What Size Tennis Racket Does My Child Need? A Junior Fitting Guide

Getting your child's racket size right matters more than most parents realise.

Too big and they can't manoeuvre it properly - they end up muscling the ball, developing compensations and struggling to generate clean contact. Too small and they'll grow out of it quickly. Get it right and the racket becomes an extension of their arm, letting them develop proper technique from the start.

The good news is that finding the right size isn't complicated. There are two simple checks you can do at home in under a minute, and our team can confirm the right fit in store. This guide walks you through both, explains how racket size links to ball stage and court size, and shares the coaching principle we use to guide every fitting decision.

Quick Summary

Junior tennis rackets run from 17 inches up to 27 inches (full adult size). The right size depends mainly on the child's height and reach - not strictly their age. You can check fit at home using two methods: the armpit test and the soldier test. As a general rule, if a racket is going to be slightly wrong, we'd rather it be slightly too small than too big - the reasons for this are explained below. Our team can fit your child in store across our North London venues.

Junior Racket Sizes - The Full Range

Junior rackets increase in two-inch increments, with more options available now than ever before:

**17 inch** - the smallest, for the youngest beginners
**19 inch**
**21 inch**
**23 inch**
**24 inch**
**25 inch**
**26 inch**
**27 inch** - full adult size

The introduction of 24, 25 and 26 inch options means the jumps between sizes are smaller than they used to be, which makes it easier to find a frame that fits a child properly at each stage of their growth.

Height to Racket Size Guide

The table below is a widely used starting point based on a child's height. Treat it as a guide rather than a rule - the two physical checks further down are more reliable, and our coaching view is always to prioritise the child's size and how they actually handle the racket over their age or the court they're playing on.

| Child's height | Suggested racket length |

|---|---|

| Up to 100cm (3'3") | 17-19 inch |

| 100-110cm (3'3"-3'7") | 19-21 inch |

| 110-120cm (3'7"-3'11") | 21-23 inch |

| 120-130cm (3'11"-4'3") | 23-25 inch |

| 130-145cm (4'3"-4'9") | 25-26 inch |

| 145cm+ (4'9"+) | 26-27 inch |

This gets you in the right ballpark. To narrow it down, use the two checks below.

Method One - The Armpit Test

This is the quickest way to check fit at home.

Have your child stand upright.
Ask them to hold their racket arm (right arm if right-handed) straight out to the side at 90 degrees - as straight as they can, fingers together, palm facing down.
Place the racket under that arm, with the top of the racket head tucked into their armpit and the handle running down along their forearm.
Look at where the tips of their fingers reach along the grip.

Reading the result:

Fingertips reach the middle of the grip - the racket is the right size.
Fingertips reach the end of the grip (the butt) - the racket is too small.
Fingertips don't reach the grip, falling short up the throat - the racket is too big.

Method Two - The Soldier Test

This second check is especially useful for beginners.

Have your child stand up straight like a soldier.
Ask them to hold the racket at the bottom of the grip, arm down by their side, racket pointing at the floor.
Check the gap between the bottom of the racket head and the floor.

Reading the result:

The racket should hang clear of the floor - around an inch of clearance is ideal. As long as there's a gap, the size is workable. If the racket touches or rests on the floor, it's too big.

Why this test matters most for beginners: a beginner's swing is often low and scooping. If the racket is so long it catches the floor on that kind of swing, it becomes a real problem. As players advance and their swing develops - happening out to the side rather than scooping low underneath - this test matters less. A more advanced player can comfortably use a racket slightly longer than the soldier test alone would suggest, because they're never swinging down low enough for length to be an issue.

When in Doubt, Go Smaller - Here's Why

If a racket is going to be slightly the wrong size, our coaching advice is to go slightly smaller rather than slightly bigger. This often surprises parents, so it's worth explaining.

A racket that's slightly too small forces the child's body to do the work. They learn to generate power and racket-head speed through their own movement and technique. A racket that's too big does the opposite - the child ends up fighting the frame, unable to manoeuvre it cleanly, and never develops the underlying skill.

We call the principle behind this "playing with a pistol."

The idea comes from video games. Every time a game gets harder, it hands the player a more powerful weapon - a bigger gun, a faster car, a stronger character. The player feels like they're improving, but really the game is just making things easier. Success becomes a function of better tools, not better skill.

As coaches, our job is the exact opposite. We want genuine improvement - success that comes from skill, not from equipment doing the work. So rather than handing a struggling player a bigger, more powerful racket, we'd often hold the "weapon" back slightly and force them to develop the skill instead.

A child who learns to play with a racket that makes them work develops faster hands, better movement, cleaner technique and more resilience. As the saying goes: weapons can fail, skill cannot.

This is why, from a pure coaching perspective, slightly smaller beats slightly bigger every time.

Balancing Coaching Advice With Value for Money

We understand the other side of this. Rackets cost money, children grow quickly, and a slightly bigger racket lasts longer before it needs replacing. That's a completely reasonable consideration for any parent.

Our honest position is this: aim for the correct size wherever possible. If you're going to err in one direction for the sake of getting a bit more life out of the racket, just be aware of the trade-off with skill development - and don't go so big that it fails the soldier test or your child can't manoeuvre it.

There's also a longer-term point worth factoring in. If your child is close to moving up a size, it's worth thinking about whether that next jump also brings a change in ball colour and court size - because that can affect what type of racket they need, not just what length.

Racket Size, Ball Colour and Court Size

As children progress, they don't just move up in racket length - they move through different ball stages and court sizes too. The two are loosely linked. As a rough guide for around 95% of players:

Red ball (slower, lower bounce, smallest court) - typically 17-21 inch rackets
Orange ball (faster than red, larger court) - typically 23-24 inch rackets
Green ball (close to a full ball, near full court) - typically 25-26 inch rackets
Yellow / full ball (standard ball, full court) - typically 26-27 inch rackets

As with everything in this guide, size and stage matter more than age. A tall seven year old and a small nine year old might be on completely different rackets and balls.

Why Racket Material Becomes Important Too

Once a child reaches around 23 inches and starts playing on orange ball, the racket's material starts to matter as much as its length.

Smaller beginner rackets are typically aluminium. As children move into the 23-24 inch range, composite rackets become important. By 25-26 inches - playing green ball or even starting on the full yellow ball - switching to a full graphite racket becomes the right move.

The reasons why - and what difference the material actually makes to a developing player - deserve a proper explanation of their own. We've covered that in detail in our separate guide to junior racket materials.

Junior Racket Materials Article

Get Your Child Fitted In Store

The two tests in this guide will get you very close. But the most reliable way to get it right is to bring your child into the shop and let our team fit them properly.

We'll check their size, talk through where they are in their development, factor in their ball stage and court size, and recommend the right racket - in the right length and the right material - for where they are now and where they're heading next.

Come in to any of our North London stores and we'll help you get it right.

Check out our store location here!