Bocce Scoreboard

Q: How do you make a bocce ball scoreboard?

Press Print blank sheet. The open sheet prints on Letter or A4 with numbered frame rows, a column for each side and a line for the game total, ready for a clipboard at the court.

Type the points of the side that won a frame and the running total counts toward 12.

Bocce Scoreboard

Game to 12

Game to 12: a column for each side. Totals fill in as scores are typed.
	Red	Green
Frame 1
Frame 2
Frame 3
Frame 4
Frame 5
Frame 6
Frame 7
Frame 8
Frame 9
Frame 10
Frame 11
Frame 12
Frame 13
Frame 14
Frame 15
Frame 16
Frame 17
Frame 18
Frame 19
Frame 20
Frame 21
Frame 22
Frame 23

Game total, first to 12First to the target wins

Type a score and the totals fill in. Highest total wins. First to 12 wins.

Scoring key

Only the side with the closest ball scores: A point for each ball nearer the pallino than their best.
A frame gives 1 to 4 points: Each side has four balls, so a frame tops out at four.
A tied frame scores nothing: If the nearest balls are still level when every ball is played, leave the row empty.
Games usually go to 12 12: An organizer may set another number before play starts.
Measure a close call at any time: A tape measure settles it. If two balls are level, the side that rolled last rolls again.
The side that scored tosses the pallino next: It also rolls the first ball of the new frame.

How each row scores

Game total, first to 12: First to the target wins

Names and scores stay in this browser. New game clears the scores.

Next step Sides still unnamed? Bocce team names More than two sides? Schedule a round robin

All 22 lines

What you type 2

Frame: points for the side that won it A frame is one trip down the court with all eight balls. Only the side with the closest ball scores, so type its 1 to 4 points in its own box and leave the other box empty.
Game total Every frame added up. The running total under each box is the score so far, and the sheet names the side that reaches the target.

Scoring a frame 5

A frame gives 1 to 4 points Each side has four balls, so a frame tops out at four.
A tied frame scores nothing If the nearest balls are still level when every ball is played, leave the row empty.
Count before anyone picks up a ball The balls stay where they lie until the frame is over and the points are agreed.
Measure a close call at any time A tape measure settles it. If two balls are level, the side that rolled last rolls again.
Only the side with the closest ball scores A point for each ball nearer the pallino than their best.

Show all 22 lines (15 more)

How long a game runs 3

A short game runs to 7 Game length varies by region, usually 7 to 13 points. Seven is the short end.
Final games usually go to 15 The longer game, for the last match of an event.
Games usually go to 12 An organizer may set another number before play starts.

Order of play 9

A ball that hits the back wall first is dead It comes off the court if it touched no ball and no pallino on the way. Back wall live is a house rule.
A coin flip starts the game The winner picks the end and tosses the pallino. The other side picks its ball color.
A good pallino toss The pallino stops between center line and far foul line, touching neither. Miss, and the other side tosses.
A void frame is played again If the pallino gets knocked off the court or back short of the center line, start again at the same end.
Balls are rolled or thrown underarm A ball may go through the air to knock the pallino or another ball away.
Side boards are in play A ball may be banked off a side board at any time.
The side that is not closest rolls next It keeps rolling until it gets a ball closer or has no balls left. Then the other side rolls the rest.
The side that scored tosses the pallino next It also rolls the first ball of the new frame.
Where the thrower stands A player may step on the line, but not have a foot wholly over it, before letting go of the ball.

Sides, balls and court 3

A full court is about 87 feet by 13 Official courts are 86.92 feet long and 13.12 feet wide. A backyard court can be smaller.
One, two or four players a side Singles roll four balls each. In pairs each player rolls two. In a foursome two partners stand at each end.
Pallino, jack or boccino Three names for the small target ball. Bocce and bocce ball are the same game.

How this list was compiled: The layout is our own work: one numbered row for each frame, a column for each side, a running total and a game total. Checked on 2026-10-05 against the English Wikipedia article Bocce (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bocce): singles, or two teams of two to four; only the team with the closest ball scores in a frame, one point for each ball closer to the jack than the other side's closest; the side without the closest ball bowls next; underarm throws only; the names jack, boccino and pallino and the spelling bocce ball; game length differs by region, most often 7 to 13 points, which is where the game to 7 comes from; some clubs play the back wall live. Checked the same day against the Open Rules of the United States Bocce Federation, updated 3/23/23 (https://usbf.us/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/USBF-Open-Rules_03-23-23.pdf): eight balls, four a team; only one team scores in a frame; games usually played to 12 points and final games to 15; balls measured at any time and a tie broken by the last team to roll; no points when the tie stands after all balls; the coin flip, the pallino toss and who plays the first ball; the void frame; the dead ball at the backboard and the back wall live house rule; the foul line; side boards; balls a player in singles, pairs and foursomes; the court size; raffa and volo. No rule book is reproduced here. The federation is named in this line only. Licence: own work

How it works

This bocce scoreboard is a score sheet in your browser, not a board to hang by the court: one row for each frame, a column for each side and a running total. It also prints blank for a clipboard.

Read the full guide

Score a frame

Type each side's name under Red and Green. After a frame, type the points in the box of the side that won it: one for each ball nearer the pallino than the other side's best ball, 1 to 4. Leave the other box empty. The running total shows under the number, and the sheet names the side that reaches 12.

Games to 15 and to 7

Final to 15 is the longer game usually played as the last match of an event. Short game to 7 is the short end of the 7 to 13 points that games run to by region. Print blank sheet prints the open sheet empty.

A tied frame scores nothing: leave its row empty and go on to the next one.
A number above 4 is marked, not refused, so a slip of the thumb is easy to see.

Questions and answers

How do you keep score in bocce?

Only one side scores in a frame: the side with the ball closest to the pallino. It gets one point for each of its balls that is nearer than the other side's closest ball, so a frame is worth 1 to 4.

How many points is a bocce game played to?

Usually 12, and 15 for a final game, under the open rules of the national federation. Game length varies by region, typically from 7 to 13 points, and an organizer may set another number before play starts.

How do you make a bocce ball scoreboard?

Press Print blank sheet. The open sheet prints on Letter or A4 with numbered frame rows, a column for each side and a line for the game total, ready for a clipboard at the court.

Is this a scoreboard to hang by the court?

No. It is a score sheet on a phone, a tablet or a sheet of paper. Every frame keeps its own row, so the whole game can be read back afterwards.

Does the scoreboard work on a phone?

Yes. It runs in the browser with nothing to install. What you type stays on your phone: it is not sent anywhere and it does not show on anyone else's screen.