Table tennis rules

A game of table tennis is played to 11 points, you must win by two, and service changes every two points. Almost everything else is detail — but the detail is where arguments start, so here is all of it in one place.

Updated 2026-08-01Deutsch

The rules in thirty seconds

A game is played to 11 points. If the score reaches 10–10, play continues until one player leads by two.
Service alternates every two points — every one point once the score reaches 10–10.
A match is a best-of-odd series, usually best of five games or best of seven.
The ball must bounce once on your side of the table before you return it, and must clear the net and land on your opponent's side.
Players change ends after each game, and halfway through the deciding game.

Games used to be played to 21 with five serves each. That changed in 2001 — anyone insisting on 21 is playing by a rulebook that is over two decades out of date.

How a point is won

You win a point when your opponent fails to make a legal return. In practice that means one of the following happened.

The ball bounced twice on their side.
They hit the ball into the net, or off the end or side of the table without it bouncing.
They struck the ball before it bounced on their side (a volley) — even if they were standing well behind the table.
They hit the ball twice deliberately, or the ball touched anything other than their racket and racket hand.
Their free hand touched the playing surface, or they moved the table.
They failed to make a legal service — see the serving rules.

An edge ball — one that clips the top edge of the table and bounces away at an angle — is good, and is one of the most commonly disputed calls in casual play. A ball that hits the vertical side of the table below the playing surface is not.

Service, in brief

The serve is the most rule-bound stroke in the sport and the one recreational players most often get wrong. The short version: the ball starts resting on a flat, open palm behind your end line, is thrown at least 16 cm straight up, and is struck on the way down so that it bounces once on your side and once on your opponent's.

It must stay above the level of the playing surface and behind your end line from the moment you toss it until the moment you hit it, and your free arm must not hide the ball from the receiver.

Lets — when a point is replayed

A let is not a fault. The point is simply replayed, and the server serves again with no change to the score or the service count.

The served ball touches the net assembly and still lands legally on the receiver's side.
The receiver was not ready, and did not attempt to play the ball.
Play is disturbed by something outside the players' control — another table's ball rolling into the court is the usual one.

Equipment rules

Recreational play rarely polices equipment, but the rules exist and are worth knowing before you enter a club competition.

Item	Requirement
Ball	40 mm diameter, 2.7 g, white or orange, matte plastic
Racket blade	At least 85% natural wood by thickness; any size or shape
Rubber colours	The two sides must be clearly different — one side black, the other a distinctly different permitted colour
Clothing	In competition, a shirt colour clearly different from the ball

The two-colour rule exists so the receiver can see which rubber you used. Two identical-looking sides with different characteristics is the trick it was written to stop.

The expedite rule

If a game is still going after ten minutes and fewer than 18 points have been scored, the expedite system starts. From then on, service changes after every point, and if the receiver makes thirteen returns in a rally, the receiver wins the point. It is designed to end defensive stalemates, and once introduced it stays in force for the rest of the match.

Frequently asked questions

How many points do you need to win a game of ping pong?

Eleven, and you must lead by at least two. If the score reaches 10–10, play continues until one player is two points ahead — 12–10, 13–11, and so on.

How many serves does each player get?

Two serves each, alternating, until the score reaches 10–10. From then on service changes after every single point.

Does an edge ball count in table tennis?

Yes. A ball that touches the top edge of the playing surface is in play. A ball that hits the vertical side of the table below the playing surface is not.

Can you hit the ball before it bounces?

No. Striking the ball before it bounces on your side of the table loses you the point, even if you are standing behind the table when you do it.

Are ping pong and table tennis the same sport?

Yes — the same game under two names. 'Table tennis' is the competitive and Olympic term; 'ping pong' is the everyday one, and is also used for a separate hardbat variant played with sandpaper rackets.

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