Padel scoring: points, sets and golden point

Padel scoring confuses almost everyone at first. Someone says "thirty-fifteen", another says "deuce", another shouts "golden point" and you just want to know whether you are winning. The good news is that the count is the same as in tennis, with a couple of tweaks meant to keep matches brisk. This guide explains it step by step, with examples, following the rules of the International Padel Federation (FIP).

Three levels: point, game and set

Padel is counted on three levels, from smallest to largest:

• Points, which make up a game.
• Games, which make up a set.
• Sets, which make up the match.

Each time someone wins a point, the game score changes. When someone wins the game, the set score goes up. And when someone wins the sets needed, the match is over. It is always played in pairs, and the score counts the pair, not each player.

Points: 15, 30, 40

Inside a game, points are not counted 1, 2, 3 but like this:

• No points is love (or "nothing").
• First point: 15.
• Second point: 30.
• Third point: 40.
• Fourth point: game.

The server calls their own score first. For example, if the serving pair has two points and the other has one, you say "thirty-fifteen". If both pairs have three points, it is deuce ("40 all").

The golden point

This is the big difference from classic tennis. In traditional tennis, from deuce you have to win two points in a row (the "advantage"). Under the FIP system now in use, padel plays the golden point: at 40 all, a single point is played and whoever wins it takes the game.

An important detail: the receiving pair decides which side receives the golden point. That choice is tactical, because the serve goes to one specific player, and the pair picks the one who is more comfortable or who returns better.

Some clubs and friendly tournaments play with advantage instead of the golden point. If the match is casual, agree before starting. That thirty-second chat avoids arguments on the last point.

How a game is won

A game is won with the golden point or by reaching four points. In short:

• If one pair reaches 40 and the other has 30 or less, the pair on 40 wins the next point and takes the game.
• If both are on 40, the golden point is played.

The serve changes pair every game, and within the pair the server alternates each time it is their team's turn.

How a set is won

A set is won by reaching six games with a two-game margin. Typical results are 6-0, 6-1, 6-2, 6-3 and 6-4. If the score gets to 5-5, you have to reach seven (7-5). At 6-6, a tie-break is played.

The tie-break

The tie-break is a special game to break the tie. It is played to seven points, with a two-point margin, and counted normally: 1, 2, 3 up to seven. Whoever wins it wins the set 7-6. The serve order differs: one player serves once at the start, and then each player serves two points in a row, rotating. Players change ends every six points.

How the match is won

The usual format in competitive padel is best of three sets: whoever wins two wins. In club tournaments or friendly matches there are more variants:

• A single set, when time is short.
• Two sets and a super tie-break if it is 1-1.
• A timed match, when the court booking is an hour or 90 minutes and you play until it runs out.

The super tie-break

A tie-break to ten points, with a two-point margin, that replaces the third set. It is very common in amateur padel because it saves time and keeps the excitement until the end. If you see a score like "6-4, 3-6, 10-7" at your club, the last set was a super tie-break.

A full example

Imagine Ana and Luis play against Marta and Pablo.

1. Ana and Luis win the first point: 15-0. 2. Marta and Pablo win two in a row: 15-30. 3. Ana and Luis win two: 40-30. 4. Marta and Pablo win the next: deuce. 5. The golden point is played. If Ana and Luis win it, the game is theirs and the set score is 1-0.

And so on until six games. If they win the set and then another, they win the match 2-0.

How the score is called

The server announces the score before each point, saying their own pair's points first. This makes sure all four players agree on the count. If you doubt it, ask before serving. In recreational padel it is fine for all four to confirm the score out loud: losing ten seconds beats arguing at the end.

Common beginner mistakes

• Counting games as points. A 3-2 can be points, games or sets: ask which level is meant.
• Forgetting who serves. The serve changes every game. Keep count or note it on your phone.
• Confusing "deuce" with a tied match. It is deuce inside one game.
• Not agreeing on the golden point. Clarify the system before you start.

And if you play an americana

In an americana the score is different: each round is played to a number of games or to a time limit, and points add up individually. We have a separate guide for that. Here it is enough to know that 15-30-40 only applies to the traditional doubles match.

In short

Points of 15, 30 and 40; a game is won with four points or with the golden point at deuce; a set with six games and a two-game margin; the match, normally best of three sets. With that you can follow any scoreboard.

When you want to practise, open MeetAndPlay, find a match at your level and walk onto court knowing exactly how far ahead you are.