One of the most complex concepts in pickleball is the Kitchen.
You won’t find the Kitchen in tennis or badminton or any other paddle or racket sport.
If you’re new to the game of pickleball, you’re thinking: the kitchen is where mom used to make brownies for my brothers and I.
She always told us not to play sports in the house, especially in our kitchen.
But what does that have to do with pickleball?
What Is The Kitchen In Pickleball
The Kitchen (also known as the no-volley zone or NVZ) is the space right by the net on a pickleball court.
It is a rectangular area on both sides of the net that has special rules and requires unique strategy.
The non-volley line, which is two inches thick, marks off the Kitchen area on a standard pickleball court–it is considered a part of the non-volley zone.
Where is the Kitchen on the Pickleball Court?
The Kitchen starts just beyond the net on both sides of the court area.
If a pickleball player is within the Kitchen zone or on the Kitchen line, they are considered to be in the Kitchen.
Pickleball Kitchen Size
The pickleball Kitchen extends 7 feet deep, from the net, into each side of the court.
The width of the Kitchen spans from sideline to sideline on the pickleball court–a distance of 20 feet across.
Why Do We Have the Kitchen in Pickleball?
Pickleball was created by Barney McCallum, Joel Pritchard, and Bill Bell to entertain their kids while on vacation.
But the game quickly caught on with their adult friends as well.
McCallum and Pritchard invited one of their friends, Dick Brown, to play with them one day, and he quickly fell in love with the game.
But there was one problem: Brown was a hulk of a man–standing 6’4”–and aggressive in nature.
And he had a unique strategy: he would use his size by standing at the net and he would smash everything in sight before it could get into his court.
Pickleball was invented as a game for people of all sizes and skill levels.
In most sports, the largest, strongest, and fastest have a competitive advantage that is tough to overcome.
But in Pickleball, the creators wanted to create a level playing field–to keep it as a game for people of all ages.
In order to negate Brown’s size, they introduced the pickleball non-volley zone (aka The Kitchen) to keep players from standing at the net and smashing the pickleball straight down into the court on every shot.
When can I enter the Kitchen in pickleball?
You can enter the Kitchen at any time during a game.
But you must pick your spots.
If your opponent hits a dink that bounces in the Kitchen, you can (and should) go into the Kitchen and return the shot.
It is completely legal and encouraged. In fact, this is probably the simplest rule of the Kitchen:
As long as the ball bounces, you can enter the Kitchen and play a shot.
You can go into the Kitchen at any time during the game, as long as you are not volleying.
And while it is not a recommended strategy, you could stand in the Kitchen constantly.
You just become a target for your opponent. If they volley the ball back at you, and it hits you while you are standing in the Kitchen, play is dead and you lose the point.
So if you go into the Kitchen to return a bouncing shot, it’s a good idea to get out as soon as possible.
After you return the dink, get out of the Kitchen.
Pickleball Kitchen Rules (2022)
For many beginners, the rules of the Kitchen can be the most complex and confusing part of the official rules of pickleball (USA pickleball rules summary).
Can I ever go into the Kitchen? What can you not do in the Kitchen in pickleball?
Is Mom going to yell at me if I step into the Kitchen? (Oh wait, wrong kitchen. Unless, of course, Mom is your pickleball partner. Then, she may yell at you for going into the Kitchen at the wrong time.)
It can be hard to make sense of non volley zone rules.
The basic rule of the Kitchen is that you can not hit the ball out of the air while you are inside the NVZ area.
That’s the quick answer, but there are some nuances that make the Kitchen rules difficult.
We have compiled an abbreviated form of the rules for you:
1. You cannot smash a ball out of the air (volley) while standing in the Kitchen.
You’ve probably heard the phrase: if you can’t take the heat, stay out of the kitchen.
But in pickleball, that phrase changes a little. In this game, if the ball doesn’t bounce, stay out of the Kitchen.
If you are standing in the Kitchen, you cannot volley the pickleball.
A volley is when you hit the ball out the air before it bounces.
In order to hit a ball while standing in the Kitchen, you must let the ball bounce first.
