Pickleball participation Australia statistics (and padel): how many people play
AusPlay, Pickleball Australia's 2024-25 annual report, and Padel Australia / Tennis Australia releases
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TL;DR
Pickleball and padel in Australia, in four numbers
- 90,000 Australians played pickleball or padel in the year to June 2024, the two sports coded together (AusPlay, survey estimate).
- 155,000 pickleball players and 22,209 registered members, average age 56, 53 per cent female (Pickleball Australia 2024-25 annual report).
- 90,000 people have played padel on more than 100 Australian courts, with court numbers up 40 to 50 per cent year on year (Padel Australia / Tennis Australia releases).
- The survey figure and the federation figures are different measures and are never added or compared as growth on this page.
Pickleball and padel are the two fastest-moving racquet sports in Australia and the two hardest to measure, because the national survey codes them together and the growth figures come from the sports' own bodies. This page separates the three kinds of number: AusPlay's survey estimate of 90,000 pickleball and padel participants for July 2023 to June 2024; Pickleball Australia's 2024-25 annual report, which puts pickleball at 155,000 players and 22,209 members; and Padel Australia and Tennis Australia releases stating 90,000 people have played padel on more than 100 courts. Each carries its provenance in the table so a reader knows which is a survey and which is a federation figure.
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Pickleball and padel in the national survey
AusPlay codes pickleball and padel as a single activity, so the only survey estimate available is a combined one: 90,000 participants aged 15 and over for the period July 2023 to June 2024, the financial-year release that preceded the move to calendar-year reporting. That figure cannot be split between the two sports from the survey alone, and it is older than the calendar year 2025 figures used for tennis, netball, basketball and swimming on this site. It is included because it is the only population-weighted, independently collected estimate that exists for either sport.
- 90,000 is a survey estimate of adults aged 15 and over for July 2023 to June 2024, the financial-year AusPlay release.
- Pickleball and padel share one activity code in AusPlay, so the survey cannot say how many of the 90,000 played each.
- The AusPlay figure predates the calendar year 2025 releases used elsewhere on this site by 18 months.
- It is the only population-weighted, independently collected estimate for either sport.
- Reuse of the AusPlay figure is under CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 with the attribution line at the foot of this page.
| Measure | Figure | Population | Period | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pickleball + padel, coded together | 90,000 | Adults 15+ | Jul 2023-Jun 2024 | AusPlay FY2023-24 |
| Pickleball alone | Not separable | Adults 15+ | Jul 2023-Jun 2024 | AusPlay FY2023-24 |
| Padel alone | Not separable | Adults 15+ | Jul 2023-Jun 2024 | AusPlay FY2023-24 |
Pickleball, from the federation's own report
Pickleball Australia's 2024-25 annual report is the source for every pickleball-specific figure on this page: 155,000 players, 22,209 registered members, an average member age of 56, and a membership that is 53 per cent female. The players figure is the federation's estimate of everyone playing, including social and venue-based players who never register; the members figure is a count of registrations. They are reported from the annual report itself, not from news coverage of it, and they describe a federation's view of its sport rather than a population survey.
| Measure | Figure | Basis | Period | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Players | 155,000 | Federation estimate | 2024-25 | PA annual report |
| Registered members | 22,209 | Registration count | 2024-25 | PA annual report |
| Average member age | 56 | Registered members | 2024-25 | PA annual report |
| Female share of members | 53% | Registered members | 2024-25 | PA annual report |
Padel, from Padel Australia and Tennis Australia
There is no padel-only survey figure. What exists are releases from Padel Australia and from Tennis Australia, which administers padel in Australia, stating that 90,000 people have played padel, that the country has passed 100 courts, and that the court count is growing at 40 to 50 per cent year on year. The 90,000 is a cumulative played-at-least-once figure from the governing bodies, not a 12-month participation estimate, and it happens to match the AusPlay combined figure by coincidence rather than by method. Treat every padel number here as a federation or industry release.
