Court Dimensions: How to Set Up a Temporary Pickleball Court

Setting up a temporary pickleball court is quick and easy. Whether all the local pickleball courts are full, you want one closer to home or whatever the reason you need a short-term pickleball court, we're here to help guide you through the process. You'll need just a few things and a few minutes!

Without a doubt, pickleball court construction has not been able to keep pace with the surge of the sport’s popularity. And if your situation is like many of us here at Total Pickleball, there are quite a few courts to play on locally, but there are not nearly enough. As a result we often use portable nets and soft rubber lines to set up pickleball courts on surfaces where play is permitted and not disruptive.

Pickeball Court Dimensions

First things first, it's helpful to know the size and dimensions of a pickleball court. The outline of a pickleball court's rectangle shape is officially:

44 feet x 20 feet
The net is placed parallel to the baselines at the center (22 foot) mark of its 44 foot length.
22 feet is the remaining distance from the net to the baseline.
A 7-foot block from the net is allocated for the Non-Volley Zone (NVZ or kitchen). The NVZ's overall dimensions are 14'x20' (or two 7'x20' halves).
Th 15 feet from the NVZ to the baseline is devoted to the left and right service areas. There are four 15'x10' service areas total (two per side).

A Few More Court Details

A 15-foot long center line splits the left from the right service areas.
Portable nets are typically 22 feet wide, so when you're marking out your court, the sidelines will tucked in one foot inside both net posts. No USAPA approval needed, but obviously you want to make sure the court width is accurate, and that the net posts are located laterally beyond the sideline.
Another non-critical but useful detail is court lines are about 2 inches wide.

Items You Need for a Temporary Pickleball Court

Portable Net
Plastic/Vinyl Temporary Court Lines with Corner Pieces
Measuring Tape
Chalk
Approximately 10 Minutes of Setup Time

Step by Step: Ceating a Temporary Pickleball Court

Often there are no court lines to use as a point of reference, and in that case we suggest using the net’s location as a starting point.

Once the net is in place, you can easily build the court, starting with the kitchen to the baseline.

Using a measuring tape (a 7 foot long pole/stick is also handy), begin the 7-foot length of the kitchen tucked approximately 12 inches inside the ends of the portable net’s posts.
Apply chalk and/or the corner pieces of your temporary court lines to all four corners of the NVZ (kitchen).
Measure off an additional 15 feet from each corner of the kitchen and mark those corners.
The rough outline of your court is basically complete, with the exception of the two center court lines that begin at the middle of the baseline (10-foot mark), extending straight to the center of the kitchen’s boundary line.
At this point you are ready to fill in the corners with either tape or additional temporary court lines, and begin play!

In Conclusion

It is not uncommon pickleball players have to wait 15 minutes either in between games or even longer to gain access to a court. To resolve the issue (at least temporarily) many of us here have gotten used to and enjoy playing on temporary courts. We play on everything from world-class pickleball venues, to temp court pick-up games on a converted indoor tennis court. Honestly, it's just as easy to lose track of time as easily on the temporary courts as those at world-class venues. And playing on a less consistent surface helps improve one’s ability to adapt and judge the ball's bounce or lack of it.