How to Pass a Volleyball

To pass a volleyball, move your feet so the ball arrives in front of your body, join your hands to make a flat platform with your forearms, and angle that platform toward your target. Keep your arms still and let the ball bounce off them; use your legs and shoulders, not a big arm swing. Most shanked passes come from late feet or a crooked platform, so fixing those two things fixes most passing.

Contact spot

Forearms, just above the wrists

Arm swing

Little or none

First priority

Feet to the ball

Pass target

Right of center, about 1 m off the net

On a high, soft ball you can often use an overhand pass instead; the passing guide explains when.

Rule required by the named rulebook. Team agreement a choice this team makes; other teams may choose differently. Practice cue a simplified instruction for practice.

Step 1: Get in a ready position

• Feet a bit wider than shoulders, weight on the balls of your feet, knees bent.
• Arms out in front and apart, relaxed, not joined yet. Joining too early slows your feet.
• Hips low, chest slightly forward, eyes on the server.

Step 2: Read the server

Your pass starts before the serve is hit.

• Watch the server's shoulders and toss. The shoulders point roughly where the ball is going. A toss far in front often means a deeper, flatter serve.
• Look for spin. A spinning ball dives (topspin). A ball with no spin may drift (float), so stay on your toes and adjust late.
• Team agreement: Call it early. Say "Mine!" as soon as you know it's yours, so the ball doesn't drop between two players. Who takes the ball in each seam is something your passers agree on in advance; see serve receive.

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Step 3: Move your feet, then build the platform

• Shuffle or take a crossover step to get your body behind and slightly to the side of the ball's path.
• Join your hands only as the ball approaches: lay one hand in the other palm and press your thumbs together, side by side and pointing down. Other grips work as long as the thumbs are even.
• Straighten your elbows and roll them in slightly so your forearms make one flat surface.
• Contact the ball on your forearms, between the wrists and elbows, closer to the wrists. Not on your hands or fists.

• Flat platform

  ✓ Correct

  Thumbs together, side by side and pointing down; elbows straight; forearms make one flat surface.

• Uneven platform

  ✗ Wrong

  One thumb lower or one elbow bent tilts the platform, so the ball shoots sideways.

Rule: On your team's first contact, such as a serve-receive pass, the ball may touch different parts of your body one after another (for example, one forearm and then the other), as long as it is a single action. (FIVB 2025–2028, rule 9.2.3.2)

Step 4: Angle the platform to your target

The ball leaves your arms at the angle of your platform, like light off a mirror.

• Face your target when you can. If the ball is to your side, drop the shoulder nearer the target so the platform tilts toward it.
• Keep the platform angle steady through contact. Swinging the arms upward is the most common cause of passes flying over the net.
• On a hard serve, absorb the speed: a small give with the platform and a bend in the knees, rather than a swing.
• Practice cue: For passing practice, aim for a pass that peaks about 1–2 m above the net and comes down near the setter's spot, just right of center, about 1 m off the net.

• Platform angled to the target

  ✓ Correct

  Arms stay still. The ball leaves at the angle of your platform and comes down near the setter, short of the net.

• Arms swing up

  ✗ Wrong

  Swinging your arms up changes the angle at contact, so the pass flies over the net.

Step 5: Finish and recover

• Hold your platform for a moment after contact, pointing at the target, then split your hands and get ready to move again.
• Follow your pass with your eyes. You may need to cover a hitter or be ready for a free ball.

Stop shanking: common mistakes and fixes

Practice plan (15 minutes)

1. Partner toss and pass: partner tosses underhand from 4 m, you pass back to their hands. 30 reps.
2. Move-and-pass: partner tosses left and right of you; you shuffle, stop, then pass. 20 reps.
3. Target passing: pass to a "setter" target zone (a chair or hoop near the net between zones 2 and 3). Score each pass on the 0–3 coaching scale: 3 = perfect (the setter has every option and can set any hitter), 2 = good (the setter has some options), 1 = poor (the setter has only one option, usually a high set), 0 = no playable pass (an ace, a shank or an overpass). Average your scores with the passing average calculator, or keep score on the printable pass rating sheet.
4. Serve receive: a partner serves from a closer line, then the end line. Track your average score.

Watch: a forearm pass lesson for beginners

Video: Pakmen Volleyball on YouTube. Learn Volley is not affiliated with this channel.

Deep dive: why the platform angle matters more than arm strength

A pass is mostly a rebound. When a serve arrives, it already has plenty of speed, so your job is to aim it, not add power. The direction the ball leaves depends on the angle of your forearms at contact. If your arms are moving, the angle changes during contact and the ball goes somewhere unpredictable. That's why good passers look quiet: they get their body to the right place, set the angle early and let the ball do the work. Arm swinging is only useful on slow, soft balls that need extra distance.

Frequently asked questions

Rules on this page checked on 5 October 2026 against: FIVB Official Volleyball Rules 2025–2028.