You are learning to play, reviewing doubles turns or explaining the new scoring format.
Badminton Rules: Interactive Guide
Compare court boundaries, practice doubles service turns and try 21-point or new 15-point scoring with diagrams and an eight-question quiz.
Start here
Choose 21-point scoring or the new 15-point preview, then a topic.
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Progress, practice scores and individual answers are processed in your browser and reset on reload. No name, account or upload is required. The site still uses general traffic analytics.
Useful for
Learn the basic rules before your first game
BADMINTON · LEARN THE RULES
8 topicsLearn the lines. Know who serves next.
Compare singles and doubles courts, practice service turns point by point, then try the eight-question quiz.
Standard in 2026; retained as an alternative from 2027.
Changing the format resets scores and quiz answers. Official play follows the event's rules.
Court and lines
The same landing can be in or out depending on singles, doubles, serving or rallying. Choose a spot and compare.
Doubles · A serves from the right
Out: the hitting side loses the rally
Doubles serves use the shorter long service line. The full back boundary applies during rallies.
Assume a legal service action and no return by B. Compare where the shuttle lands.
Try this
Keep the same landing point and switch between serve and rally. In doubles, the rear strip and the area near the net can change the result.
Left and right are from each player's view facing the net. A's right is bottom-right; B's right is top-left on the diagram.
Question 1 / 8Answered: 0 · Correct: 0
A doubles serve lands between the long service line and back boundary. What is the call?
Quick answer
See the lines and find the next server
Compare singles and doubles boundaries, then add points to see who serves and receives next. The serving side's own score determines the court: even on the right, odd on the left. Try current 21-point scoring and the new 15-point format scheduled for 4 January 2027.
A guide to standing badminton with one-game practice, not an umpire or full match tracker. Use the scoring format announced by your event.
Tennis Rules: Learn serves, volleys, doubles order and line calls with court diagrams. Practice a game, a set or a tiebreak, then try an eight-question quiz.
About this tool
Compare court boundaries, practice doubles service turns and try 21-point or new 15-point scoring with diagrams and an eight-question quiz.
Progress, practice scores and individual answers are processed in your browser and reset on reload. No name, account or upload is required. The site still uses general traffic analytics.
Health information notice
Introductory standing-badminton rules, checked on 13 October 2026 against BWF laws and the new scoring notice. Not externally reviewed by an umpire. Practice covers one game, not a full match, para badminton or every event procedure. Follow your competition's published rules.
How to use it
- Choose 21-point scoring or the new 15-point preview, then a topic.
- Keep a landing point fixed and switch singles, doubles, serve and rally to compare lines.
- Play a diagram or step through the lesson; add points to practice service turns.
- Answer eight questions and use the explanations to revisit a lesson.
Common use cases
- Learn the basic rules before your first game
- Work out who serves next in doubles
- Compare 21-point games with the new 15-point format
21-point and 15-point scoring compared
The new 15-point format uses rally scoring. It is not the old system in which only the server could score. Follow the format specified for your event; the tool does not change a running exercise based on your device's date.
| Rule | 21-point games | 15-point games |
|---|---|---|
| Standard timing | 2026 standard; retained as an alternative | Scheduled from 4 Jan 2027 |
| Match | Best of three games | Best of three games |
| Win by two from | 20-all | 14-all |
| Highest final score | 30–29 | 21–20 |
| Mid-game interval | Up to 60 seconds at 11 | Up to 60 seconds at 8 |
| Deciding-game end change | First side to 11 | First side to 8 |
A four-rally doubles example
A1 serves first to B1. Scores below always show A first; official score calls name the server's score first. Right and left are each player's own sides when facing the net.
| Rally result | A–B | Next service |
|---|---|---|
| Start | 0–0 | A1 serves from the right to B1 |
| B wins | 0–1 | B2 serves from the left to A2; no court swap |
| B wins again | 0–2 | B2 serves from the right to A1; B partners swap |
| A wins | 1–2 | A2 serves from the left to B1; no court swap |
| A wins again | 2–2 | A2 serves from the right to B2; A partners swap |
Common mix-ups when switching racket sports
- Unlike tennis and pickleball, the shuttle must be returned before touching the floor.
- Unlike a tennis or table tennis service let, a legal badminton serve brushing the net can remain in play.
- Unlike table tennis doubles, partners do not alternate every rally shot.
- Unlike traditional pickleball doubles serving, losing service does not give your partner a second-server turn.
Sources and scope
Checked on 13 October 2026. Court and standing-play rules follow BWF Laws 1 and 7–16; the upcoming scoring format follows the association notice. Wording and diagrams are original teaching material, not externally umpire-reviewed.
Practice covers one game with A serving first. Player positions and paths are illustrative. Full-match records, para badminton and corrections by match officials are outside the simulation.
FAQ
Is badminton played to 21 or 15 points?
The standard in 2026 is best of three games to 21. BWF approved best of three games to 15 from 4 January 2027, retaining 21-point scoring as an alternative. Associations and event organizers may adopt different schedules or approved formats. This guide lets you practice both.
What happens at 20-all or 14-all?
In 21-point games, win by two from 20-all, with the next point winning at 29-all. In 15-point games, win by two from 14-all, with the next point winning at 20-all. Every rally scores a point, regardless of who served.
Which lines count for doubles serves?
Serve diagonally between the short service line and doubles long service line, using the wider doubles sideline. The rear strip beyond the doubles long service line is out on a serve but in during a rally. Singles serves use the narrower sideline and full back boundary. A relevant boundary line counts as in.
Who serves next in badminton doubles?
If the serving side wins, the same player serves again from the opposite service court, and that pair switches courts. If the receivers win, they score and take service without changing their assigned courts. Use their new score: the player in their right court serves when even, left when odd. There is no second-server turn before handing service over.
Is a serve that touches the net a let?
Not just because it touches the net. An otherwise legal serve that brushes the net and crosses toward the correct service court stays in play. A serve caught on top of the net, or caught in it after crossing, is a fault. After the service has been returned, those caught-shuttle situations instead result in a let under the standing rules.
Does the serve have to be below the waist?
Under the standard standing service law used here, the entire shuttle must be below 1.15 metres from the court surface at contact. The cork alone is not enough. Release it without added spin and strike the base first. Alternative service laws depend on the event.
Do doubles partners have to alternate hits?
No. The designated receiver must return the serve, but after that either partner may hit a rally shot. Both partners may not hit the shuttle successively before returning it over the net.
When do players change ends and take a break?
Change ends after game one and after game two if a third is needed. In the third game, also change when one side first reaches 11 in 21-point scoring, or 8 in 15-point scoring. Each game has an interval of up to 60 seconds at that leading score. Between games, allow up to 120 seconds.