No, padel and pickleball are not the same sport. Padel is played on an enclosed glass court where the walls are in play, with a stringless racket and a ball much like a tennis ball. Pickleball is played on a small open court with no walls, using a solid paddle and a hard, perforated plastic ball. They look similar at a glance and are both doubles-friendly and beginner-friendly, but they play completely differently.
Both are exploding across the US right now, which is exactly why people mix them up. This guide breaks down every difference that matters, the court, the racket and paddle, the ball, the rules, the learning curve, the workout, and which is more popular, so you can decide which one to play (or whether to play both).
Thinking of trying padel? All you need to start is a racket and a tube of balls. See our picks for the best padel rackets for beginners and the best padel balls — or grab a control-focused, round-shape pick like the Babolat Contact.
Padel vs Pickleball: At a Glance
| Feature | Padel | Pickleball |
|---|---|---|
| Court | 66 x 33 ft, enclosed by glass walls | 20 x 44 ft, open, no walls |
| Walls in play? | Yes — central to the game | No |
| Equipment | Stringless solid racket | Solid paddle |
| Ball | Like a tennis ball (low pressure) | Hard perforated plastic (wiffle-style) |
| Serve | Underhand, bounce first | Underhand, below the waist |
| Scoring | Tennis scoring (15/30/40) | Rally or side-out to 11 |
| Format | Almost always doubles | Singles or doubles |
| Learning curve | Easy to start, walls take time | Very easy to start |
Are Padel and Pickleball the Same?
No. They are different sports with different courts, equipment, balls, and rules. The confusion is understandable: both are racket-and-ball sports, both are usually played as doubles, both are easy for beginners, and both have boomed in the US in the same few years. But the defining feature of padel, the glass walls you can play the ball off, does not exist in pickleball. And the equipment is different: padel uses a stringless racket and a pressurised ball, while pickleball uses a flat paddle and a hard plastic ball. If you can play one, you will pick up the other quickly, but they are not interchangeable.
What Is Padel?
Padel is a doubles racket sport played on an enclosed court about a third the size of a tennis court, surrounded by glass and mesh walls that are part of play, much like squash. You serve underhand, score it like tennis, and rallies are long because the walls keep the ball alive. It is the fastest-growing racket sport in the world. For the full rundown, see our guide to what padel is and how to play padel.
What Is Pickleball?
Pickleball is a paddle sport played on a small open court (the size of a badminton court) with a low net, a solid paddle, and a hard plastic ball with holes. It has been the fastest-growing sport in the United States for several years, helped by how quickly absolute beginners can rally. There are no walls: when the ball goes out, the point is over.
Where Padel and Pickleball Came From
The two sports were born a continent and four years apart, which helps explain how different they are. Padel was invented in 1969 in Acapulco, Mexico, by Enrique Corcuera, who walled in a small court at his home and adapted tennis to the space. It spread to Spain and Argentina in the 1970s, became a mainstream sport across the Spanish-speaking world, and has since exploded globally, it is now one of the fastest-growing sports on the planet.
Pickleball was invented in 1965 on Bainbridge Island, Washington, by Joel Pritchard, Bill Bell, and Barney McCallum, reportedly to entertain bored kids with a lowered badminton net and a perforated plastic ball. It stayed a regional American pastime for decades before going mainstream in the 2010s, and has topped the list of fastest-growing US sports for several years running. So padel is the older, globally bigger sport, while pickleball is the homegrown American phenomenon.
The Court: Enclosed Glass vs Open
This is the biggest difference. A padel court is 66 x 33 ft and fully enclosed by glass and mesh walls, which stay in play, the ball can rebound off them and you keep rallying, so points last far longer. A pickleball court is 20 x 44 ft, completely open, with a 7-foot non-volley zone (“the kitchen”) at the net and no walls at all. Padel courts cost far more to build, which is part of why pickleball spread faster in the US, though padel courts are now opening across the country, see where to play padel in the US.
Equipment: Racket vs Paddle
Both use a stringless hitting surface, but they are not the same. A padel racket is thicker, has a foam or EVA core wrapped in carbon or fibreglass, is perforated with holes, and has a wrist strap. A pickleball paddle is flat, thinner, and larger-faced, made of composite or graphite over a honeycomb core, with no strap. Padel rackets weigh around 360 to 385g; pickleball paddles are lighter at roughly 200 to 250g. If you are starting padel, our best beginner padel rackets guide covers the forgiving, round-shape options.
Court and Equipment Specs Compared
If you prefer the numbers side by side, here is how the two sports stack up. First the courts:
| Court spec | Padel | Pickleball |
|---|---|---|
| Dimensions | 66 x 33 ft (20 x 10 m) | 20 x 44 ft (6.1 x 13.4 m) |
| Area | ~2,178 sq ft | ~880 sq ft |
| Enclosure | Glass + mesh walls (in play) | Open, no walls |
| Net height | ~88 cm centre | 86 cm (34 in) centre |
| Non-volley zone | None | 7 ft “kitchen” each side |
And the equipment:
| Equipment | Padel | Pickleball |
|---|---|---|
| Implement | Stringless solid racket | Solid flat paddle |
| Weight | 360-385 g | 200-250 g |
| Surface | Perforated, foam/EVA core | Composite/graphite, honeycomb core |
| Strap | Yes (wrist safety cord) | No |
| Ball | Tennis-like, ~10-11 PSI | Hard plastic, 26-40 holes |
The Ball: Padel Ball vs Pickleball
A padel ball looks and feels like a tennis ball; a pickleball is a hard, hollow plastic ball with holes. Padel balls are slightly smaller and lower-pressure than tennis balls (around 10 to 11 PSI), so they bounce a touch slower and enable long, wall-assisted rallies. A pickleball is rigid plastic with 26 to 40 holes, like a wiffle ball, so it flies slower through the air and does not bounce nearly as high. The two balls behave nothing alike, which is the clearest sign these are different sports.
