New to the sport or brushing up? This guide covers volleyball rules and scoring in plain language: how rally scoring works, how many points win a set, rotation and positioning rules, and the most common faults.
Volleyball Rules & Scoring: Quick Facts
- Scoring: rally scoring, a point on every serve.
- Sets: first to 25 (win by 2); deciding set to 15.
- Match: best of five sets, first to three set wins.
- Touches: up to three hits per side before it must go over.
- Team: six players on the court per side.
How Scoring Works
Volleyball uses rally scoring, which means a point is scored on every single serve no matter which team served. Sets 1 through 4 are played to 25 points and you must win by two, so a set can go past 25 (for example 27 to 25). If the match reaches a fifth set, it is played to 15 points, still win-by-two.
Winning the Match
A match is best of five sets, and the first team to win three sets wins the match. Many rec and youth leagues play best of three sets instead, with the deciding set to 15.
Rotation and Positioning
Each team has six players who must rotate clockwise one position each time they win back the serve. At the moment of serve, players must be in their correct rotational order, or the team is called for an overlap fault. Once the ball is served, players can move to their specialized spots.
Common Volleyball Faults
Frequent faults include hitting the ball four times before returning it, a double touch on a single player, a serve into the net or out of bounds, stepping over the service line, touching the net during play, and a back-row player attacking from in front of the attack line. Each fault gives a point and the serve to the other team.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many points do you need to win a volleyball set?
Sets 1 through 4 are played to 25 points, and you must win by two. A deciding fifth set is played to 15 points, also win-by-two.
How many players are on a volleyball team?
Six players are on the court for each team at a time, positioned in three front-row and three back-row spots.
How many times can a team hit the ball?
A team may touch the ball up to three times before sending it back over the net, and no single player can hit it twice in a row (except off a block).
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