How does scoring work in 3x3, and is a three-pointer only worth two?

One point inside the arc, two behind it, one for a free throw. The two-point line is drawn like a five-a-side three-point line: the whole arc sits 6.75 m from the basket, and only the straight sections running to the endline come closer, which makes the corners the shortest shot behind it. In 5-on-5: Two points inside the arc, three behind it, one for a free throw. The whole scale moved, not just the long shot. A layup drops from two points to one, so it takes two of them to match one shot from behind the arc. That is why 3x3 offenses live outside it.

How long is a 3x3 game, and what score wins it?

One ten-minute period, or the first team to 21 points. Whichever comes first ends the game. In 5-on-5: Four quarters of ten minutes, played to the end, higher score wins. Twenty-one is an early finish, not a target both teams have to reach. Most official games run out of clock well short of it.

Can you go straight back up after a defensive rebound in 3x3?

On every change of possession the ball has to get behind the arc first, whether it came from a rebound, a steal or a block. Dribble it or pass it. A shot taken before the ball clears does not count. In 5-on-5: No such rule. Grab an offensive board and you can put it straight back up. This is the one that costs 5v5 players points on their first day: pull down a defensive board, go straight back up out of habit, and watch the basket get waved off.

How many fouls before you are out in 3x3, and when do team fouls start costing free throws?

Personal fouls never remove a player, however many they collect. Team fouls 7, 8 and 9 are two free throws each; from the tenth on it is two free throws and the ball. The count runs across the whole game, not per period. In 5-on-5: Five personal fouls and a player is out. The first four team fouls in a quarter cost nothing extra; from the fifth on it is two free throws. Shooting fouls go by outcome, not by addition. A miss is one free throw from inside the arc and two from behind it; a make counts and brings one free throw, wherever it came from. From the seventh team foul on, none of that applies and every foul is two. A first unsportsmanlike foul is two free throws without possession, and a player who commits two is disqualified.

Who gets the ball first in 3x3, and what happens if the score is tied?

A coin flip decides the first possession, and the winner may take it at the start or save it for a possible overtime. Every held ball goes to the defense. A tie goes to overtime, won by the first team to score two points. In 5-on-5: A jump ball at the centre circle, then the alternating-possession arrow for every held ball after it. A tie means a five-minute overtime. Overtime has no clock to run out. One shot from behind the arc ends it; so do two from inside.

How many timeouts does a 3x3 team get, and how do substitutions work?

One thirty-second timeout per team. Substitutions happen while the ball is dead and the clock is stopped, behind the endline opposite the basket: the player coming off touches the substitute coming on, and that is the whole procedure. No official or table is involved. In 5-on-5: Two timeouts in the first half and three in the second, a minute each. Substitutions go through the scorer’s table. FIBA 3x3 official competitions, and any event whose organiser opts in, add two 30-second TV time-outs at the first dead ball after the clock reads 6:59 and 3:59. Grassroots events usually skip them.

What size is a 3x3 court, and which ball does it use?

A 15 by 11 m half court with one basket. The free-throw line sits at 5.80 m, the two-point arc at 6.75 m, and the no-charge semicircle has a 1.25 m radius. The ball is size 6 at the weight of a size 7. In 5-on-5: A 28 by 15 m full court with two baskets, played with a size 7 ball. A narrower ball that weighs the same handles nothing like a size 7. First-timers almost all shoot short, and this is why.

FIBA 3x3 · How it differs from 5v5

Your layup is worth one point, and eight other surprises

Q: How long is the shot clock in 3x3?

Twelve seconds, restarting on every change of possession. In 5-on-5: Twenty-four seconds. Part of those twelve seconds goes on clearing the ball behind the arc first, so the time left to run anything is shorter than the number suggests. Multi-pass sets rarely survive it; ball screens and isolations do.

3x3 has its own rulebook. It is not five-a-side played on half a court, and people who already play basketball trip over the same handful of differences their first time out. All 9 of them are below, with the five-a-side rule you already know on the left.

Based on the official FIBA 3x3 rules · Checked 8 Aug 2026

A FIBA 3x3 half court: 15 by 11 m, one basket, the two-point arc at 6.75 m

00 · TL;DR

Three lines and you can play

1Inside the arc is worth one point. Behind it, two.
12Twelve seconds to shoot, and the ball has to clear the arc first.
0No number of personal fouls will foul you out.

One point inside the arc, two behind it

5-on-5What you already know

Two points inside the arc, three behind it, one for a free throw.

3x3What 3x3 does instead

One point inside the arc, two behind it, one for a free throw. The two-point line is drawn like a five-a-side three-point line: the whole arc sits 6.75 m from the basket, and only the straight sections running to the endline come closer, which makes the corners the shortest shot behind it.

Where people tripThe whole scale moved, not just the long shot. A layup drops from two points to one, so it takes two of them to match one shot from behind the arc. That is why 3x3 offenses live outside it.

Twelve seconds to shoot

5-on-5What you already know

Twenty-four seconds.