Scoring and Rules
Padel uses tennis scoring (15, 30, 40, game, then sets) and is almost always played as doubles. Pickleball is played to 11 points (win by 2), traditionally with side-out scoring where only the serving side can score, though rally scoring is increasingly common. Both serve underhand, but padel requires the ball to bounce before you hit the serve, while pickleball is served out of the air below the waist. For the padel side in detail, see our padel serving rules.
Gameplay and Difficulty: Which Is Easier to Learn?
Both are famously beginner-friendly, you can rally within minutes of picking up either. Pickleball has the gentler start of the two: the slow ball, small court, and simple rules mean total beginners are playing real points almost immediately. Padel is also easy to start, but the walls add a layer that takes longer to master, learning to read rebounds and use the back glass is what separates beginners from intermediate players. So pickleball is marginally easier on day one, while padel has more depth to grow into.
Which Is a Better Workout?
Padel generally gives the more intense workout. The larger court, longer rallies (thanks to the walls), and constant repositioning mean more running and more sustained effort per point. Pickleball is lower-impact and easier on the joints, which is a big reason it is so popular with older players, but a competitive game still gets you moving. If you want a harder cardio session, padel edges it; if you want something gentler, pickleball wins.
Which Is More Popular in the US?
Pickleball is far more popular in the US today, but padel is growing faster from a smaller base. Pickleball has tens of thousands of courts and millions of players nationwide and has topped the “fastest-growing sport” lists for years. Padel is newer to the US, with a smaller (but rapidly expanding) footprint, new clubs are opening across Florida, Texas, California, New York and beyond, plus a US professional league. Globally, padel is the bigger phenomenon; in the US specifically, pickleball still leads while padel catches up fast.
What It Costs to Play (and Finding Courts in the US)
This is a real-world difference that shapes which sport you can actually play. A pickleball court is cheap and quick to build, often just lines painted on an existing tennis or multi-use court, so courts are everywhere: parks, gyms, community centres, and converted tennis courts in nearly every US town. Equipment is cheap too: a starter paddle costs $30 to $80.
A padel court is a far bigger investment, a custom 66 x 33 ft glass-and-steel structure that can cost tens of thousands of dollars to install, which is why padel courts are clustered at dedicated clubs rather than scattered through public parks. That is changing fast as operators open new clubs across Florida, Texas, California, New York and beyond, but you are still more likely to pay for court time at a club. A padel racket runs roughly $60 to $300. To find a court near you, see our guide to padel in the US.
Can You Play Both?
Absolutely, and many people do. The sports complement each other: pickleball is a quick, social, low-impact game you can play almost anywhere, while padel offers longer, more athletic rallies and the unique wall play. Skills transfer too, hand-eye coordination, doubles positioning, and underhand serving all carry over. If you have access to both, there is no reason to pick just one.
Which Should You Play?
- Play padel if you want longer, more athletic rallies, enjoy wall play, or come from a tennis background.
- Play pickleball if you want the easiest possible start, a lower-impact game, or courts that are everywhere right now.
- Play both if you can, they scratch different itches and the skills overlap.
Curious how padel stacks up against other racket sports? See our padel vs tennis and padel vs squash comparisons, plus our three-way breakdown of padel vs pickleball vs paddle (pop) tennis.
Frequently Asked Questions About Padel vs Pickleball
No. Padel is played on an enclosed glass court where the walls are in play, with a stringless racket and a tennis-like ball. Pickleball is played on a small open court with no walls, using a flat solid paddle and a hard perforated plastic ball. They look similar but play very differently.
The walls. Padel courts are enclosed by glass you can play the ball off, which creates long rallies, while pickleball courts are open with no walls. The equipment also differs: padel uses a perforated stringless racket and a pressurised ball; pickleball uses a flat paddle and a hard plastic ball.
No. A padel ball is like a tennis ball, slightly smaller and lower-pressure. A pickleball is a hard, hollow plastic ball with holes, similar to a wiffle ball. They bounce and fly completely differently.
Both are beginner-friendly, but pickleball is marginally easier on day one thanks to its slow ball, small court, and simple rules. Padel is also easy to start, but the walls add depth that takes longer to master.
In the US, pickleball is far more popular, with tens of thousands of courts and millions of players. Padel is newer to the US but growing fast. Globally, padel is the bigger sport.
Yes. The two sports complement each other and many skills transfer, including hand-eye coordination, doubles positioning, and the underhand serve. If you have access to both, they are well worth playing together.
No. “Padel tennis” is just another name for padel, the enclosed glass-court sport. It is not the same as pickleball, which is a separate paddle sport played on an open court.
New to the sport? Start with what is padel and how to play padel, then find a court near you in our guide to padel in the US.
Isabella Torres is originally from Madrid, Spain, and has been playing Padel as a semi-professional for the past five years. After completing her education as a journalist, she discovered her true passion in life was writing about Padel.
She loves staying up late watching intense rallies on YouTube, and is excited to share her knowledge about the sport with SimplePadel’s readers.