Padel court vs pickleball court: which should you build?

The quick comparison

Both sports are doubles-friendly, social and easier to pick up than tennis, so clubs, HOAs and homeowners often weigh one against the other. The courts, though, are very different things to build.

Padel figures come from the FIP rules, the LTA’s construction guidance and US Padel Court Builders. Pickleball figures come from pickleball.com’s court guide, which attributes the dimensions to USA Pickleball. Prices are a guide, not a quote.

Size and space

A padel court has more than twice the playing area of a pickleball court: about 2,153 sq ft against 880 sq ft. With its walls and base, one padel court needs a flat area of about 68 ft by 35 ft 5 in, according to the LTA’s minimum enclosure sizes.

A pickleball court needs at least 30 ft by 60 ft including the space around the lines, so the total land use is closer than the playing areas suggest: roughly 2,400 sq ft for one padel court against 1,800 to 2,200 sq ft for one pickleball court. On a plot that fits one padel court, you might fit one pickleball court with room to spare, but not two.

How the courts are built

Padel

A padel court is a factory-made steel and glass structure. The tempered glass panels weigh about 400 lb each and the full system weighs 3 to 4 tons, so it sits on an engineered base with anchor points, and outdoors the glass has to be designed for wind. The court goes up in three or four days, but design, permits and the foundation take most of the time. Our guide to building a padel court walks through it.

Pickleball

A pickleball court is a flat slab of concrete or asphalt with an acrylic surface, painted lines, a net and a perimeter fence. Any good court contractor can build one, and existing tennis or basketball courts can often be lined for pickleball cheaply.

Cost

This is the biggest difference. US Padel Court Builders puts a complete single outdoor padel court at about $50,000 on a usable slab and up to about $100,000 with a new foundation. The court system alone is typically $30,000 to $50,000.

Pickleball.com puts a new single concrete or asphalt pickleball court at $15,000 to $40,000, with fencing ($5,000 to $15,000) and LED lights ($5,000 to $20,000) as extra lines. So even after fencing and lights are added to a pickleball court, a padel court usually costs more, often a lot more. Use our padel court cost calculator to see a range for your own project.

Noise and neighbors

Pickleball noise has led to complaints and restrictions in parts of the US. Padel uses a pressurized ball, closer to a tennis ball, and padel.fyi reports that it is quieter than pickleball, noting that a new Georgia padel site with no homes next door avoids the complaints that pickleball courts in the same area have faced. A padel court is still not silent: the ball makes a sound on the glass, and lights can matter as much as noise. Ask your town and HOA early, whichever you choose.

Permits

Both may need a building permit and zoning approval, and HOAs often have a say. A padel court usually needs more paperwork: US builders report that some towns want stamped engineering drawings and wind load calculations because of the glass walls and their 13 ft height. A pickleball court is closer to a patio or driveway in what the town needs to see.

Which should you build?

Choose pickleball if your budget is tight, your space is small, or you want to convert an existing hard court cheaply.

Choose padel if you want a court that is a feature in its own right, you have the space and budget, or you run a club, hotel or community that wants something its neighbors do not have. Some clubs build both: the courts sit happily side by side.

If you want to look at padel more closely, start with what a padel court is, check the official dimensions, and then ask us to find a builder in your area.