Padel vs. Tennis: What's the Difference?

If tennis is your sport, padel is going to feel like a familiar cousin with a few surprising twists. Here's what actually changes when you swap the tennis court for a padel court.

The Court and Equipment

Tennis is played on a full-size court with a racquet strung with strings. Padel is played on a court about a quarter smaller, enclosed by glass and mesh walls, with a solid, stringless racket. Smaller court, smaller equipment, same competitive spirit.

Doubles Only

Tennis gives you the choice of singles or doubles. Padel is always doubles, no exceptions. That changes the whole rhythm of the game: more communication with your partner, more strategy around court positioning, and honestly, more fun with a friend on your side of the net.

The Serve

Tennis serves are big, overhead, and often the most powerful shot in the game. Padel serves are underhand, hit at or below waist height. That one change levels the playing field fast: a huge serve doesn't dominate the point the way it can in tennis.

Walls Change the Whole Game

This is the biggest difference. In tennis, once the ball bounces twice, the point is over. In padel, after the ball bounces once on your side, it can bounce off a wall (or two) and stay in play. That means rallies last longer, points get more tactical, and raw power matters less than placement and touch.

Scoring Feels the Same

Good news if you already play tennis: padel scoring uses the same 15, 30, 40, game structure, with sets and tiebreaks working almost identically. If you know tennis scoring, you already know padel scoring.

Why Tennis Players Are Picking It Up Fast

The footwork, the doubles instinct, the scoring system: it all transfers. What's new is the wall play and the social, doubles-only format, which a lot of tennis players find is exactly the change of pace they didn't know they wanted.

Try It at Emerald

Seattle has a deep tennis community, and padel is a natural next step for a lot of players looking for something social and skill-rewarding. Emerald Padel Club is opening June 2027, built around social first, skill-building second, every level welcome.