Guide To Volleyball Court Dimensions & Lines

The dimensions of a volleyball court vary depending on whether you’re playing indoor or beach volleyball. It’s not only the court type that impacts volleyball court dimensions however, as the age of players and the level of play will also impact how big a volleyball court is.

With this in mind, we’ve created this comprehensive guide to volleyball court sizes and lines, covering all the markings and measurements required for indoor and beach volleyball courts at junior, high school, college and senior level. The guide also includes volleyball court diagrams with measurements and labels to clearly show the layout of indoor and beach courts.

What are the dimensions of a volleyball court?

As mentioned above the size of a volleyball court in the USA will depend on whether you’re playing indoor or beach volleyball.

Indoor volleyball court sizes

USA volleyball state that the playing court for indoor volleyball is a rectangle measuring 18m long by 9m wide (59ft 6in x 29ft 6in), with a ‘free zone’ surrounding the court which is a minimum of 2m (6ft 7in) away from the base line and side line. It isn’t required for this free zone to be symmetrical, so some sides may be larger than 2m. This is the standard size of an indoor volleyball court at high school (NFHS), college (NCAA) and senior level (FIVB, USAV).

To aid the development of junior players, the size of the court for players under the age of 10 is reduced to 16m long and 9m wide (52ft 6in x 29ft 6in). This is then further reduced to 14m in length and 9m wide (46ft x 29ft 6in) for players aged 9 and under. Players over the age of 10 will play on the full-size court.

Ceiling Clearance

The free playing space or ceiling clearance is the space above the playing area which is free from any obstructions. For USAV nationally sanctioned competitions and recommended for all other competitions, 7m (23ft) is the minimum free playing space. The FIVB have set their minimum ceiling clearance to 12.5m (41ft)

Beach volleyball court sizes

As per the FIVB regulations for official competitions, the size of a beach volleyball court should measure 16m long by 8m wide (52ft 6in x 26ft 3in) with a free zone of 5m to 6m (16ft 5in to 19ft 8in) on each side. There must also be a minimum clearance of 12.5m (41ft) above the playing surface. USAV require the court to be the same size for their competitions. However, the free zone only needs to be a minimum of 3m (9ft 10in) on each side, with a minimum clearance of 7m (23ft) above the playing surface.

Volleyball court lines and zones

Now that we’ve covered volleyball court dimensions, we’re going to take a closer look at volleyball court lines and zones. It is important to know what each of the lines and zones on a volleyball court mean/signify to ensure you understand the rules and can play the game correctly.

Indoor volleyball court lines and zones

Attack lines

The attack line in indoor volleyball sits 10ft (3.05m) from the net on either side of the court. The lines stretch across the whole width of the playing court, and they divide each half of the court into the front zone and back court.

Players who are in the front row to begin a point must line up in front of the attack line. Any player lined up in the back row must not attack a ball above the net in this zone and must remain in the back court until the other team has served. Liberos also can’t overhand set the ball whilst standing on or in front of the attack line. Players must also sub in and sub out in front of it and the libero must enter and leave the court behind it.

Sidelines

The sidelines separate the playing court from the free zone and will signal whether a ball is in or out of bounds. It runs the full length of the playing court on both sides, including under the net. If the ball lands fully outside the sidelines the ball is called out by the umpire. However, if any part of the ball is touching the line, then it will be called in.

Free Zone

The free zone is the area outside the perimeter of the playing court. USAV and FIVB say this must be a minimum of 2m (6ft 7in) in size for player safety, but not symmetrical in size on all sides. If the ball is hit and lands in the free zone, then out is called and the point awarded to the opposing team. The substitution zones are also located in the free zone, as well as the coach restriction lines.

Baselines

The baselines run across the width of the back of the playing court on either side of the net. It also separates the playing court from the free zone at both ends of the court. Again, if the ball lands outside of this line, then the ball will be called out. The ball is also served from the service area behind this line. Servers must ensure they are fully behind the line when serving as if they touch any part of the baseline, they will lose the point. Servers can jump during serves but must only land over the base line once the ball has been hit.

Center Line

The center line runs the full width of the playing court and lies directly underneath the net. This divides the court into two sides. Players will lose the point for their team if they step over the center line during play.

Substitution Zones

The substitution zone for all players except the libero is in the free zone and runs between both attack lines on either side of the net. The player being subbed on must wait in the zone in front of the scorer’s table. The scorer then will give the players the okay to swap positions.

The libero substitution zone is anywhere in the free zone that surrounds the back court. They do not need to wait for the scorer’s approval and can substitute as much as they wish. Libero substitutions do not count towards a team’s substitution limit.

Beach volleyball court lines and zones

A beach volleyball court has less markings than an indoor court which is understandable given it is played on sand with fewer players. As mentioned previously, the size of the court is 16m long by 8m wide (52ft 6in x 26ft 3in). As there are only two players per team there is no attack line in beach volleyball which means there are no zones splitting the court. Therefore, both players on the team can cover all areas in their 8m x 8m half of the court.

Players will serve from behind the baseline in the service area and must not touch the line until they have hit the ball. The free zone must be either 3m (for USAV competitions) or 5-6m (for FIVB competitions) from the sidelines and the baselines to ensure player safety. As there are no substitutions in beach volleyball, there is no need for a substitution zone.

How tall is a volleyball net?

Indoor volleyball net height

For indoor volleyball, the height of the net depends on the age of the players.

USA Volleyball and other governing bodies such as FIVB and the NCAA state that the regulation volleyball net height for men is 2.43m (7ft 12in). The regulation volleyball net height for women is slightly lower at 2.24m (7ft 4in).

The recommended net height changes dependent on the ages of the participants. Please see the below table from USA Volleyball, outlining which net heights are required for each age group.

The height of volleyball nets can be easily changed with adjustable posts that can be set to a variety of heights.

Each net also has antennae fastened at the end of each side band, placed on either side of the net directly above the sidelines. It marks what is in-bounds and out-of-bounds when the ball travels over the net. If the ball hits either antenna or crosses the net outside of it, the ball will be called out of bounds. Volleyball net antennae are 1.8 m (5ft 11in) in height and 10mm in diameter. The top 80cm (32in) extends above the net and is marked with 10cm (4in) stripes of contrasting color, typically red and white.

Beach volleyball net height

As with indoor volleyball, in beach volleyball the net is placed vertically over the centre line with antennae on either side of the net indicating what is in or out of bounds.

For senior beach volleyball the FIVB regulation net height is 2.43 m (7ft 12in) for men and 2.24m (7ft 4in) for women.

The FIVB have also outlined how the net height can be varied for specific age groups.

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