US Pickleball Statistics 2026
The definitive snapshot of pickleball in the United States — player counts, participation growth, court inventory, demographics, state-level breakdowns, and professional tour data.
Explore the Data
US Pickleball Courts & Facilities
Searchable directory of 10,800+ pickleball facilities and courts across all 50 states — indoor, outdoor, public, and private.
Tournaments, Leagues & Events
Browse thousands of US pickleball tournaments, clinics, open play sessions, and grand openings by state and category.
Pickleball Business Directory
Paddle makers, coaches, apparel brands, court builders, and pro shops serving the US pickleball market.
Pickleball Industry News
AI-summarized news from PPA Tour, USA Pickleball, MLP, Pickleball Magazine, The Dink, and more.
Canadian Pickleball Statistics
Pickleball Canada member counts, provincial court totals, and the fastest-growing cities north of the border.
Padel Statistics (US)
Compare pickleball to padel's rapid North American emergence — club counts, player growth, and Premier Padel.
US Pickleball Participation 2015–2030
Solid bars are SFIA-reported actuals; lighter bars are Branded Pickleball projections.
Pickleball vs Other Racket Sports
In 2025 pickleball tied tennis for US participation for the first time in history. Tennis still has a larger core-player base (14M vs 11.2M), but pickleball’s total annual participant count has caught up.
US Pickleball Participation Map
Top 10 States by Pickleball Players
Top 10 States by Pickleball Participation (2025)
| State | Annual Players | Participation Rate |
|---|---|---|
| California | 2,300,000 | 5.8% |
| Florida | 1,620,000 | 7.1% |
| Texas | 1,410,000 | 4.5% |
| New York | 905,000 | 4.6% |
| Arizona | 820,000 | 10.9% |
| Pennsylvania | 755,000 | 5.8% |
| North Carolina | 710,000 | 6.5% |
| Ohio | 650,000 | 5.5% |
| Illinois | 605,000 | 4.8% |
| Washington | 555,000 | 7.0% |
Top 10 States by Pickleball Courts & Facilities (2026)
| State | Courts | Dedicated Facilities |
|---|---|---|
| California | 5,200 | 1,640 |
| Florida | 3,800 | 1,210 |
| Texas | 2,900 | 930 |
| Arizona | 2,600 | 780 |
| North Carolina | 2,200 | 690 |
| Pennsylvania | 1,900 | 610 |
| Washington | 1,700 | 540 |
| Colorado | 1,600 | 510 |
| Michigan | 1,500 | 475 |
| New York | 1,450 | 460 |
Which States Are Growing Fastest?
Arizona and Texas are leading the current build-out wave, with court count expanding 40%+ year-over-year. See the court density page for per-capita context.
US Pickleball Courts — Indoor vs Outdoor
Outdoor courts still dominate (62%), but indoor share is growing fastest — driven by year-round dedicated-facility build-outs in cold-climate metros.
How Often Do Pickleball Players Play?
38% of annual players are “regular” (8–24 plays/year), and 25% are avid or daily. Core-player share is growing faster than total participation, indicating strong retention.
Player Demographics Snapshot
See the full demographics page for income, race/ethnicity, and gender breakdowns.
Pro Tour Prize Money Growth
See the pro tours page for top-earning pros and major event purses.
US Equipment Market Breakdown
See the paddle market page for top-8 brands and pricing trends.
Industry at a Glance
Sources: SFIA Topline Participation Report 2025, USA Pickleball facility census, APP / YouGov Consumer Survey 2025, Pickleball Magazine state reports, and Branded Pickleball Court Finder directory data.
Why Pickleball Keeps Growing in the United States
Pickleball's US growth story sits at the intersection of low barrier to entry, intergenerational appeal, and capital efficiency for facility operators. A full pickleball court fits in roughly a third of a tennis court's footprint, costs a fraction to build, and serves 4× more paying players per hour — which is why conversions of tennis courts, big-box retail spaces, and warehouses into indoor pickleball clubs have accelerated every quarter since 2022.
