How Much Does it Cost to Rent a Tennis Court?
Buying a membership in a good tennis country club is an expensive option for many people. It is often in the range of thousands of dollars per year. A good alternative is to play on free public courts or cheap rental courts for a few bucks an hour.
In general, the courts open to the public are not maintained properly, and not present in every neighborhood in the US. Worse, in other countries, you may not find any free tennis court unless you build one yourself. Nevertheless, free tennis courts are OK for hitting some balls with friends for $0.
On the other hand, rental tennis courts in low-cost facilities are mostly well maintained and clean, offering different surfaces and the ability to pay the services of qualified coaches or rent a tennis ball machine to practice.
So then, how much does it cost to rent a tennis court? The response below is according to a survey done by the website numbeo.com in 424 cities around the world.
In the US, the average cost to rent a tennis court is roughly $16/hour. This average is calculated in all conditions. During winter when there is rain, the rental cost goes up to $30-$50 per hour since you’d need to play in an indoor court. In the summer, outdoor courts can be rented for as low as $5-10/hour.
Worldwide, the most expensive country to rent a tennis court is Switzerland with an average hourly cost of $38 in US dollars.
Cost of Renting a Tennis Court in The United States
The US is a country with a large tennis culture. It hosts many professional tournaments such as the US Open, Indian Wells, and Miami in outdoor hard courts. Also, you can find tennis courts everywhere.
In comparison with other countries, the US is not an expensive country to rent a tennis court. The US is surpassed by 45 other countries in the rank.
However, the price to rent a tennis court varies depending on the city you live in. Most of the time, a big city with expensive real estate will have the highest rental fee. Moreover, the rental cost change depending on the day and the hour. An hour on a Saturday afternoon is in general more costly than a Monday morning.
According to numbeo.com, this is the ranking of the US cities by the average rental fee hourly rate of a tennis court.
| 1 | Brooklyn, NY, United States | 44.29 $ |
| 2 | New York, NY, United States | 40.17 $ |
| 3 | Seattle, WA, United States | 33.14 $ |
| 4 | Philadelphia, PA, United States | 31.59 $ |
| 5 | Spokane, WA, United States | 25.80 $ |
| 6 | Minneapolis, MN, United States | 25.33 $ |
| 7 | Tampa, FL, United States | 25.21 $ |
| 8 | Buffalo, NY, United States | 24.17 $ |
| 9 | Portland, OR, United States | 24.10 $ |
| 10 | Las Vegas, NV, United States | 23.12 $ |
| 11 | Indianapolis, IN, United States | 22.50 $ |
| 12 | Chicago, IL, United States | 21.91 $ |
| 13 | Boston, MA, United States | 21.25 $ |
| 14 | Cincinnati, OH, United States | 20.62 $ |
| 15 | Phoenix, AZ, United States | 20.25 $ |
We can see with no surprise that the NY state cities are the most expensive when it comes to renting a tennis court.
On the other hand, some places are the cheapest to rent a court. These are the top 10 cheapest cities in the US, by hourly rate.
| 1 | Albuquerque, NM, United States | 3.67 $ |
| 2 | Salt Lake City, UT, United States | 6.00 $ |
| 3 | Sacramento, CA, United States | 7.56 $ |
| 4 | Dallas, TX, United States | 7.85 $ |
| 5 | Austin, TX, United States | 8.11 $ |
| 6 | Boise, ID, United States | 8.17 $ |
| 7 | Saint Paul, MN, United States | 8.50 $ |
| 8 | Birmingham, AL, United States | 8.60 $ |
| 9 | Los Angeles, CA, United States | 9.52 $ |
| 10 | El Paso, TX, United States | 10.00 $ |
Surprisingly, Los Angeles is not that expensive.
Overall, try to consider your location if you are interested in playing tennis regularly. Moving to a lower-cost city is not a bad idea if you love tennis.
