Padel vs Pickleball: What’s the Difference?

Padel and pickleball are both fast-growing racket sports, but they are not the same game. Padel is played on an enclosed glass-walled court where the walls are part of play, using a stringless racket and a pressurised ball. Pickleball is played on a smaller open court with a solid paddle and a perforated plastic ball, and walls are never used.

If you have only ten seconds: padel feels like tennis with walls; pickleball feels like ping-pong scaled up to a small court. Both are easy to start, social, and friendly to beginners, but they reward different skills and need very different spaces. Here is how they actually compare.

Padel vs Pickleball at a Glance

Feature	Padel	Pickleball
Court size	20m x 10m (doubles only)	13.4m x 6.1m (about a third the size)
Walls	Yes - glass and mesh walls are in play	No - open court, out is out
Equipment	Solid, stringless perforated racket	Solid paddle, larger and flatter
Ball	Pressurised, similar to a tennis ball	Hard plastic with holes (like a wiffle ball)
Net height	0.88m at centre	0.86m at centre
Serve	Underarm, bounce first, diagonal	Underarm, diagonal, below the waist
Scoring	Tennis-style (15, 30, 40, games, sets)	Points to 11, win by 2
Typical format	Doubles	Singles or doubles
Learning curve	Easy to start, walls add depth	Very easy to start
Space needed	Large, purpose-built enclosed court	Fits on a badminton or tennis court

How the courts differ

The court is the single biggest difference between the two sports.

A padel court is fully enclosed, roughly 20m by 10m, surrounded by glass and metal mesh. The walls are not just a boundary - you can play the ball off them, much like squash. This means a point keeps going long after a shot that would be “out” in tennis, which makes for longer, more dramatic rallies. Padel is almost always played as doubles.

A pickleball court is much smaller, about 13.4m by 6.1m - close to the size of a badminton court. There are no walls; if the ball lands outside the lines or you can’t return it before the second bounce, the point is over. A defining feature is the 2.13m “kitchen” (the non-volley zone) on each side of the net, where you are not allowed to hit the ball out of the air. This stops players from simply smashing every shot at the net and keeps rallies fair.

Equipment: paddles, rackets and balls

Both sports use a solid hitting surface rather than strings, but they are not interchangeable.

• Padel racket: Solid, perforated with holes, and stringless, with a wrist strap for safety. It is thicker and shaped for power and spin off a bouncier, pressurised ball.
• Pickleball paddle: Flatter, larger-faced and lighter, designed for control of a hard, hollow plastic ball.
• Balls: A padel ball looks and behaves much like a tennis ball, with internal pressure and a lively bounce. A pickleball is a rigid plastic ball with holes that flies slower and bounces lower.

Because the gear is sport-specific, most venues rent paddles and rackets, so beginners can try either game without buying anything.

Scoring: which is simpler?

Pickleball scoring is the easier of the two to pick up. Games are usually played to 11 points and you must win by two. In most traditional formats you can only score when your side is serving, and the score is called as three numbers (your score, their score, and which server you are). It sounds fiddly but clicks within a game or two.

Padel scoring borrows directly from tennis: 15, 30, 40, then games and sets, with deuce and advantage. If you have ever watched tennis, it will feel familiar. If you haven’t, expect a slightly longer adjustment period than pickleball.

Which is harder to learn?

Both are genuinely beginner-friendly, which is a big reason for their popularity.

Pickleball has the gentler entry point. The small court means less running, the slower ball gives you time to react, and most people can hold a rally within their first session. That accessibility makes it especially popular with older players and complete beginners.

Padel is also easy to start - the enclosed court keeps the ball in play, so beginners rally more than they would in tennis. The added depth comes from learning to read and use the walls, which takes time to master. So padel is easy to enjoy on day one but has a higher skill ceiling once the walls come into play.

Popularity in Singapore

Both sports have grown quickly in Singapore, but pickleball has the head start. It needs far less space and can be set up on existing badminton or tennis courts, so community clubs, ActiveSG facilities and private operators have added it rapidly. Many Singaporeans first tried pickleball precisely because it fits into courts and indoor halls they already use - a real advantage in a humid, rain-prone climate where covered play matters.

Padel is newer here and growing fast, but it requires purpose-built enclosed courts, which are more expensive to construct and take up more land, so dedicated venues are fewer. Indoor, air-conditioned multi-sport venues like Super Arena in Clementi reflect the wider local trend: bringing several sports under one roof so players can try a paddle game without being at the mercy of the weather.

If you want to start today with minimal fuss, pickleball is the easier sport to find a court and a group for. If you enjoy tennis-style rallies and the squash-like twist of playing off walls, padel is worth seeking out.

The bottom line

Choose pickleball if you want the simplest possible start, a smaller court, less running, and the easiest game to find nearby. Choose padel if you like longer rallies, doubles play, and the strategic layer that walls add. Neither is “better” - they simply suit different tastes, and the easiest way to decide is to play a session of each.