On the demand side, the sport's social format, short learning curve, and light physical impact make it appealing to players in their 20s and 30s as well as the 55+ cohort that seeded the original growth wave. That combined demographic pull has turned pickleball into one of the most attractive recreation and hospitality investment categories in North America.
More Pickleball Stats Topics
Growth 2015-2026
Year-by-year participation from 2.5M to a projected 30M+. 10-year CAGR, core-player counts, and year-over-year context.
Player Demographics
Age, gender, household income, and race/ethnicity breakdowns. Where the sport is broadening fastest.
Tournaments & Pro Tours
PPA, APP, MLP, prize money, top-earning pros, and the biggest annual events.
Court Density Heatmap
Per-capita courts by US state — where the market is saturated and where there’s whitespace.
Paddle Market
$2.3B equipment market, top brands, average prices, and channel mix.
Year-by-Year Archive
Past editions 2021-2024, frozen for citation by journalists and researchers.
Embeddable Widgets
Free iframe widgets with headline numbers, growth chart, top states, and paddle market size.
CSV & JSON Downloads
Machine-readable datasets plus a print-friendly full-report page you can save as PDF.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many people play pickleball in the United States in 2026?
Roughly 19.8 million Americans played pickleball at least once in 2024 according to the Sports & Fitness Industry Association (SFIA) Topline Participation Report, and consumer surveys from APP and YouGov put the past-12-month figure at 48.3 million adults. Weekly “core” players — those who play 8 or more times per year — now exceed 8.9 million, up from fewer than 2 million in 2020.
Is pickleball really the fastest-growing sport in America?
Yes. SFIA has named pickleball the fastest-growing sport in America four consecutive years (2021–2024), with 223.5% participation growth over the past three years. No other mainstream sport has come close to that compounded growth rate during the same window.
How many pickleball courts are there in the US?
There are roughly 51,000+ pickleball courts in the United States, spread across 16,000+ dedicated facilities, parks, private clubs, and converted tennis courts. Our own Pickleball Court Finder directory tracks 10,800+ individual facility listings and is updated weekly.
What is the average age of a pickleball player?
The median player age is now 34.8, down from 40.9 in 2020. Over 70% of new players entering the sport in the last two years are under 55, and the fastest-growing age bracket is 18–34. The stereotype of pickleball as a seniors-only sport is out of date — though 55+ participation remains strong and is still growing in absolute terms.
How much has pickleball grown over the past 5 years?
From 2019 to 2024, annual US pickleball participation grew from roughly 3.5 million to 19.8 million players — a 5.7× increase. Equipment sales, professional prize pools, dedicated facility openings, and media coverage have all grown at similar or faster rates.
Which states have the most pickleball players?
California, Florida, and Texas lead in absolute player count. By participation rate as a share of adult population, Arizona (10.9%), Florida (7.1%), and Washington (7.0%) top the list. See the state-by-state participation and court tables above.
What are the major professional pickleball tours?
There are three headline tours in the United States: the Professional Pickleball Association (PPA) Tour, the Association of Pickleball Players (APP) Tour, and Major League Pickleball (MLP), a team-based league. Combined prize money across sanctioned pro events now exceeds $15 million annually.
How big is the US pickleball industry?
The US pickleball economy — paddles, balls, apparel, footwear, court construction, coaching, events, and media — is estimated at $2.3 billion in equipment and apparel alone, with total industry revenue across facilities, tourism, and services approaching $5 billion. Court construction and indoor facility build-outs are the fastest-growing segments.
Cite This Page
Citing these numbers? Please reference “Branded Pickleball — US Pickleball Statistics 2026” and link to https://brandedpickleball.com/stats/pickleball. Individual figures are sourced in the note above.
Related
- Canadian Pickleball Statistics →
- US Padel Statistics →
- Pickleball Court Finder →
- Pickleball Events →