Cost of Renting a Tennis Court in Canada
Canada is among the cheapest countries for renting a tennis court. Here you can find the top 15 most expensive cities by hourly rate.
| 1 | London, Canada | 26.99 $ |
| 2 | Mississauga, Canada | 25.64 $ |
| 3 | Ottawa, Canada | 23.78 $ |
| 4 | Windsor, Canada | 23.48 $ |
| 5 | Winnipeg, Canada | 21.70 $ |
| 6 | Kelowna, Canada | 20.99 $ |
| 7 | Brampton, Canada | 20.91 $ |
| 8 | Toronto, Canada | 19.00 $ |
| 9 | Edmonton, Canada | 18.93 $ |
| 10 | Calgary, Canada | 16.87 $ |
| 11 | Halifax, Canada | 16.78 $ |
| 12 | Burnaby, Canada | 15.76 $ |
| 13 | Montreal, Canada | 14.71 $ |
| 14 | Vancouver, Canada | 13.67 $ |
| 15 | Hamilton, Canada | 11.64 $ |
Cost of Renting a Tennis Court in The UK
The UK is a country where it is raining too often, which requires more indoor facilities. It is a host to two prestigious professional competitions: Wimbledon in grass courts and the ATP Tour Finals in indoor hardcourts.
Compared to the US, the average rental fee for a court is relatively cheaper as shown below, featuring the top 15 most expensive British cities ranked by the hourly cost.
| 1 | Kingston upon Hull, United Kingdom | 24.08 $ |
| 2 | Newcastle upon Tyne, United Kingdom | 20.53 $ |
| 3 | Reading, United Kingdom | 19.28 $ |
| 4 | Aberdeen, United Kingdom | 18.79 $ |
| 5 | Plymouth, United Kingdom | 17.96 $ |
| 6 | Birmingham, United Kingdom | 17.56 $ |
| 7 | Glasgow, United Kingdom | 17.10 $ |
| 8 | Bristol, United Kingdom | 16.92 $ |
| 9 | Leeds, United Kingdom | 16.73 $ |
| 10 | Edinburgh, United Kingdom | 16.71 $ |
| 11 | Liverpool, United Kingdom | 16.42 $ |
| 12 | Bournemouth, United Kingdom | 15.51 $ |
| 13 | Brighton, United Kingdom | 15.12 $ |
| 14 | Leicester, United Kingdom | 15.05 $ |
| 15 | Exeter, United Kingdom | 14.62 $ |
Cost of Renting a Tennis Court in Europe
European countries have a large history and culture in tennis. Countries like Spain, Switzerland, and Serbia have seen the birth and rise of big champions. The demand for tennis courts is big and growing with the increase of tennis popularity throughout the years.
In the table below you can find the top 15 European cities with the highest hourly cost of rental tennis courts.
| 1 | Lugano, Switzerland | 49.17 $ |
| 2 | Basel, Switzerland | 46.44 $ |
| 3 | Trondheim, Norway | 44.18 $ |
| 4 | Bern, Switzerland | 38.30 $ |
| 5 | Stockholm, Sweden | 37.54 $ |
| 6 | Malmo, Sweden | 37.43 $ |
| 7 | Zurich, Switzerland | 36.95 $ |
| 8 | Bergen, Norway | 36.10 $ |
| 9 | Copenhagen, Denmark | 36.00 $ |
| 10 | Geneva, Switzerland | 35.89 $ |
| 11 | Oslo, Norway | 35.66 $ |
| 12 | Lausanne, Switzerland | 34.98 $ |
| 13 | Amsterdam, Netherlands | 34.97 $ |
| 14 | Reykjavik, Iceland | 34.37 $ |
| 15 | Bergamo, Italy | 33.79 $ |
The city of Lugano in Switzerland is the most expensive one.
Final Thoughts
Our advice for an amateur player is to look for public or cheap rental courts in low-cost areas. You will find many, especially in the summer season. However, when it gets cold and raining, you may consider setting aside a budget to rent a well-equipped and protected indoor court to keep playing the game.
As for players who need coaching, you have to find a well-maintained tennis rental court to learn in the best conditions. It can be a little expensive, but worth it.
Helpful resource: How Much Do Tennis Lessons Cost?