After the ball lands, you can hit a dink shot, which is the opposite of a volley.
A dink is a soft and low return compared to a hard volley shot.
In the simplest terms: let the ball bounce, then enter the Kitchen, and hit a soft dink to the opposite court.
But if you can stay outside the NVZ and still make a return, you can hit the pickleball out of the air.
Can you enter the Kitchen before the ball bounces?
You can enter the Kitchen at any time.
But as we have said before, you can’t hit the ball out of the air while standing in the Kitchen.
So if you go into the area before the ball bounces, that’s fine. You simply cannot touch the ball in the air.
Once it bounces, it’s fair game.
And while you may go into the Kitchen at any time, you want to be careful not to go in too early or stay in too long.
If you are standing in the Kitchen, you are a sitting duck for the opposing team.
They can smash the ball into your body, resulting in a dead ball, and ending the point.
2. If you are touching the Kitchen line, you are in the Kitchen.
The NVZ line is part of the Kitchen.
Let’s imagine you in a rally and your opponent pops the ball up over the net.
Your eyes grow as big as a lion stalking a zebra on the Savannah.
High balls are a pickleball players dream.
It’s kill time.
You load up and smash a hard volley back across the net into your opponents court.
It flies past your opponent and the pickleball lands in the playing surface.
As you prepare to celebrate, you look down and notice that your toe is touching the non-volley zone line.
You’re not completely inside the Kitchen, so it’s no big deal, right?
Unfortunately, if you are on the NVZ line, you are in the Kitchen.
The line is part of the non-volley zone surface area, and the player’s feet must remain off it.
If any part of your body or paddle is in the Kitchen or touches the associated lines–during or after a volley–it is a fault.
Your opponent smiles in relief and makes the line call. You lose the point.
3. You can’t fall into the Kitchen even after you volley a shot.
You’re in the middle of another volley.
You check your feet to make sure you are outside of the Kitchen.
Your opponent pops the ball up in the air again, and you wind up and hit a low volley at the opposing player.
But this time your forward momentum carries you toward the net, and you step into the Kitchen after the volleyed ball lands in the opposing team’s court.
Can you step into the Kitchen after you hit it?
If at any time you fall into the Kitchen or step in after paddle contact, you can be called for a foot fault and you lose the point.
No part of the player can go into the non-volley zone after a shot.
Your swing, your follow-through, and your forward motion from the shot are all considered part of the shot progression. They are all part of the act of volleying.
So if you fall into the Kitchen after the swing, you are considered to be inside the Kitchen on a volley.
Even after you hit a volley (post shot) and the shot is declared dead, a player’s momentum cannot carry them the Kitchen regardless of the result of a volley.
But, if the ball bounces, you are permitted to step into the Kitchen or fall into it from your momentum.
Pro Tip: A player’s partner can actually grab them to keep them from falling into the Kitchen. If you are off balance and about to fall into the area, your partner can keep you from falling in. This is completely legal as long as they are standing outside the Kitchen.
However, if your partner is already inside the Kitchen and you touch them after a volley, this is a fault.
Can you jump and land in the Kitchen in pickleball?
Again, if you are volleying the ball out of the air, your momentum cannot carry you into the Kitchen.
And you cannot jump and volley a ball and then land in the Kitchen.
This is illegal and will result in a fault.
Can I be in the Kitchen and jump out to volley a ball?
This is a good question.
You can be inside the Kitchen prior to a volley.
But before you volley the ball, you must reestablish both feet outside the Kitchen area–and be on the ground–prior to making contact with the ball.
In other words, you cannot jump out of the Kitchen and hit a volley in mid-air before coming down to the ground.
This would look amazing, and you may even end up on SportsCenter’s Top 10 plays for such a stylish shot.
But you will lose the point because it is a fault.
4. Your paddle can go above the Kitchen on a swing.
What if, as you hit a volley, your paddle is over top of the Kitchen area?
Is that a fault?
This is completely legal.
The NVZ or Kitchen area is only comprised of the physical ground and not the space above it.
