How to Play Kickball: Rules for Kids and Adults

Knowing how to play kickball is almost a rite of passage at school and summer camp, and the game works just as well at a family reunion or office picnic. Kickball follows the shape of baseball: two teams take turns kicking and fielding, runners circle four bases, and the team with the most runs wins. Instead of a bat and small ball, the pitcher rolls a big rubber ball and the kicker boots it into the field. Here are the standard kickball rules used by most recreational leagues, followed by simpler kickball rules for kids.

Quick rules

• Two teams take turns kicking and fielding. Each team's turn to kick lasts until it makes three outs.
• The pitcher rolls the ball to home plate. The kicker kicks it and runs the bases.
• Three strikes is an out. Four balls lets the kicker walk to first base.
• A runner is out if a kicked ball is caught in the air, if they are tagged or forced out, or if they are hit by a thrown ball below the shoulders while off base.
• No leading off or stealing. Runners leave the base only once the ball is kicked.
• A runner crossing home plate scores one run. Most runs after the last inning wins.

What you need

• A soft rubber playground ball, 8.5 inches for kids or 10 inches for teens and adults.
• Four bases or markers such as cones, jackets or paper plates weighed down with a stone.
• An open, flat area like a baseball diamond, park or school field.
• Something to track runs, such as a notepad or the scoreboard.

Setup

1. Lay out a diamond with home plate, first, second and third base. For kids, place bases about 40 to 50 feet apart; for adults, 60 feet is typical. The pitching spot sits in the middle of the diamond.
2. Mark the foul lines from home plate past first and third base. Cones or chalk work well.
3. Split into two teams. Use our team generator to make fair teams quickly.
4. Toss a coin. The winner chooses to kick first or field first.
5. Each team writes a kicking order. Everyone kicks in that order, every inning.
6. The fielding team spreads out: a pitcher, a catcher behind home plate, a player at each base, and the rest across the outfield.

How to play

Pitching

1. The pitcher rolls the ball along the ground toward home plate. It must be rolled, not thrown or bounced high. Many leagues say it cannot bounce higher than one foot as it reaches home plate.
2. A strike is a pitch that rolls over home plate that the kicker does not kick, or any pitch the kicker swings at and misses.
3. A ball is a pitch that misses home plate or bounces too high.
4. Fielders, including the catcher, must stay behind the kicker and the pitcher until the ball is kicked.

Kicking

1. The kicker must kick the ball with a foot or leg from behind or at home plate.
2. A kicked ball that lands in fair territory is in play. The kicker drops everything and runs to first base.
3. A kicked ball that lands outside the foul lines, or goes foul before passing first or third base, is a foul. In most leagues a foul counts as a strike. Some groups instead count three fouls as an out.
4. Three strikes is an out. Four balls is a walk to first base.

Running the bases

1. Runners must touch every base in order: first, second, third and home.
2. Only one runner may stand on a base at a time. If the kicker is running to first, the runner already on first must move on. This is called a force.
3. Runners may not leave a base until the ball has been kicked.
4. If a fly ball is caught, runners must return and touch their base before running again (tagging up).

Getting runners out

• A fielder catches the kicked ball before it touches the ground.
• A fielder holding the ball tags a runner who is off base.
• A fielder holding the ball touches the base a forced runner is heading to before the runner gets there.
• A fielder hits a runner with a thrown ball while the runner is off base. Throws must be below the shoulders. A runner hit in the head is safe, unless they ducked or slid into the throw.

Switching sides

After three outs, the teams swap: the fielding team comes in to kick and the kicking team goes out to field. When both teams have kicked, one inning is complete.

Scoring

How to win

The team with the most runs at the end of the final inning wins. Leagues usually play 5 to 7 innings, while schools and parties often play to a time limit. If the score is tied, play extra innings until one team leads at the end of an inning.

Kickball rules for kids

• Shorten the bases and let an adult or older child pitch gently.
• Drop the walk rule: every child kicks until they put the ball in play, so everyone gets to run.
• Replace hitting runners with the ball with tag outs only, especially for younger players.
• Let the whole team kick once per inning instead of switching after three outs, so no one waits too long.
• Skip keeping score for the youngest players and cheer for every kick.

Variations

• Bunting allowed or banned: many adult leagues ban short taps; kids' games usually allow them.
• Mercy rule: limit each team to five or six runs per inning, except in the final inning.
• Two-base kickball: just home and one far base for small yards.
• Co-ed lineups: rotate boys and girls in the kicking order.

Tips and strategy

• Kick the ball with the top or inside of your foot toward an open gap. A low line drive is harder to catch than a high pop up.
• Fielders should throw to the base ahead of the lead runner rather than chasing the runner.
• Pitch slow and bouncy to big kickers and fast and smooth to keep them from getting under it.
• Always run hard to first base. Fielders often fumble the catch or throw.

House rules to agree first

• Do fouls count as strikes, and is a foul on the third strike an out?
• Can runners be put out by being hit with the ball, or only by tagging?
• How many innings, or what time limit, and is there a mercy rule?

Planning a field day? Pair kickball with dodgeball, capture the flag and tug of war, or see more outdoor games.