Padel scoring explained: golden point, star point and tiebreak
How to keep score in padel: points, games and sets, the tiebreak at 6-6, and how the golden point and the new star point decide a game at deuce.
Updated 2026-10-22
Padel is scored like tennis: 15, 30, 40, game. Sets go to six games and a match is the best of three sets. What changes from club to club is what happens at 40-40, and since 2026 the official rules list three ways to play it. Agree on one before the first serve and most arguments never start.
Points, games and sets
- Points: 15, 30, 40, game. If both pairs reach 40, it is deuce.
- Games: the first pair to six games with a two-game lead wins the set, for example 6-4 or 7-5.
- Tiebreak: at 6-6 a tiebreak decides the set, which ends 7-6.
- Match: best of three sets. Some events replace the third set with a super tiebreak, the first pair to 10 points with a two-point lead.
Three ways to play deuce
| Format | What happens at 40-40 |
|---|---|
| Advantage | The classic way: a pair must win two points in a row to take the game, however long it takes. |
| Golden point | One deciding point. The receiving pair chooses to receive on the right or the left, and whoever wins it wins the game. |
| Star point | Two advantages are played as usual. If the score comes back to deuce a third time, one deciding point, the star point, is played. |
All three are options in the FIP Rules of Padel applied from 1 January 2026. On a golden point or star point the receiving pair chooses the side but cannot swap positions, and in mixed matches the receiver is the same sex as the server. The FIP uses the star point on Premier Padel, the CUPRA FIP Tour, FIP Promises and FIP Beyond from 2026; clubs and other events choose their own format, so check the event rules.
The star point, step by step
- 40-40 is called deuce 1. The next point gives advantage 1. If the same pair wins the following point, they win the game.
- If not, it is deuce 2. The next point gives advantage 2, and again, winning the following point wins the game.
- If the score comes back to deuce a third time, the star point is played. The receiving pair chooses the side, and whoever wins that point wins the game.
In other words, a game can have at most two advantages. The FIP brought it in to avoid very long games while keeping some of the back-and-forth of advantage scoring.
The tiebreak at 6-6
- Points are counted 0, 1, 2, 3. The first pair to seven points with a two-point lead wins the tiebreak and the set 7-6. At 6-6 in the tiebreak it simply goes on: 8-6, 9-7 and so on.
- The player due to serve takes the first point, from the right. The other pair serves the next two points, and from then on each pair serves two points in turn, keeping the order of servers from the set.
- Change ends after every six points.
- The next set is started by the pair that did not serve first in the tiebreak.
Keeping score without arguments
Call the score out loud before every serve, the serving pair's score first. Check the games at every change of ends, which in padel comes after the first, the third and every odd game of the set.
Or let a phone keep it. In Scoretide's scorekeeper, choose Padel and tap Point for the pair that won each rally: the app keeps the deuces, the tiebreak and the sets. Golden point can be on or off (off means advantage), and you can play a match tiebreak to 10 instead of a third set. There is no star-point setting. A mistake is one tap to undo, and after the match you see how it turned: lead changes, the biggest lead and the best run. Share a live link and anyone with it can follow the score in a browser.
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Questions
Is the golden point still used in padel?
Yes, in many clubs and tournaments. The FIP rules keep it as one of three options next to advantage and the star point. FIP circuits, including Premier Padel, switched to the star point in 2026.
Who chooses the side on the golden point?
The receiving pair chooses to receive on the right or the left, and they cannot swap positions for that point. The same applies to the star point.
How does a padel tiebreak work?
It is played at 6-6. The first pair to seven points with a two-point lead wins the set 7-6. Ends change every six points, and the pair that did not serve first in the tiebreak serves first in the next set.
Can I try Scoretide for free?
Yes. Your first scored game is free. Scoretide Pro then starts with a 7-day free trial and scores every game, with the tide chart, live links and season stats.