As long as your paddle doesn’t touch the physical surface of the Kitchen or the Kitchen line, you can swing it freely over the area.
5. Nothing that you are wearing or using can fall into the Kitchen.
This is where things get interesting.
Even for Kitchen rules, this is a unique rule.
Let’s imagine you swing and hit a volley shot while standing outside of the Kitchen area.
Perfect, you’ve followed the pickleball rules up to this point.
But as you swing, your sunglasses fall off and into the Kitchen.
You’ve broken a Kitchen rule.
If anything that the volleying player is wearing or using falls into the NVZ, it is a Kitchen fault.
Anything that you are using or wearing is considered part of a player.
Your paddle falls out of your hand into the Kitchen? Fault.
Your necklace comes undone and drops in? Fault.
Your gum comes out of your mouth and sticks in the Kitchen?
You get the idea.
Keep everything secure so you use the Kitchen to your advantage and not to your harm.
What happens if you break the Kitchen rules?
If you break any of the Kitchen rules, you will be called for a fault, and you will lose the point.
During a game, you are focused on hitting quality shots to your opponent’s side and reacting to your opponent’s shots.
You don’t want to be focused on whether or not you are stepping into a box.
It can be hard to be aware of the Kitchen and Kitchen line throughout the game.
How should you approach the Kitchen Line?
In a pickleball game, you want to get to the Kitchen line as quickly as possible.
The team that reaches the Kitchen first has a distinct advantage in the rally.
Let’s imagine a game scenario.
At the beginning of the rally, you hit a deep serve into the far corner of your opponent’s court.
The receiving team lets the ball bounce (following the double bounce rule) and then they hit a return shot back over the net to you.
You let it bounce (again: double bounce rule) and your opponent has already moved up to their Kitchen and they are trying to gain control of the game.
In many rallies, the team that gets to the Kitchen first will win the point.
What can you do to get to the Kitchen?
At this point, the third shot drop is likely your best play to give you time to get to the Kitchen.
You should hit the ball up–about 6-7 feet in the air–with its highest point occurring on your side of the net.
The ball should land softly in your opponent’s Kitchen.
After you hit the drop, you should move as quickly as possible to your Kitchen.
You can move quickly to the line, but you need to make sure you remain under control.
If your opponent returns a shot before you are at the line, you should be controlled enough to use your split-step and get into ready position for a shot.
If you hit your drop shot with the right arc and the right amount of touch, you should have time to get to your Kitchen line.
Once you arrive at the Kitchen line, you want to make sure you don’t step on it.
But you should get as close to the Kitchen line as possible without touching it.
This will allow you to cover the Kitchen area if a dink bounces in it.
Again, most points in pickleball are won at the net, and if you can get to the Kitchen quickly, you’ll have a volley advantage and you’ll score points.
Pickleball Kitchen Strategies
Your play at the Kitchen will likely determine the outcome of the match in a game of pickleball.
Skilled pickleballers know this.
And there are some strategies and pickleball tips that can give you an advantage near the net.
1. Be patient.
You don’t need to kill the first shot that comes your way, especially when you are in a dink battle.
You should play patiently and be comfortable with long rallies.
Hit soft and well-placed dinks to the cross-court corner of your opponent’s Kitchen, near the side of the non-volley zone.
These are good shots.
And, remember, accuracy is more important than spin or power at this point.
Force them to hit difficult-angled shots, and wait for them to make a mistake.
While this may seem counterintuitive to an aggressive player, this is a common strategy–and it is effective, too.
You win points in pickleball by being more consistent than your opponent and letting them make the first mistake.
2. Keep your shots low.
When you are at the net, you want to keep your shots as low as possible, especially dinks.
This is probably the best strategy you can use at the net.
It’s common practice to get into a dinking battle when both teams are at their Kitchen line because it’s hard to lift low dink shots, and your opponent can’t put a lot of power behind it without making a mistake.
A low shot keeps your opponent from being able to speed up the game.
3. Smash down the middle in doubles.
If your opponent pops the ball up, you should take advantage of their mistake and smash it.
In doubles, you would hit your overhead shot down the middle section of the court.
