Padel · Rules explained
Padel tiebreak rules: scoring, serve order and ends
A padel set that reaches 6-6 is decided by a tiebreak: the first pair to 7 points with a 2-point lead wins it and takes the set 7-6. The player due to serve serves one point, each player then serves two in turn, and the pairs change ends every 6 points.
How is a padel tiebreak scored?
Tiebreak points are counted 1, 2, 3, not 15, 30, 40. The first pair to 7 with a 2-point lead wins, so 7-5 or 7-3 ends it. At 6-6 play goes on until one pair is 2 clear: 8-6, 9-7, 10-8 and so on. There is no cap, and no golden point, whatever deuce rule the match uses.
The winning pair takes the set 7-6. However long the tiebreak runs, it counts as one game.
Who serves in a padel tiebreak?
The serve follows the set's rotation of all four players, but in short turns (1 point, then 2 points each):
| Points | Who serves | From |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | The player due to serve the next game | Right |
| 2 and 3 | The next server in the order, from the other pair | Left, then right |
| 4 and 5 | The first server's partner | Left, then right |
| 6 and 7 | The second server's partner | Left, then right |
| 8 and 9 | The first server again, and so on | Left, then right |
Tennis tiebreaks follow the same pattern, so you can also check any score with the tiebreak serve order helper.
When do you change ends in a padel tiebreak?
Every 6 points: after 6 points, 12 points, 18 points and so on, whatever the score. You change at 3-3 and you change at 4-2. The same rule applies in a super tiebreak.
Who serves first in the next set after a tiebreak?
The pair that received first in the tiebreak serves first in the next set. It does not matter who won the tiebreak. In this example Them serve first and Us win, yet Us serve first in set 2, because Us received first:
| Point | Won by | Game score | Games (sets) | Serving next | What happened |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Them | 0–1 | 6–6 | Us | Them serve 1 point, from the right |
| 2 | Us | 1–1 | 6–6 | Us | Us serve points 2 and 3: left, then right |
| 3 | Us | 2–1 | 6–6 | Them | |
| 4 | Them | 2–2 | 6–6 | Them | Them serve points 4 and 5 (the partner of the first server) |
| 5 | Us | 3–2 | 6–6 | Us | |
| 6 | Them | 3–3 | 6–6 | Us | 3-3 after 6 points: change ends |
| 7 | Them | 3–4 | 6–6 | Them | |
| 8 | Us | 4–4 | 6–6 | Them | |
| 9 | Us | 5–4 | 6–6 | Us | |
| 10 | Them | 5–5 | 6–6 | Us | |
| 11 | Us | 6–5 | 6–6 | Them | Set point to Us at 6-5 |
| 12 | Them | 6–6 | 6–6 | Them | Them save it. 6-6 after 12 points: change ends again, and 7 is no longer enough |
| 13 | Us | 7–6 | 6–6 | Us | Set point to Us again at 7-6 |
| 14 | Us | Set to Us | 0–0 · 7–6 | Us | 8-6, 2 clear: Us win the set 7-6. Us received first in the tiebreak, so Us serve first in set 2 |
Scored point by point by the same scoring rules the app uses.
What is a super tiebreak in padel?
A super tiebreak, also called a super match tiebreak, replaces the deciding set when the event announces it in advance. At one set all the pairs play one tiebreak instead of a third set, and it decides the match:
- Target: the first pair to 10 points with a 2-point lead wins, so 10-8 ends it but 10-9 does not.
- First server: the player due to serve next in the rotation serves the first point, from the right, just as in a set tiebreak. After that each player serves 2 points in turn.
- Ends: change every 6 points.
- Result: written as its points score, for example 6-4, 4-6, 10-7.
Here is one played point by point from one set all:
| Point | Won by | Game score | Games (sets) | Serving next | What happened |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Us | 1–0 | 0–0 · 6–4, 4–6 | Them | Us serve 1 point, from the right |
| 2 | Them | 1–1 | 0–0 · 6–4, 4–6 | Them | Then 2 points each, as in a set tiebreak |
| 3 | Them | 1–2 | 0–0 · 6–4, 4–6 | Us | |
| 4 | Us | 2–2 | 0–0 · 6–4, 4–6 | Us | |
| 5 | Us | 3–2 | 0–0 · 6–4, 4–6 | Them | |
| 6 | Them | 3–3 | 0–0 · 6–4, 4–6 | Them | 3-3: 6 points played, change ends |
| 7 | Us | 4–3 | 0–0 · 6–4, 4–6 | Us | |
| 8 | Them | 4–4 | 0–0 · 6–4, 4–6 | Us | |
| 9 | Them | 4–5 | 0–0 · 6–4, 4–6 | Them | |
| 10 | Us | 5–5 | 0–0 · 6–4, 4–6 | Them | |
| 11 | Us | 6–5 | 0–0 · 6–4, 4–6 | Us | |
| 12 | Them | 6–6 | 0–0 · 6–4, 4–6 | Us | 6-6: 12 points played, change ends again |
| 13 | Us | 7–6 | 0–0 · 6–4, 4–6 | Them | |
| 14 | Them | 7–7 | 0–0 · 6–4, 4–6 | Them | |
| 15 | Us | 8–7 | 0–0 · 6–4, 4–6 | Us | |
| 16 | Us | 9–7 | 0–0 · 6–4, 4–6 | Us | Match point to Us at 9-7 |
| 17 | Us | Us win the match | 0–0 · 6–4, 4–6, 10–7 | – | 10-7, 3 clear: Us win the match. The result is written 6-4, 4-6, 10-7 |
Scored point by point by the same scoring rules the app uses.
How do you write a tiebreak in a padel score?
| What happened | How it is written |
|---|---|
| Set won in a tiebreak | 7-6 |
| Set won 7-5 in the tiebreak | 7-6(5) |
| Match with one tiebreak set | 7-6(4), 6-3 |
| Match won 10-8 in a super tiebreak | 6-4, 3-6, 10-8 (often shown as [10-8]) |
In 7-6(5) the number in brackets is the losing pair's tiebreak points, so the tiebreak finished 7-5. Some results show both, as 7-6 (7-5).
How the app handles it
The app plays a tiebreak at 6-6, to 7 points won by 2, counted 1, 2, 3. The first server serves 1 point and then the serve changes every 2 points, and the side that received first serves the first game of the next set. It does not tell you when to change ends, so change every 6 points yourselves.
In a best of 3 you can turn on the super tiebreak decider (to 10, won by 2, recorded as its points score). With 9-game sets the tiebreak comes at 9-9 and the set is recorded 10-9. The targets are fixed at 7 and 10, and the app marks the serving side, not the individual server or court.
Questions
Is there a tiebreak in the third set in padel?
Yes, unless the event has announced a super tiebreak or another short decider. A full third set is played like the others, with a tiebreak at 6-6.
Can a padel tiebreak end 7-6?
No. A tiebreak needs a 2-point lead, so at 7-6 in points it carries on to 8-6 or beyond. The 7-6 you see in results is the set score in games, not the tiebreak score.
Is a padel tiebreak the same as a tennis tiebreak?
Yes. Both are played at 6-6, first to 7 points with a 2-point lead, with one point and then two each on serve and a change of ends every 6 points. See the tennis tiebreak rules to compare.
Last reviewed September 25, 2026
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