Padel is scored exactly like tennis: points go 15, 30, 40, game; six games win a set (by two clear games); and a match is usually the best of three sets. The big difference is what happens at 40–40. Most padel is played with the golden point: one deciding point wins the game, with no advantage.
At 6–6 in a set, a tiebreak to 7 points decides it. In a lot of amateur and club play, a third set is replaced by a match tiebreak to 10. Exact formats vary by organisation, league and tournament, so always check what your event uses before the first serve.
Points, games and sets
If you already know tennis, you know padel scoring. Each game starts at zero, called “love”. The first point won takes a player’s pair to 15, the second to 30, the third to 40, and the next point wins the game — unless both pairs have reached 40, which is where the deuce rules below come in.
| Points won | Called |
|---|---|
| 0 | Love |
| 1 | 15 |
| 2 | 30 |
| 3 | 40 |
| 3 each | Deuce (40–40) |
The score is always called with the serving pair first. So if the serving pair has won two points and the receivers one, the call is “30–15”. If the receivers lead by the same margin, it is “15–30”.
Games add up to sets. The first pair to six games wins the set, as long as they are two games clear: 6–4 or 6–3 ends a set, 6–5 does not. From 5–5, a pair needs to reach 7–5. If it gets to 6–6, a tiebreak decides the set and it is recorded as 7–6.
A standard padel match is the best of three sets. Win two sets and the match is over — 6–4, 6–3 is a complete result, and nobody plays a third set.
The golden point at 40–40
The golden point is the rule most people mean when they search “padel scoring”. When a game reaches 40–40, instead of playing advantage, the next point simply wins the game. One rally, winner takes all.
Under the golden point rule, it is common practice for the receiving pair to choose which of its two players receives that deciding serve. The server serves to whichever side the receivers pick — usually their stronger returner. Local leagues and tournaments sometimes vary the detail, so confirm it if it matters to you.
A worked example:
- The serving pair leads 40–15 and loses the next two points: 40–40.
- The receivers decide their player on the left will return, so the server serves diagonally to that side.
- If the serving pair wins the rally, they win the game. If the receivers win it, they break serve. There is no second chance either way.
Why it is so popular: it keeps games short and predictable, which suits courts booked by the hour, and it makes every 40–40 a genuine pressure moment. It also means a single point can decide a break, so returning well at 40–40 is a real skill in padel.
A score app has to know which rule is in force. In Voleo’s padel score tracker, the golden point is the default, and advantage scoring is a setting rather than a different sport.
Advantage scoring and the star point
The golden point is not the only option. Many players and some competitions still use classic advantage scoring, exactly as in tennis. At 40–40 (deuce), the pair that wins the next point has “advantage”. Win the following point and the game is theirs; lose it and the score goes back to deuce.
A worked example with advantage:
- 40–40: deuce.
- The servers win a point: advantage server (often called “ad in”).
- The receivers win the next point: back to deuce.
- The receivers win again: advantage receiver (“ad out”).
- The receivers win once more: game to the receivers — a break of serve.
Under advantage, a game can in theory go on indefinitely. That is the trade-off: fairer to the better pair over a long game, but harder to fit into a booked court slot.
Professional padel has also introduced and trialled a hybrid often called the star point. The idea is to play a limited number of advantage points at deuce, and if the game is still level after that, a single deciding point settles it — a middle ground between advantage and the golden point. The exact details have been set by the professional tours and governing bodies themselves, and you will rarely meet it in casual play.
| Rule at 40–40 | How the game ends | Where you will see it |
|---|---|---|
| Golden point | Next point wins the game | Most club, social and league padel |
| Advantage | Win two points in a row from deuce | Some clubs, friendly matches, players who prefer it |
| Star point | Limited advantages, then a deciding point | Professional tours that have adopted or trialled it |
Tiebreaks and the 10-point match tiebreak
When a set reaches 6–6, padel normally uses the same tiebreak as tennis. Points are counted 1, 2, 3 rather than 15, 30, 40, and the first pair to 7 points wins, as long as they are two clear. At 6–6 in the tiebreak, play continues until someone leads by two: 8–6, 9–7, 12–10 and so on. The set is recorded as 7–6.
The serve order in a tiebreak follows the tennis pattern: the player whose turn it is serves the first point, then each player serves two points in turn, keeping the normal doubles rotation. Ends change after every six points. If you want the full mechanics, the tiebreak rules guide walks through serve order and change of ends point by point.
