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Beach Volleyball Rules vs Indoor: What are the Differences? As summer shifts into full swing, it’s about time to get outside and start enjoying that sun. But what’s a person to do when they want to be active but also spend the afternoon at the beach? Give beach volleyball a shot! But what’s the difference between indoor volleyball and beach volleyball? Are there differences? The answer is yes—many differences exist between the two. The differences between indoor volleyball and beach volleyball are: Personnel and Play Style: Team of six vs. team of two, no strict positions in beach volleyball. Court Size and Construction: smaller size in beach volleyball, different floor materials, differences in net size and construction. Equipment and Uniforms: smaller, lighter ball in beach volleyball, uniforms depend on tournament regulations. Side Changes: weather makes side changes in beach volleyball more frequent. Scoring and Sets: beach volleyball teams can win after two sets, while indoor wins after three. Technical Game Play: differences to warm-up times, along with gameplay like serves, tipping, double touching, block touching, positioning, court lines, timeouts, and penalties. Before you head out to start your game on the beach, make sure you understand the basics of volleyball. As explained by the official Olympics website, volleyball is a two-team sport, played on a court that is divided in half by a net. The game begins when one team hits—or serves—the balls over the net to the other side. Teams are allowed to touch the ball three times before they must send it back over. To get a point, teams try to ground the ball on the opponent’s court while also defending against the other team. A rally is the time between the serve and the end of the play, where players keep the ball in playback and forth without any faults. There are six basic techniques in volleyball: serve, pass, set, attack, block, and dig. A server, pass, and set all help to create a play where another can attack or spike the ball, while a dig is when a player tries to save a ball with a dive and a block tries to stop the other team from serving, setting, or attacking the ball over the net. A point is scored when the ball hits the court within the boundaries without interception by the defending team. To win a set, a team must score 25 points and have a two-point lead. Indoor games are played to three sets, while beach games are to two. If there is a tie, another set is played to 15 points, and the winner still must win by two points. But what are all the differences between the two? Read on to find out more. Personnel and Play Style The biggest difference between beach volleyball and indoor volleyball is the personnel. In indoor volleyball, a team consists of six players, while in beach volleyball, expect to play as a pair. Because of this, the play style is going to be much different between the two. In beach volleyball, players must be versatile and work through every type of skill, whereas an indoor team would have players serving under specific positions. This also means that in beach volleyball, there are no strict positions. Players can move, meaning they can play anywhere. This also means there are no switches to the lineup like in indoor volleyball. Court Size and Construction One of the more obvious differences between beach volleyball and indoor volleyball is the court size. In indoor volleyball, the court is larger to accommodate for the six players per side. Beach volleyball’s court is 2 meters shorter and 1 meter narrower than an indoor court, meaning that only two players on each side playing beach volleyball have less room to cover. They also have a free zone surrounding the area, typically about 10 feet wide. Of course, the make up of the court is also different—beach volleyball is all sand. It has to be level and free of any debris to make sure the players are safe. Lines on the court are also different depending on whether it’s sand or wood; there is also a centerline on indoor courts, but not beach courts. In indoor volleyball, the attack lines are regulated and marked, while beach volleyball does not have set lines—attack lines are moveable and at the mercy of the referee if problems arise. The net for each game is also different—beach volleyball allows advertising, while indoor volleyball does not regulate markings. The bands at the top of the net are different for each, too—the net for beach volleyball has a larger top band. Equipment and Uniforms Even the equipment is different between the two games! A volleyball used for beach games is lighter and bigger—this gives players a better advantage when playing outdoors, being able to use the wind and weather to score. Beach volleyball players do not have to wear numbers and typically wear shorts or a bathing suit, depending on tournament regulations. Indoor teams all must dress alike, except for the libero—a defense player in the back row who does not serve or rotate. Side Changes In indoor volleyball, nature doesn’t have to be taken into consideration. In beach volleyball, they do that by instituting more side changes per set. Playing outside means being out in the elements, and factors like wind or sun could drastically affect a game. In beach volleyball, players swap sides every seven points, rather than each set in indoor volleyball. Scoring and Sets Speaking of sets, these are also different between the two. In indoor volleyball, a team wins a set when they reach 25 points, while in beach volleyball, a team wins at 21. To win a game inside, a team must win three sets, while an outdoor pair only must win two sets to win the game. Can You Tip in Beach Volleyball? Here Are Some Beach Volleyball Strategies. Technical Game Play Before the game, beach volleyball teams are permitted to have a warm up period of three minutes if they had already started at another court and five minutes if they did not. In indoor volleyball, this is increased to six and ten minutes. When it comes to serving, in beach volleyball, if one of the players serves out of order, there is no penalty and the team’s serve order is reversed. This makes it so one player doesn’t serve three times in a row. Timing for contact is also different—the toss before the serve beach volleyball only allows for five seconds, compared to eight for indoor. In beach volleyball, don’t expect to tip with your fingers. To hit a shot over the net, players can’t tip—palms or locked fingers only. Players in beach volleyball are also subject to more strict double touching rules compared to indoors. In outdoor volleyball, players cannot double contact the ball unless it’s a hard hit. They also can’t double contact if players only use fingers. In indoor volleyball, double contact is legal. They also need to consider how they block touch—in beach volleyball, the team who block touches the ball can only try twice to get the ball over the net, compared to three in indoor volleyball. Beach volleyball requires players to be perpendicular to the net when trying to set the ball over, meaning they have to have their back to the net or be completely facing the nice. This rule doesn’t exist in indoor volleyball. Stepping into the other team’s court is also more lenient in beach volleyball. As long as the player doesn’t interfere with the other team’s play, the ball can be retrieved from the other team’s side as long as the player sends the ball back over the net. In beach volleyball, only the captain can make a request for a timeout; in indoor, the coach or captain can make the request. Indoor timeouts state that if the team doesn’t leave the court, the coach and other players cannot meet with the players currently on the court. In beach volleyball, players are given more time to get on and off the court. If things go wrong on each court, both indoor and beach use penalty cards. Penalties vary between both versions of the game, but beach volleyball only uses yellow cards, where indoor uses yellow and red cards. When it comes down to it, beach volleyball and indoor volleyball have many significant differences. Many of them result in a difference in scenery, like the equipment, uniforms, and court size. The size of the team also matters between the two, while other differences affect game play—technical differences like scoring rules, serving, and even the way to hit the ball over the net. While all these differences are important to an official tournament-style game, if you’re just playing with your friends on a day at the beach, know that having fun is more important than following all the rules! RELATED QUESTIONS Can I use a beach volleyball for indoor volleyball or vice versa? Volleyballs for beach and indoor games are different—they are made of different materials, have a different weight, and are a different size. If you are playing an official tournament, swapping one for the other is illegal. Which is harder to play, beach volleyball or indoor volleyball? Both are challenging, but it comes down to the number of players. In indoor volleyball, there are six players, while in beach volleyball, there are two. In beach volleyball, players have much more ground to cover, making the game harder for each individual player. Please note: This blog post is for educational purposes only and does not constitute legal or medical advice. Please consult a legal expert or medical professional to address your specific needs.