3x3What 3x3 does instead

Twelve seconds, restarting on every change of possession.

Where people tripPart of those twelve seconds goes on clearing the ball behind the arc first, so the time left to run anything is shorter than the number suggests. Multi-pass sets rarely survive it; ball screens and isolations do.

Ten minutes, or first to 21

5-on-5What you already know

Four quarters of ten minutes, played to the end, higher score wins.

3x3What 3x3 does instead

One ten-minute period, or the first team to 21 points. Whichever comes first ends the game.

Where people tripTwenty-one is an early finish, not a target both teams have to reach. Most official games run out of clock well short of it.

Nobody inbounds the ball after a basket

5-on-5What you already know

The other team inbounds from behind the endline, and the clock stays stopped until a player on the court touches the ball.

3x3What 3x3 does instead

There is no inbound, and the clock does not stop. A made field goal is not a dead ball in 3x3: the defending team picks the ball up on the court underneath the basket and dribbles or passes it out behind the arc. The team that just scored may not play the ball there, and may not actively defend inside the no-charge semicircle.

Where people tripSo “3x3 does not stop the clock” is half right. Fouls, balls out of bounds and free throws stop it as they would anywhere. A made basket does not, and that is the restart five-a-side spends the longest on. The running clock street and community formats use is a different rulebook again.

Take the ball behind the arc before you attack

5-on-5What you already know

No such rule. Grab an offensive board and you can put it straight back up.

3x3What 3x3 does instead

On every change of possession the ball has to get behind the arc first, whether it came from a rebound, a steal or a block. Dribble it or pass it. A shot taken before the ball clears does not count.

Where people tripThis is the one that costs 5v5 players points on their first day: pull down a defensive board, go straight back up out of habit, and watch the basket get waved off.

Fouls never foul you out, but they do give up free throws

5-on-5What you already know

Five personal fouls and a player is out. The first four team fouls in a quarter cost nothing extra; from the fifth on it is two free throws.

3x3What 3x3 does instead

Personal fouls never remove a player, however many they collect. Team fouls 7, 8 and 9 are two free throws each; from the tenth on it is two free throws and the ball. The count runs across the whole game, not per period.

Where people tripShooting fouls go by outcome, not by addition. A miss is one free throw from inside the arc and two from behind it; a make counts and brings one free throw, wherever it came from. From the seventh team foul on, none of that applies and every foul is two. A first unsportsmanlike foul is two free throws without possession, and a player who commits two is disqualified.

A coin decides the first possession; overtime ends at two points

5-on-5What you already know

A jump ball at the centre circle, then the alternating-possession arrow for every held ball after it. A tie means a five-minute overtime.

3x3What 3x3 does instead

A coin flip decides the first possession, and the winner may take it at the start or save it for a possible overtime. Every held ball goes to the defense. A tie goes to overtime, won by the first team to score two points.

Where people tripOvertime has no clock to run out. One shot from behind the arc ends it; so do two from inside.

One timeout, and substitutions nobody has to announce

5-on-5What you already know

Two timeouts in the first half and three in the second, a minute each. Substitutions go through the scorer’s table.

3x3What 3x3 does instead

One thirty-second timeout per team. Substitutions happen while the ball is dead and the clock is stopped, behind the endline opposite the basket: the player coming off touches the substitute coming on, and that is the whole procedure. No official or table is involved.

Where people tripFIBA 3x3 official competitions, and any event whose organiser opts in, add two 30-second TV time-outs at the first dead ball after the clock reads 6:59 and 3:59. Grassroots events usually skip them.

A 15 by 11 metre half court, and a smaller ball at the same weight

5-on-5What you already know

A 28 by 15 m full court with two baskets, played with a size 7 ball.

3x3What 3x3 does instead

A 15 by 11 m half court with one basket. The free-throw line sits at 5.80 m, the two-point arc at 6.75 m, and the no-charge semicircle has a 1.25 m radius. The ball is size 6 at the weight of a size 7.

Where people tripA narrower ball that weighs the same handles nothing like a size 7. First-timers almost all shoot short, and this is why.

UNCHANGED

These work exactly as they do in 5v5

The 3x3 rulebook only writes down what is specific to 3x3. Anything it leaves out falls back to the FIBA 2024 rules, so none of the following needs relearning and the main guide still covers it.

Travelling and how the pivot foot is judged
Carrying, double dribble and the rest of the dribbling violations
What counts as a personal foul, the cylinder principle and when a screen is legal
Out of bounds, goaltending and the offensive three-second count

OFFICIAL SOURCES

Every number here is checkable

This is a simplified comparison for players, not a translation of the rulebook. Official games follow the official text, and local events often amend it, so read whatever the tournament hands you.

01Official 3x3 Basketball Rules, short version (PDF)↗02Official 3x3 Basketball Rules, full version (PDF)↗03Official 3x3 Basketball Rules Interpretations↗←See the five-a-side rules guide →Look up a court term in both languages