Many amateur competitions, social leagues and club tournaments replace the third set with a match tiebreak (sometimes called a super tiebreak). It is played exactly like a normal tiebreak, but to 10 points, again with a two-point margin. So after one set each, the deciding score might read 6–4, 3–6, 10–8.
A worked example:
- Pair A wins the first set 7–5, Pair B the second 6–2. Sets are level at one each.
- Instead of a third set, the pairs play a match tiebreak.
- Pair A leads 9–7 with two match points. Pair B saves both: 9–9. Pair A then wins two in a row and takes it 11–9.
Whether you play a full third set or a match tiebreak depends entirely on the event. Professional padel generally plays full sets; the match tiebreak is a format choice, not a universal rule.
Serving rules that affect the score
The serve in padel looks nothing like a tennis serve, and a few of its rules decide points directly.
- Underarm, after a bounce. The server bounces the ball on the ground behind the service line and hits it at or below waist height.
- Diagonal.The serve must land in the receiver’s service box, diagonally opposite. The first point of each game is served from the right-hand side, then the server alternates sides every point.
- Two serves. As in tennis, a fault on the first serve gives you a second. Two faults in a row — a double fault — lose the point.
- Lets. A serve that clips the net and still lands in the correct box is generally replayed, with some exceptions depending on where it goes next.
- Bounce, then walls. After a good serve bounces, it may hit the back or side glass and stay in play. A serve that bounces in the box and then hits the metal mesh fence is a fault.
Faults are part of the score in a quiet way. A double fault at 30–40 hands the receivers the game; a double fault at 40–40 under the golden point loses the game outright.
The receiver must let the serve bounce before returning it. Volleying a serve straight out of the air loses the point for the receiving pair.
Serve rotation and changing ends
In doubles, the serve rotates between all four players, one game each. Call the pairs A and B. If A1 serves the first game, B1 serves the second, A2 the third and B2 the fourth, then back to A1. Each pair decides at the start of each set who serves first for them, and that order holds for the set.
| Game | Server | Change ends after? |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | A1 | Yes |
| 2 | B1 | No |
| 3 | A2 | Yes |
| 4 | B2 | No |
| 5 | A1 | Yes |
Players change ends after every odd-numbered game of a set — after the first, third, fifth game and so on — and in a tiebreak after every six points. This evens out sun, wind and differences between the two ends of the court.
Receiving sides work differently from serving. Each player in a pair normally keeps the same side — left or right — for receiving throughout a set. That is why pairs talk about a “right-side player” and a “left-side player”, and why the choice of receiver at a golden point carries so much weight.
Keeping all of this straight in a tight set is where arguments start. In Voleo you tap the side that won the point, and the app works out games, sets, tiebreaks, who serves next and when to change ends.
Why padel is almost always doubles
Padel is designed around four players. The standard court is enclosed by walls, and its width is built for two players a side. With only one player on each side, too much of the court is left open and the game loses the rallies off the glass that make padel what it is.
Singles padel does exist, usually on a narrower court built for it. The scoring is identical — 15, 30, 40, golden point or advantage, sets of six, tiebreak at 6–6 — and serving still alternates sides each point. But singles courts are rare, and nearly every club, league and professional event plays doubles.
For scoring, doubles adds three things to track: the four-player serve rotation, which player in each pair receives on which side, and, under the golden point, who the receiving pair picks for the deciding point. None of it changes the numbers on the scoreboard, but all of it changes who stands where.
If you are coming from tennis, the tennis scoring guide covers the shared basics in more depth. The two sports differ mainly at 40–40 and in the serve.
Frequently asked questions
How do you keep score in padel?
Padel uses tennis scoring: 15, 30, 40, game. Six games win a set if you are two games clear, a tiebreak decides the set at 6–6, and most matches are the best of three sets.
What is the golden point in padel?
At 40–40, instead of playing advantage, the next point wins the game. Under the golden point rule, the receiving pair commonly chooses which of its players receives that deciding serve.
Does padel use advantage or the golden point?
Both exist. The golden point is the most common in club and social padel, while some players and competitions use classic advantage scoring. Check your event's rules before you start.
How does a padel tiebreak work?
At 6–6 in a set, players count points 1, 2, 3 and the first pair to 7 points with a two-point lead wins the set 7–6. Many amateur events replace the third set with a match tiebreak to 10 points.
When do you change ends in padel?
Players change ends after every odd-numbered game of a set, so after games 1, 3, 5 and so on. In a tiebreak they change ends after every six points.
Can you play padel singles?
Yes, but it is rare. Singles padel is usually played on a narrower court built for it, with the same scoring as doubles. Almost all padel is played as doubles.