this is where you’ll use your second brick, or second helper if you have two.
]Now you’re going to measure the diagonal from the 44’ measurement to the 20’ measurement. This will ensure your court is square. The diagonal measurement should be 48’-4” (48 feet + 4 inches).
Hold the diagonal tape and the 20’ tape, moving both until you have the 20’ and 48’-4” measurement on the same point on the court. This is your third corner.
Now you have located three corners of your court. To find the fourth, you can pull the opposite 48’-4” diagonal and measure either the 20 or 44’ length on the opposite side of the court.
Creating The Pickleball Net
Now that you have the overall pickleball court dimensions, it’s time to focus on the net. You’ll want to find the centerline of the net. This will be located 22’ from the baseline in both directions. This is the center of the 44’ measurement of the length. A pickleball net’s height is 36 inches or 3 feet tall.
From the centerline, you’ll locate the non-volley zone, or the kitchen which is a 7’ zone on either side of the net. Always make sure you are measuring along the outside line of the length of the court to make sure you are measuring an accurate 7’ dimension.
Next you’ll want to bisect the volley zones. These lines should be centered on the 20’ court width from the baseline to the non-volley zone line. Now all you need to do is set up your net and start playing!
DIY Pickleball Court Dimensions Summary
Hopefully you’ve found this explanation of pickleball court dimensions helpful, and now you feel comfortable laying out your pickleball court. Provided you have the amount of space needed, you should feel like you can set up a pickleball court anywhere. Luckily, the materials to make DIY pickleball court dimensions are inexpensive and reusable.