A regulation badminton court is 44 ft long (13.40 m). It is 20 ft wide (6.10 m) for doubles and 17 ft wide (5.18 m) for singles. One painted court handles both formats, but the side boundaries and the rear service boundary change between them. People laying out a court from memory miss that detail more than any other.
Court diagram
Quick answer
BWF Law 1 sets a 44 × 20 ft (13.40 × 6.10 m) court for doubles and a 44 × 17 ft (13.40 × 5.18 m) court for singles. Lines are 40 mm wide and count as part of the court. The short service line is 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) from the net. The net is 5 ft 1 in (1.55 m) high at the posts and 5 ft (1.524 m) high at the center.
Court dimensions at a glance
| Feature | Imperial | Metric | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Full court length | 44 ft | 13.40 m | Official |
| Doubles court width | 20 ft | 6.10 m | Official |
| Singles court width | 17 ft | 5.18 m | Official |
| Doubles alley each side | 1 ft 6 in | 460 mm | Derived |
| Short service line from net | 6 ft 6 in | 1.98 m | Official |
| Doubles long service line from back boundary | 2 ft 6 in | 760 mm | Official |
| Line width | 1 1/2 in | 40 mm | Official |
| Net height at posts | 5 ft 1 in | 1.55 m | Official |
| Net height at center | 5 ft | 1.524 m | Official |
These figures cover the marked playing court only. Wall clearance, run-off space, officials’ positions and spectator circulation are not included. Plan those against the venue and competition requirements; the painted rectangle is not the full footprint.
Singles court vs. doubles court
The court length stays the same. Singles uses the inner side lines as boundaries, which gives a 17 ft wide court. Doubles uses the outer side lines, for a width of 20 ft. The 18 in strips between the two are often called doubles alleys.
Service changes the back boundary. A singles serve can land as deep as the back boundary line. In doubles, the long service line is the rear limit for the serve, and the back boundary comes back into play once the rally starts. The outer doubles side line applies to both the serve and the rally.
Service courts and lines
The center line divides each half into left and right service courts. The short service line runs parallel to the net, 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) away. A legal serve must travel diagonally into the opponent’s matching service court and land on or beyond the short service line.
For doubles, add the long service line 2 ft 6 in (760 mm) inside each back boundary. It spans the full width between the doubles side lines. Because of this line, a deep doubles serve is a fault even though a shuttle landing in the same spot could stay in during the next exchange.
Net, posts, and line treatment
The posts are 5 ft 1 in (1.55 m) high and sit on the doubles side lines, even for singles. The net is 5 ft (1.524 m) high at the center. It must be stretched firmly between the posts, with no gap between the net and either post.
All lines are 40 mm wide. BWF treats each line as part of the area it defines, so a shuttle touching a line is in. Set out the lines from a measured centerline and check them against the rulebook’s reference dimensions before you paint. A neat rectangle can still be wrong if the dimensions were taken to the wrong edge.
Court area
| Format | Playing area | Calculation |
|---|---|---|
| Doubles | 880 sq ft 81.74 m² | 44 ft × 20 ft |
| Singles | 748 sq ft 69.41 m² | 44 ft × 17 ft |
These areas are derived from the nominal court dimensions. They help when estimating flooring or paint coverage, but they do not replace a facility plan.
How to mark a badminton court
- Choose the BWF layout and confirm the playing surface is level and unobstructed.
- Mark the 44 ft center length and establish the net line at its midpoint.
- Set the outside doubles rectangle to 20 ft wide, then add the inner singles side lines to create the 17 ft width.
- Mark the short service lines 6 ft 6 in from the net on both halves.
- Mark the center lines from the short service lines to the back boundary.
- Add the doubles long service lines 2 ft 6 in inside each back boundary.
- Check the 40 mm line width, net-post locations, and net heights before play.
Common layout errors
The usual mistakes are using the outer side lines for singles, treating the doubles long service line as a rally boundary, and measuring the net from the wrong point. Trouble also comes from copying a recreational court, with its arbitrary clearance, into a competition setting. The BWF court dimensions are exact, but the space around the court needs its own review for each venue.
Overhead plan
The same surface seen from straight above, drawn to scale. Nothing is foreshortened here, so every figure can be read off the drawing the way a tape measure would take it.
Detail sheet
A rule book fixes more than the shape of the surface, and the rest of it is too small to draw at court scale: a mark a few centimeters long, a post standing a meter off the sideline, the clearance around the whole thing. Each one here has its own frame and its own scale.
Frequently asked questions
How big is a badminton court in feet?
A BWF court is 44 ft long. It is 20 ft wide for doubles and 17 ft wide for singles.
How big is a badminton court in meters?
The court is 13.40 m long, 6.10 m wide for doubles, and 5.18 m wide for singles.
Are the lines in or out in badminton?
They are in. A shuttle that lands on a boundary line counts as in, and the 40 mm line width is part of the court area.
How high is a badminton net?
The net is 1.55 m (5 ft 1 in) high at the posts and 1.524 m (5 ft) high at the center.
Why does the doubles service court look shorter?
The doubles long service line is 760 mm (2 ft 6 in) inside the back boundary. It only applies to the serve. Once a rally is under way, the back boundary line is in.
Official source
Badminton World Federation, Laws of Badminton, Law 1: The Court, BWF Statutes Section 4.1, in force 26 April 2025 (Version 5.0), including Diagram A. The Laws give every dimension in meters or millimeters. The imperial equivalents used on this page are the ones BWF publishes in Statutes Section 4.1.6, Imperial Measurements.
Verified July 28, 2026. Check the current BWF Laws of Badminton before construction, certification, or tournament setup.