It will force your opponents to reach for the ball, which can cause a mishit due to the speed of the ball.
Or, as they attempt to cover the middle area of the court, they may fail to communicate with each other.
And in the confusion, both players may go for the ball at the same time causing issues.
4. You should return the serve deep.
In the beginning of the rally after the next serve, the receiving team should let the serve bounce and hit the return of serve to a deep portion of the opponent’s court.
This will force them to stay back at the baseline.
And it will give you time to get to the Kitchen line and gain the initial advantage.
5. Use your third shot drop, but only move up if it bounces low.
As mentioned above, if you’re the serving team, your third shot should (most often) be a drop shot into the Kitchen.
You want your drop shot to land softly in the Kitchen and only bounce slightly upward so you can get to the Kitchen line.
If you hit it too high or too hard, the ball will bounce up above the net after landing in the Kitchen, allowing your opponent to smash it back across the net.
In that case, you do not want to approach the Kitchen.
You should stay deep and be ready to play their smash from the baseline.
After their return, you can try the drop shot again on the next ball, and try to land it softer.
Once you know you’ve hit a shot that will land softly, you can move up.
While you may not need the third shot drop as often in recreational play, you will certainly need it if you hope to go into tournament play.
Can The Serve Land in the Kitchen?
A pickleball serve can land anywhere on the court except for in the Kitchen.
A serve attempt must clear the Kitchen area and the Kitchen line in order for it to be legal.
If it hits the line, it’s a fault.
The best serving strategy is to hit it deep into your opponent’s court with some spin on it in order to use the entire court surface.
Does the return serve in pickleball have to clear the Kitchen?
The second shot of the game is allowed to land in the Kitchen.
In fact, the only shot that cannot land in the NVZ is the serve. Every other shot can land inside the Kitchen.
While the second shot is permitted to land in the Kitchen, it’s a better strategy to send your second shot deep into the opponent’s court.
The second shot must bounce before they are permitted to hit it.
So a deep second shot will keep your opponent at the baseline and far from the Kitchen.
This gives you the opportunity to get to the Kitchen first and gain the advantage.
How To Be More Aware Around Kitchen Line
In order to be successful around the Kitchen line, you must have a high awareness of the line and area.
You can’t constantly be looking down at the ground to make sure your feet are out of the Kitchen.
If you do that, you won’t be able to track the ball and hit consistent shots.
So how do you improve your awareness of the Kitchen?
Work on keeping your feet under you.
If your feet are underneath your torso and you are in an athletic position, your feet will not be in the NVZ. Don’t stagger your feet or step forward unless you are intentionally entering the Kitchen to return a bouncing shot.
Check your feet after exiting the Kitchen.
If you step into the Kitchen, you need to reestablish your feet outside the Kitchen before hitting the next shot.
When you step out of the NVZ, you can check your feet quickly in order to ensure you are clear of the Kitchen line.
But don’t look down too long.
Get your eyes back up and ready for the next shot.
Why is It Called The Kitchen?
After all of this talk about the Kitchen, you may be wondering:
Why is it called the Kitchen in the first place?
Why didn’t they call it the Jar? The name of the game is PICKLEball for crying out loud.
But all kidding aside: Where did the name Kitchen come from?
Nobody really knows the real answer to this.
Some have guessed that the name came from the game of shuffleboard–of all places.
In shuffleboard, there is a scoring zone.
Behind the scoring zone, there is an area that’s called the Kitchen.
If the puck lands in there, the player loses 10 points.
In other words, you don’t want to be in the Kitchen.
While some have hypothesized that’s where the name came from for the sport of pickleball, nobody really knows for sure.
What to do next?
If you master the game at the Kitchen, you will take your game to new heights.
When you get better at every level, that’s when you can takeover the pickleball courts.
And if you are looking for other ways to Play Pickleball Better, check out this blog post with 10 strategies and 8 drills that will help you skyrocket your game.
New to pickleball? We have created the Ultimate Beginners Guide To Pickleball that walks you through step-by-step on how to get started.
Takeover starts at the Kitchen.