A padel serve is legal when five things are true at once: one foot behind the line, one bounce first, contact at or below 1.06 m, the ball lands in the diagonal box, and it does not touch the mesh on the way. Miss any of them and it is a fault.
The condition people get wrong. It is one foot on the ground behind the service line, not both. Your other foot may be in the air. What neither foot may do is touch or cross the line at the moment you strike the ball.
The five conditions
| Condition | The rule | Fault if… |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Position | At least one foot on the ground behind the service line, inside the imaginary extension of the centre line and the side wall | Either foot touches or crosses the line at contact |
| 2. Bounce | The ball must bounce once on the floor before you hit it | You strike it out of the air, or let it bounce twice |
| 3. Height | Contact at or below waist height — the FIP fixes this at 1.06 m from the ground | Contact above 1.06 m. There is no legal overhead serve |
| 4. Direction | The ball must land in the service box diagonally opposite | It lands in the wrong box, long, or wide |
| 5. What it touches | After bouncing in the box it may touch the side glass and stay live | It touches the metal mesh, even after a legal bounce |
Glass yes, mesh no
This is the rule that decides real points and the one club players argue about.
A serve that lands in the correct box and then rebounds off the glass is a good serve. The receiver has to play it, and a well-struck serve into the side glass is one of the few genuinely aggressive things you can do with an underarm delivery.
A serve that lands in the correct box and then hits the metal mesh is a fault, regardless of how good the bounce was. The distinction is the material, not the height: the mesh is out of bounds on the serve even though it is in play during a rally.
Two serves, and what a let is
You get two attempts per point, as in tennis.
- Let. The ball clips the net cord and still lands in the correct service box. Replay that serve — first serve stays a first serve, second stays a second. No penalty.
- Fault after a net cord. Clips the cord and then hits the mesh, or lands outside the box: a fault, not a let.
- Interference. A ball or a person entering the court is a let. If it happened on your second serve, you get that second serve again — not a fresh first.
Where you stand, game by game
The server serves every point of their game, alternating sides: first point from the right of the centre line, second from the left, and so on. Serving order is set at the start of a set and cannot change mid-set. The full rotation, including tie-breaks, is in padel scoring.
The receiver stands where they like. There is no rule requiring them to be behind their service line, and good receivers stand well inside it against weak servers.
Seven edge cases
1. The serve hits your partner
Point to the serving pair, wherever the ball was going. This is why the receiver’s partner stands to the side rather than in the flight line.
2. The serve goes out through the gap in the side fence
If it bounced in the correct box first, it is a good serve. On courts with a side opening — common in Spain, rare in Britain — the receiver may go out and play it if the venue allows.
3. You drop the ball and do not hit it
No fault, provided you make no attempt to strike it. Catch it or let it go and start again. Swing and miss, however, and that is a fault.
4. You bounce the ball more than once before serving
You may bounce it as often as you like while preparing. What matters is the single bounce immediately before contact.
5. The receiver was not ready
If the receiver makes no attempt to play the ball and signals they were not ready, it is a let. This runs on good faith; there is no umpire at club level.
6. Your foot lands over the line after you hit it
Legal. The line matters at the moment of contact. Stepping in afterwards — which is what you should do, because you want to reach the net — is fine.
7. The serve hits the light or the roof indoors
Out under the FIP rules. Some venues run a local rule making it a let on the serve; ask at reception, because it is not in the rulebook.
How to actually serve well
The rules cap the serve deliberately: it is not meant to be a weapon. Three things that work inside those limits:
- Aim at the side glass. A serve that lands in the box and skids into the glass forces an awkward return and buys you the time to reach the net. The solid glass runs three metres up from the floor — see padel court dimensions — so anything you can keep low stays on it.
- Serve to the body. The hardest ball to return underarm is the one at the receiver’s hip.
- Get in. The point of the serve in padel is to let you take the net. A soft, accurate serve you can follow forwards beats a hard one you cannot.
The whole first session, including where to stand once you have served, is in how to play padel. Everything else the rulebook covers is in padel rules.
Frequently asked questions
Can you serve overarm in padel?
No. Contact must be at or below waist height, which the FIP fixes at 1.06 m from the ground, and the ball must bounce first. There is no legal overhead serve.
Do both feet have to be behind the line when you serve in padel?
No. At least one foot must be on the ground behind the service line. Neither foot may touch or cross the line at the moment of contact.
Is it a fault if the serve hits the wall?
It depends on the surface. After bouncing in the correct box, the ball may touch the side glass and stay in play. If it touches the metal mesh, it is a fault.
How many serves do you get in padel?
Two, as in tennis. Two faults in a row lose the point.
Can you jump when serving in padel?
No. At least one foot has to stay on the ground through the serve.
Which side do you serve from first?
The right, on the first point of every game, then alternating left and right for the rest of that game.
Sources. LTA Padel, “Padel Rules: Scoring, Serving, Walls & Faults”, consulted 30/08/2026, for the one-foot rule and the glass-versus-mesh distinction · Rules of Padel, International Padel Federation (FIP), for the 1.06 m contact height and the service faults, consulted 30/08/2026.