Pool depth: a guide for depth standards in competition and leisure pools

Why choosing the right pool depth is key

Designing a swimming pool needs to take into account multiple aspects related to the feasibility, durability, and safety of the pool. Just like choosing the right pool safety equipment is crucial, pool depth is one of the key elements in terms of spatial configuration, and has an impact on all subsequent construction and usage of the facility.

Commercial pools need to meet specific requirements and recommendations, based on safety considerations. Furthermore, pools designed to host competitive events need to conform to international standards, while also ensuring complete safety measures for the athletes swimming in them.

How to measure pool depth

Pool depth is calculated by measuring the distance between the water level and the pool floor. Depending on the shape and size of the pool, its intended use, and local codes and building regulations, this depth can vary within the parameters explained below.

Pool depth can also vary within the same pool. This is the case where designs include a shallow end – allowing for gradual immersion of swimmers into the water. Most leisure pools include a shallow and a deep end, with the depth of the pool increasing gradually from one end to the other.

What is the standard pool depth? The requirements for competition facilities

When it comes to pools intended for official competition events, they must strictly comply with World Aquatics design regulations, which also include requirements in terms of depth, which also vary depending on the specific competition:

Olympic and semi-Olympic swimming pools

These are normally found in big sports clubs and in facilities built to host official swimming competitions. The general rules in pool depth for these facilities include:

• For Olympic pools (50 metres long) and semi-Olympic pools (25 metres), there’s a mandatory minimum depth of 1.35 metres. This depth needs to be met along the first metre to 6 metres from the end wall, while the rest of the length of the pool can be 1 metre deep (but no less).
• When pools host the Olympic Games or World Championships, they need to comply with a depth of 2 metres minimum. However, it is now recommended that these pools are actually 3 metres deep, since the deeper the water, the less rebound is felt when swimming and the surface of the water becomes more stable. The 3 metres mark is also recommended if the pool also hosts other disciplines (such as artistic swimming).

Diving pools and high-diving pools

Diving pools tend to be found in purpose-built sports complexes and specialised high-performance sports clubs. Generally speaking:

• Diving pools must be at least 5 metres deep, but can go as deep as 10 metres.
• For high diving, where athletes jump in from 20 metres (women) or 27 metres (men) above the water, the mandatory pool depth increases to 5.8 metres. It’s important to note, however, that there are legacy pools built before December 2017 which are 5 metres deep and have been allowed to continue to host high diving competitions.

Water polo pools

In most cases, water polo pools are Olympic swimming pools that have been adapted to host the competition by using ropes to mark out the field size and adding relevant accessories for the game.

The key pool depth consideration in this case is that players can never touch the bottom of the pool. As such:

• The minimum depth of a water polo pool is 1.8 metres.
• During the Olympics or for World Championship events, a minimum of 2 metres depth is mandatory for hosting water polo matches.

Artistic swimming pools

For the routine section of artistic swimming competitions, the pool needs to allow a minimum area of 15 by 25 metres in which the swimmers perform. This means:

• A section of 12 x 12 metres within this must be at least 3 metres deep.
• For the rest of the surface area, the minimum depth can be 2 metres.
• Depth at the pool wall is required to be 2 metres, with a slope to reach the section where 3 metres is required. The 3 metres depth must be reached within 1.2 metres from the pool wall.
• During the Olympics and World Championships, all artistic swimming pools (including those intended for warm-ups) must be 3 metres deep.

Open water swimming

Open water swimmers perform outdoors, usually in oceans or the sea, lakes, or rivers, along a marked out route. Despite this activity being in nature, there is still a requirement to measure the depth of the water along the route. At any point, this needs to be at least 1.4 metres (valid also for Olympics and World Championships events).

Standard pool depth values for leisure pools

The leisure pool category includes those facilities intended for workouts and general fitness purposes which can be found in sports clubs, municipal centres, spas, wellness centres, water parks and hotels or resorts.

This type of pool does not need to adhere to specific pool depth rules and can be customised to fit in with a theme, the overall design, or space constraints. However, there are recommendations in order to ensure comfort and enjoyment for the end users, including:

• Large leisure or recreational pools such as those found in sports centres and hotels or resorts have a family-friendly approach, looking to meet the needs of all types of users. This is why they feature a slope from a shallow end to a deeper end. This usually ranges from 0.5 metres to 2.5 metres in the deepest section of the pool.
• Swimming pools in sports clubs, also known as lap pools, are generally between 1 and 3 metres deep.
• Pools in wellness centres and spas are usually shallower. You can find vitality and hydromassage pools which are usually no deeper than 1.2 metres. These are generally designed for sitting around the edges.
• For hot tubs and cold plunge pools, the usual recommended depth is of 1 metre. This allows people to immerse themselves in the water in a safe manner.
• Finally, water parks feature pools mainly designed for children, so the depth will take into account their safety first and foremost. While pools with water slides need to be deeper, most water parks pools are only about 0.3 to 0.6 metres deep. Splash parks have no depth at all – with soft bottom materials and overflow channels that collect the water splashed around, they feature interactive fountains and water jets, so they are not focused on immersion in the water.

How to choose the right pool depth for your project

As seen across the article, pool depth can be subjected to both strict requirements (for competition) and more loose recommendations (for leisure pools).

This means that there’s no single answer to questions like “how deep is a normal pool in metres”: ultimately, the depth of a pool can vary widely from one design to another, depending on the facilities’ intended use.

As such, pool depth decisions must be taken considering the pools’ designated function, and with safety as a priority. Planning to host official competitions? The World Aquatics standards should guide your decisions. Interested in designing a leisure pool? The figures provided above serve as a guide for the most common pool depth values in the leisure field.

Want to learn more about how to pick the right pool depth for your project? At Fluidra, we help pool operators design safe, efficient and sustainable installations.

Originally published on April 5, 2023, and updated on May 7, 2025.