Reference · Rules

Pickleball faults: the complete list

Every situation the 2026 USA Pickleball Official Rulebook calls a fault, grouped by when it happens, with the rule number and the player or side it is charged to.

In the 2026 USA Pickleball Official Rulebook, a fault is "a rules violation that results in a dead ball and the loss of a rally" (Section 2). A fault makes the ball dead (9.B), and a fault only occurs while the ball is live, with one exception: non-volley zone violations involving momentum (9.B.1). This page lists every fault the rulebook spells out in its general rules of play (Sections 5–13) plus the faults a referee can assign in tournament play, each with its rule number. Quotes and numbers follow the 2026 edition; the official text always wins.

What a fault costs
Before the serve
The serve
The rally
Kitchen
Net & paddle
Calls & officiating
Not faults

What a fault costs

Only the serving side can score: "A point is scored by serving the ball and winning the rally" (4.A). So the same fault has a different price depending on who commits it.

Who faults	Result	Rule
Receiving side	The serving side wins the rally and scores a point	4.A
Serving side, first server (doubles)	The serve passes to the second server	5.B.5
Serving side, second server (doubles)	Side out: the serve goes to the opponents	5.B.6
Server (singles)	Side out	5.A.3

In tables below, "server" or "receiver" means the fault is charged to that player; "player" means whoever committed it. Under side-out scoring the cost then follows the table above.

Foot on the court. A server's foot touching the baseline or court when the serve is hit (7.A.2.a).
Foot outside the serving area. A foot beyond the imaginary extension of the sideline or centerline at contact (7.A.3.a).
Serve into the kitchen. A serve that lands in the non-volley zone (7.E.2); one on the NVZ line is "out" (8.C).
Serve to the wrong court. Lands outside the correct, diagonal service court (7.E.1).
Volley from the kitchen. Volleying while touching the non-volley zone (11.A.1).
Into the net. A ball that fails to cross the net (10.C.2).
Net contact or reaching over. Touching the net or net system while the ball is live (13.G.1), or crossing the net plane before hitting the ball (13.I.1.a).
Out. A ball that first lands outside the opponents' end of the court (10.C.1).

Diagram drawn for this site from USA Pickleball's 2026 Official Rulebook (Rules 7.A, 7.E, 8.C, 10.C, 11.A, 13.G, 13.I). S is the server; the shaded areas are the server's serving area and the correct service court; diamonds mark fault spots. Positions are schematic. Not to scale.

Before and at the serve

Fault	Rule	Charged to
Serving while the score is still being called	6.C.1	Server
Not serving within 10 seconds after the score is called	6.D.1	Server
Stopping the rally to challenge a score call that was correct	6.F.2	Player who stopped it
Stopping the rally for a score correction after the return of serve is hit	6.F.3	Player who stopped it
Stopping the rally to claim a wrong server, receiver or position, when the claim is wrong	5.C.1.b	Player who stopped it
Returning the serve when you are not the correct receiver	5.C.1.c	That player
Calling a time-out after the serve has been hit	21.A.2.a	That player

The serve

Feet and motion are judged when the paddle hits the ball. A volley serve must meet three requirements: the arm moving in an upward arc (7.C.1), the highest point of the paddle head not above the wrist joint (7.C.2), and contact no higher than the waist (7.C.3). A drop serve must be released from a natural height (7.D.1) without being propelled (7.D.2). Details and a diagram are on the serve rules page.

Fault	Rule	Charged to
Both feet off the playing surface when the serve is hit	7.A.1.a	Server
A foot touching the court (including the baseline) when the serve is hit	7.A.2.a	Server
A foot outside the correct serving area (beyond the sideline or centerline extension)	7.A.3.a	Server
Volley serve breaks 7.C.1, 7.C.2 or 7.C.3	7.C.5	Server
Drop serve breaks 7.D.1 or 7.D.2	7.D.6	Server
Serve lands outside the correct service court	7.E.1	Server
Serve lands in the non-volley zone (a serve on the NVZ line is "out," 8.C)	7.E.2	Server
Serve hits a permanent object before landing	7.E.3	Server
Serve hits the server, the server's partner, or anything either wears or carries	7.E.4	Server
Serve hits the net support system at either end of the net	13.B.1	Server
Serve hits the receiver, the receiver's partner, or anything either wears or carries, before landing	7.E.5	Receiver