| Measure | Figure | Basis | Period | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| People who have played padel | 90,000 | Governing-body release | Latest release | Padel AU / TA |
| Courts in Australia | 100+ | Governing-body release | Latest release | Padel AU / TA |
| Court growth, year on year | +40-50% | Governing-body release | Latest release | Padel AU / TA |
Trend: the one growth figure, and why the rest is not printed
The only year-on-year figure on this page is the 40 to 50 per cent growth in padel courts, and it is a governing-body release rather than a survey series. The pickleball numbers are not a trend either: 90,000 in AusPlay for 2023-24 and 155,000 in the 2024-25 annual report are a survey estimate of adults 15 and over for one sport pair and a federation estimate of all players for one sport, and the gap between them is a difference of method, not a 72 per cent rise. When AusPlay publishes a calendar-year figure for the pickleball and padel code, a like-for-like survey trend can be stated.
Provenance and method for each source
Three sources, three methods. AusPlay is the Australian Sports Commission's national telephone survey of adults aged 15 and over, weighted to the population, with pickleball and padel recorded under one activity code; the figure here is from the July 2023 to June 2024 release. Pickleball Australia's annual report for 2024-25 is the federation's own account of its membership database and its estimate of the wider playing population, published to its members. Padel Australia and Tennis Australia releases are public statements by the governing bodies about courts built and people introduced to the game. Only the first is a probability sample; the other two are administrative or estimated counts.
- AusPlay FY2023-24: survey estimate, adults 15+, pickleball and padel coded together.
- Pickleball Australia 2024-25 annual report: registration count plus a federation estimate of all players.
- Padel Australia / Tennis Australia: governing-body releases on courts and cumulative players.
- No figure on this page comes from news coverage; each is from the body that produced it.
How to cite the pickleball and padel figures
Cite each figure to the body that produced it and say what kind of figure it is. The AusPlay estimate carries the CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 attribution; the federation figures are cited to the federation and the report:
- Australian Sports Commission - www.ausport.gov.au
- Suggested citation (survey): Australian Sports Commission, AusPlay, July 2023 to June 2024, pickleball and padel (combined code), adults 15+, 90,000.
- Suggested citation (pickleball): Pickleball Australia, 2024-25 Annual Report: 155,000 players; 22,209 members; average age 56; 53 per cent female.
- Suggested citation (padel): Padel Australia and Tennis Australia releases: 90,000 people have played; 100+ courts; court growth 40-50 per cent year on year.
What these numbers mean for a pickleball or padel venue
A sport whose players are, on the federation's own figures, mostly unregistered and mostly over 50 is a sport where the venue is the club. Players find a court by searching, book a session by the hour, and expect to pay online and get a reminder. A venue that puts its courts, its beginner sessions and its social round-robins on a public booking page captures the 155,000, not just the 22,209.
What AllSquads is
AllSquads is booking, payments and admin software for sports coaches and clubs. Players find your classes, book and pay online, and get reminded before every session. You get the roster, the money and the contact record in one place, with a payout to your bank every week. It runs term programs, casual classes, camps, private lessons and court hire side by side, so the whole operation is in one system rather than a booking tool plus a spreadsheet plus a payment app.
- Over ten thousand
- bookings taken
- Thousands
- of players
- Hundreds
- of classes live
- A growing group
- of Australian clubs
“I had all of term 1 paid in the first week. 75% less admin, 100% fewer late cancellations, and 80% fewer emails and phone calls.”
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Where this comes from
- 90,000 played pickleball or padel, Jul 2023 to Jun 2024 (combined code)
- AusPlay, Clearinghouse
- Padel: 90,000 played, 100+ courts, +40-50% courts year on year
- Tennis Australia
- The combined-code AusPlay figure is licensed CC BY-NC-ND 4.0
- CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 licence
- AusPlay is published by the Australian Sports Commission
- ASC (ausport.gov.au)
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