Portable Pickleball Courts for Schools: PE Classes, Gyms and Blacktop

A school can add pickleball without pouring a new court. A portable court rolls out on the blacktop or the gym floor, gives students a regulation playing area with the lines already printed, and rolls back up when the space is needed for something else. This guide covers where a court fits on a campus, how many courts a class needs, what they cost and how to run them from day to day.

Where a court fits on campus

A portable court needs a clean, firm, flat, hard surface. Most schools have several that work:

• The blacktop or playground asphalt
• The gym floor
• An outdoor basketball or tennis court
• A staff or visitor parking lot, outside school hours
• A multipurpose room or cafeteria, if it is big enough once the tables are moved

Grass, gravel, wood chips and rubber playground surfacing do not work, because the court follows whatever is under it. Look for wide cracks, drains and low spots where water sits, and set the court on the flattest stretch. The Court Setup Guide lists every compatible surface, including school blacktop and gym floors.

How much room each court needs

Every full-size PortaCourts court has the same regulation 20 × 44 ft playing area. The sizes differ in how much surface runs past the lines. Leave at least 3 ft of open space past every edge of the court, for safe play and room to unroll, so measure your space against the open area column.

For a gym, measure wall to wall and take off anything that stays in the room, like folded bleachers, a stage edge or padded walls behind the basketball hoops. Then work out how many courts fit side by side. Two Standard courts placed next to each other need about 51 ft by 51 ft of open floor if they share the 3 ft of space between them, but more room between courts is better when a whole class is moving around.

Which size suits a school

The Standard court has 6 inches of surface past each sideline and baseline, so it fits the most spaces and lets you place more courts in one gym. The Expanded court adds 2 ft past each sideline and 3 ft past each baseline, which gives students room to chase a wide ball without stepping off the surface. It is the size built for regular play at homes, schools, churches and clubs. The Premier, with 5 ft past each sideline and 8 ft past each baseline, is meant for competitive play and tournaments, and it is made to order.

For PE classes, more courts usually beats bigger courts, since every extra court puts four more students in a doubles game. If the space only just fits, our driveway space guide walks through measuring, and the method works the same way for a gym or a blacktop.

How many courts a PE class needs

Doubles puts four players on a court at a time. Work out the number of courts from your largest class:

• One court keeps 4 students playing, with the rest of the class rotating in
• Three courts keep 12 students playing at once
• Five courts keep 20 students playing at once

Students who are waiting can keep score, run a drill station off the court or play on a Play Court, covered below. Short rotation formats help too. The round robin and king of the court formats in our guide to pickleball team building activities work for a class as well as an office.

What it costs

Each court comes with the court surface in your choice of color with the lines printed on, a Leisure net, installation tape, the setup guide and access to the setup video. The Deluxe net is an upgrade for $1,260 more. Freight shipping from our warehouse in Eagle, Idaho is included in the delivered price.

Buying several courts brings the price down: 5% off 3 to 4 courts, 10% off 5 to 9 and 15% off 10 to 19. Churches and registered nonprofits get 20% off, plus 12 pickleballs with each court. If the buyer is a registered nonprofit, such as a school foundation or booster club, say so when you request a quote. Discounts do not stack, and they are applied by quote rather than at checkout.

For a full breakdown of what a court costs and how it compares with building a permanent one, see how much a portable pickleball court costs and our comparison of portable vs permanent courts.

Setting up and putting away

Two people can roll out a Standard or Expanded court, tape the edges and stand up the net in about 30 minutes, or about 45 for the Premier, with no power tools. Full-size courts come in 4 or 5 rolls of about 250 to 307 lb each, so each roll needs two adults to lift and unroll. Plan for staff or a trained crew to handle the rolls rather than a class of students. Our step-by-step setup guide covers each step.

On a gym floor, secure the edges with double-sided court tape and press it down with a roller. Peel it off slowly at a low angle when you take the court up. Do not use duct tape, which leaves residue, and never use glue or adhesive on a surface you do not own, which matters if the district or another program controls the gym.

Many schools leave a court down for a full unit and take it up when the gym is needed for assemblies or games. Between uses, store the rolls loosely rolled, never folded, in a cool, dry place out of direct sunlight, such as an equipment room or storage shed. Do not stack heavy equipment on top. If the court gets wet outdoors, let it dry fully before rolling it up.

Renting first for a field day or tournament

If you want to try pickleball before buying, rent courts for a field day, a staff tournament or a fundraiser. A Standard court rents for $850 for one day. With a Leisure net ($200) and local delivery within 30 miles of Eagle ($250), one court for a day comes to $1,300, with your staff doing the setup. Rentals of 3 or more courts get a multi-court discount, and longer rentals cost less per day.

Our guide to what it costs to rent a pickleball court walks through every line of a rental quote, and the rental pricing page has the current rates.

Smaller spaces and younger students

If no space on campus reaches 27 × 51 ft, or you want a station for practice and casual games, the Play Court is 6 × 12 ft for $1,200 and comes with its own net. It fits in a classroom or a corner of the gym, and it works for all ages and skill levels. It is for practice and casual play, not regulation games.

Questions to settle before you order

• Which space the courts will use, and on which days it is free of assemblies, games and events
• Who sets up and takes down, and who on staff learns the process first
• Where the rolls are stored and how they get from storage to the court. A cart or dolly helps
• Whether the gym floor's owner, such as the district facilities office, allows court tape on it
• How many paddles and balls each class needs, and where that gear is kept

Get a school quote

Compare all three sizes on the portable pickleball courts page, then request a quote with the number of courts and your delivery ZIP code. If you are not sure how many courts fit your gym or blacktop, ask about your space and we will help you choose. For a single event, tell us about it and we will quote a rental.