Badminton court dimensions: every line, in feet and meters

The official badminton court dimensions are 13.4 m × 6.1 m (44 ft × 20 ft) for doubles and 13.4 m × 5.18 m (44 ft × 17 ft) for singles. The length is identical in both formats; only the width changes. The net stands 1.524 m (5 ft) high at the center.

Full badminton court dimensions in feet and meters

Every line is 40 mm (about 1.5 in) wide, and under the Laws of Badminton a line is part of the court it defines — a shuttle that clips it is in. The badminton court measurements below cover every line, in both units.

Measurement	Meters	Feet & inches
Court length (both formats)	13.4 m	44 ft
Court width, doubles	6.1 m	20 ft
Court width, singles	5.18 m	17 ft
Side alley (doubles sideline to singles sideline)	0.46 m	1 ft 6 in
Net to back boundary line	6.7 m	22 ft
Net to short service line	1.98 m	6 ft 6 in
Doubles long service line to back boundary	0.76 m	2 ft 6 in
Net to doubles long service line	5.94 m	19 ft 6 in
Net height at the posts	1.55 m	5 ft 1 in
Net height at the center	1.524 m	5 ft
Full-court diagonal, doubles	14.723 m	48 ft 4 in
Line width	40 mm	1.5 in

Check the diagonal when marking a court: both diagonals should equal 14.723 m, or you risk a parallelogram that looks square until someone plays a line.

Half-court diagram

|<------------ 6.1 m / 20 ft (doubles) ------------>|
     |<------ 5.18 m / 17 ft (singles) ------->|
+----+--------------------+--------------------+----+  back boundary line
|    |                    |                    |    |  0.76 m / 2 ft 6 in
+----+--------------------+--------------------+----+  doubles long service line
|    |                    |                    |    |
|    |   left service     |   right service    |    |  6.7 m / 22 ft
|    |       court        |       court        |    |  net to back boundary
|    |                    |                    |    |
+----+--------------------+--------------------+----+  short service line
|    |                    |                    |    |  1.98 m / 6 ft 6 in
#===================================================#  NET

One half of the court from above — the far half mirrors it.

Badminton court lines, one by one

Sidelines and the side alleys

The outer sideline is the doubles boundary; the inner one, 0.46 m (1 ft 6 in) inside it, is the singles boundary. Those two alleys total 0.92 m (3 ft) — the entire difference between badminton singles court size and badminton doubles court size.

Short service line and center line

The short service line runs 1.98 m (6 ft 6 in) from the net on each side; every serve in both formats must land beyond it. The center line splits each half into a right and left service court, and which one you serve from is set by the server's own score — even from the right, odd from the left — not by who won the last rally. More in badminton scoring.

Back boundary line and the doubles long service line

The back boundary sits 6.7 m (22 ft) from the net. In singles it also acts as the long service line, so a singles serve may travel the full depth of the court. In doubles the serve must land short of a second line 0.76 m (2 ft 6 in) inside the back boundary — 5.94 m (19 ft 6 in) from the net — though it governs the serve only. More on the delivery in badminton serve rules.

Singles vs doubles: which lines are live

In singles the live court is narrow and deep: the inner sidelines and the back boundary bound both the serve and the rally, making the service court 4.72 m × 2.59 m (15 ft 6 in × 8 ft 6 in) — long and narrow.

In doubles the live court is wide and the serve box is shallow: rallies run to the outer sidelines and the back boundary, but the service court is only 3.96 m × 3.05 m (13 ft × 10 ft) — short and wide.

Two errors turn up constantly: calling a shuttle out on the doubles long service line mid-rally, and playing the side alleys in singles.

Because the in/out boundaries change with the format, settle on singles or doubles before the first serve — the same way a scoring app has to be set to the right format before it can track a point. If you'd rather not carry the running score in your head, Badminton Scoreboard is a badminton scoreboard app for iPhone and Apple Watch that tracks match scores.

Why the doubles serve box is short and wide

The shape of each service court follows from how many people are covering it.

In doubles, two players split the court — one at net, one behind. Width is cheap to cover with two bodies, so the serve box uses the full 6.1 m; depth is expensive. Trimming 0.76 m off the back pushes the format toward the low serve to the T and makes the flick serve a real gamble.

In singles, one player covers everything: the narrower 5.18 m width keeps a server from pulling the receiver wide of a central base, and the full-depth court makes the high serve to the back corner standard. Long and narrow suits one defender; short and wide suits two.

Ceiling height, run-off, and marking a court

Badminton court size is fixed by the Laws; what varies is the space around and above it, and height usually decides whether a hall works.

Height. The BWF requires a minimum of 9 m (about 30 ft) of unobstructed clearance for international competition. Club and school halls routinely work with less — around 7.5 m (25 ft) is a reasonable floor for adult play, and below roughly 6 m, high clears stop working. A typical garage at 2.4–3 m (8–10 ft) suits serve practice and net drills, not full rallies.

Run-off. Leave clear space past the lines: national federation guidance generally asks for roughly 2 m behind each back boundary and 1–2 m at each side, so check your own governing body's figures before committing. At 2 m all round, one court occupies about 17.4 m × 10.1 m (57 ft × 33 ft).

Marking. Use 40 mm tape, white or yellow, with real contrast against the floor. Posts belong on the doubles sidelines regardless of format, which is why a singles match still has posts 6.1 m apart; where fixed posts can't sit there, the Laws allow thin strips fixed to the doubles sidelines instead. The rest of the on-court detail lives in badminton rules.

FAQ

How big is a badminton court in feet?

44 ft long by 20 ft wide for doubles, and 44 ft long by 17 ft wide for singles — rounded from 13.4 m by 6.1 m and 5.18 m.

Is a singles badminton court shorter than a doubles court?

No — both are 13.4 m (44 ft) end to end. Only the width differs: singles uses the inner sidelines, 0.46 m inside the doubles sidelines. The doubles serve is shallower, but that's a service line, not the court's length.

What is the short service line in badminton?

The line 1.98 m (6 ft 6 in) from the net on each side. A serve must land beyond it in both singles and doubles, the receiver must stand behind it, and it forms the front edge of all four service courts.

Does the doubles long service line apply during a rally?

No — it governs only where a serve may land. Once the serve is returned, the back boundary line 0.76 m (2 ft 6 in) behind it is the limit for both sides, and a shuttle landing between the two lines is in.

How much ceiling height does a badminton court need?

At least 9 m for international BWF events. Recreational play is usually workable around 7.5 m, and anything under about 6 m makes high clears unplayable — height matters more than spare floor space when you're choosing a venue.