How Tennis Scoring Works

Tennis scoring can look confusing at first, but it becomes simple once you understand the structure. A tennis match is built from points, games, and sets.

The basic structure is: Points → Games → Sets → Match. The official Rules of Tennis are maintained by the International Tennis Federation.

Tennis point scoring

Tennis does not use 1, 2, 3, 4 for normal point scoring. Instead, the score goes:

• 0 = Love
• 1 point = 15
• 2 points = 30
• 3 points = 40
• 4 points = Game

A player must usually win by two points to win a game.

Example game score

• Player A wins first point: 15-0
• Player B wins next point: 15-15
• Player A wins next point: 30-15
• Player A wins next point: 40-15
• Player A wins next point: Game

What does love mean?

Love means zero in tennis. For example: 15-love = 15-0, 30-love = 30-0, 40-love = 40-0.

What is deuce?

Deuce happens when both players reach 40-40. At deuce, a player must win two points in a row to win the game.

• Deuce
• Player A wins point → Advantage Player A
• Player A wins next point → Game Player A

If Player A has advantage but loses the next point, the score returns to deuce.

What is advantage?

Advantage means a player is one point away from winning the game after deuce.

• Advantage server = server can win the game on the next point
• Advantage receiver = receiver can win the game on the next point

How games work

A player wins a game by winning at least four points and leading by two points. A set is made up of games.

How sets work

A player usually wins a set by reaching six games with at least a two-game lead. Common set scores include:

• 6-0
• 6-1
• 6-2
• 6-3
• 6-4
• 7-5
• 7-6

If the score reaches 6-6, many tournaments use a tie-break.

What is a tie-break?

A tie-break is a special scoring format used to decide a close set. Instead of love, 15, 30, and 40, tie-breaks use normal numbers: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7.

A player usually wins a standard tie-break by reaching seven points with at least a two-point lead. Example: 7-4 = tie-break won, 8-6 = tie-break won, 10-8 = tie-break won.

How matches work

A tennis match is usually played as best of 3 sets or best of 5 sets. Most regular tennis matches are best of three sets. Some men's Grand Slam matches use best of five sets.

Simple scoring example

Imagine Player A beats Player B 6-4, 3-6, 6-2. This means:

• Player A won the first set 6-4
• Player B won the second set 6-3
• Player A won the third set 6-2
• Player A won the match by 2 sets to 1

Common tennis scoring terms