Badminton Court

As you might imagine, the game of badminton is played on a badminton court. An official court resembles something akin to a tennis court, but the badminton court has its own dimensions. These dimensions are legislated by the IBF and are posted in the official IBF Laws book. In badminton, the word laws is used synonymously with rules.

In general, a badminton court is rectangular and divided into halves by a net. Courts are almost always marked for both singles and doubles play, although the laws permit a court to be marked for singles only. New players to badminton should understand that the doubles court is wider than the singles court, but the doubles service court is shorter than the singles service court.

As far as the metrics are concerned: The full width of the court is 6.1 meters (20 ft), and in singles this width is reduced to 5.18 meters (17 ft).

The full length of the court is 13.4 meters (44 ft). The service courts are marked by a center line dividing the width of the court, by a short service line at a distance of 1.98 meters (6.5 ft) from the net, and by the outer side and back boundaries.

In doubles, the service court is also marked by a long service line, which is 0.78 meters (2 ft 6 inch) from the back boundary.

The net is 1.55 meters (5 ft 1 inch) high at the edges and 1.524 meters (5 ft) high in the centre. The net posts are placed over the doubles side lines, even when singles is played.

If you read the actual rules book, you will see that there is no mention of a minimum height for the ceiling above the court. This can be problematic if the ceiling above the court is too low. Many services in badminton tend to fly high, and hitting a ceiling would only interrupt the fun and pace of the game.

The above are the dimensions for a regulation court. Many individuals and families enjoy playing this racquet sport at home or on the beach. In those cases, the size of the court should be determined by the available space. If possible, try to make the court as close to regulation size as you can, but you do not have to avoid playing the game if the court is a bit smaller or a bit narrower than stated above.