The return and the rally

Fault	Rule	Charged to
Receiver volleys the serve instead of letting it bounce	10.A.1	Receiver
Server or partner volleys the return of serve before it bounces	10.A.2	Serving side
Failing to return a ball before it bounces twice	10.B.1	Player
Hitting a ball that first lands outside the opponents' end of the court	10.C.1	Player
Hitting a ball that fails to cross the net and lands on your own side	10.C.2	Player
Ball touches a player, or anything worn or carried, after the serve (paddle and paddle hand below the wrist excepted)	10.C.3	That player
Hitting a ball that touches a permanent object before it bounces on the court	10.C.4	Player
Not returning a ball that bounced in your court before it touches a permanent object	10.C.5	Player
Hitting the ball more than once in a stroke that is not continuous and in one direction	10.D.1	Player
Both partners strike the ball while returning it	10.D.2	That team

The non-volley zone (kitchen)

Section 11 restricts volleys only. Standing in the zone, or entering it to play a bounced ball, is not a fault. The kitchen rules deep dive covers the edge cases.

Fault	Rule	Charged to
Volleying while you, or anything in contact with you (including your partner), touch the non-volley zone	11.A.1	Volleying player
Momentum from a volley carries you into the zone, even after the ball is dead	11.A.2	Volleying player
Volleying after touching the zone, before both feet are back on the surface completely outside it	11.A.3	Player

The paddle and the net

Fault	Rule	Charged to
Using or carrying more than one paddle while the ball is in play	12.A.1	Player
Hitting the ball without possession of the paddle (for example, a thrown paddle)	12.B.1	Player
Catching or carrying the ball on the paddle during a rally	12.C.1	Player
Hitting the ball between the net and the net post	13.D.1	Player
Hitting the ball under the net	13.E.1	Player
Hitting the ball before it has entirely crossed the plane of the net to your end	13.F.1	Player
You, or anything you wear or carry, touch the net or net support system while the ball is live	13.G.1	Player
You, or anything you wear or carry, touch an opponent or the opponents' end of the court while the ball is live	13.H.1	Player
Crossing the plane of the net before hitting the ball	13.I.1.a	Player
Crossing the plane of the net without hitting the ball	13.I.1.b	Player
A ball bounces back over the net unhit, and you cross the net plane before it has entirely crossed	13.I.2.a	Player

Crossing the net plane is allowed immediately after hitting the ball, as part of that stroke and its continuation (13.I.1).

Calls, stoppages and officiating

Fault	Rule	Charged to
Stopping a rally before the ball is dead, unless to call a hinder, correctly identify a position or server error, or ask for a score correction before the return	9.A.1	Player
The referee overrules a player's "out" call	19.F.1	That player or team
The referee does not validate a hinder called by a player	20.H.1	That player
In the referee's judgment, distracting an opponent who is about to hit the ball	20.I.1	That player

Who may call a fault

Players are expected to call faults on themselves or their partner as soon as the fault is committed or detected (9.B.2).
Players may call non-volley zone faults and service foot faults only on an opponent (9.B.3), and must do so before the next serve is hit (9.B.3.a).
If the teams disagree about such a call, the rally is replayed (9.B.3.b); if partners disagree, the call goes to the benefit of their opponents (9.B.3.c).
Other suspected faults can be mentioned after the rally, but the player has no authority to enforce them (9.B.4).
In refereed matches the referee is responsible for service foot faults, short serves and non-volley zone faults (19.A.1); how referees and line judges signal these calls is shown on the referee signals page.

"Out" calls are line calls rather than fault calls and have their own rules (Sections 8 and 19); see pickleball line calls.

Often mistaken for faults

Situation	Ruling	Rule
Serve touches the net and lands in the correct service court	In play; no let	13.A, 7.E
Serve lands on the baseline, sideline or centerline of the correct service court	In	3.A.4.f, 8.B
A hinder is called	Replay	9.C.2
A player correctly stops the rally for a server or position error found at the score call	Replay	5.C.1.a
A wrong server, receiver or position is noticed only after the rally	Result stands	5.C.2
Ball hits the paddle hand below the wrist while it holds the paddle	Play on	10.C.3
Following through over the net after hitting the ball	Allowed	13.I.1
Standing in the kitchen without volleying	Allowed	Section 11

A technical foul is a separate matter: Section 2 defines it as a one-point penalty for extreme unsportsmanlike actions or behaviors, handled under Section 22 rather than as a fault. For the core rules in plain language, see the rules summary; for terms such as carry, hinder and momentum, the pickleball terms glossary.

Sources

Sources checked October 2026. Rules, fees and schedules change — confirm with the venue or governing body.