What is the difference between ATP and WTA? How professional tennis works
If you follow professional tennis, you have probably come across the abbreviations ATP and WTA in rankings, tournament names, calendars and sports news. They are closely associated with the men’s and women’s professional tours, but ATP and WTA are separate organisations, each with its own tournaments, rankings and rules.
We explain what ATP and WTA mean, how they differ, how their rankings work and where Grand Slam tournaments fit into professional tennis.
What is the ATP?
ATP, or the Association of Tennis Professionals, is the organisation that oversees the men’s professional tennis tour. It was founded in 1972 by leading players who wanted to give players a greater say in decisions shaping the future of the professional tour.
In 1973, the ATP introduced a computerised ranking system, providing a consistent way to assess players’ results. Today, the ATP Rankings determine a player’s position in men’s professional tennis and influence which tournaments they can enter and their seeding.
The ATP Tour includes several tournament categories, including ATP Masters 1000, ATP 500 and ATP 250 events. At the end of the season, the year’s leading players compete at the ATP Finals.
What is the WTA?
WTA, or the Women’s Tennis Association, oversees the women’s professional tennis tour. The organisation was founded in 1973 at the initiative of Billie Jean King. Ahead of Wimbledon that year, 63 players came together to establish the WTA and represent players’ interests within a unified professional tour.
The WTA has its own tournament calendar and world rankings. Its main tournament categories include WTA 1000, WTA 500 and WTA 250 events, while the leading players of the season compete at the WTA Finals at the end of the year.
The WTA Rankings are based on players’ tournament results. The number of ranking points awarded depends on the category of the tournament and the player’s result.
What is the main difference between ATP and WTA?
The main difference is simple: the ATP oversees the men’s professional tour, while the WTA oversees the women’s.
The ATP and WTA have separate rankings and their own tournament structures. At the same time, some major events are combined, with men’s and women’s tournaments taking place at the same venue and around the same dates. Indian Wells and the Miami Open are examples of such events. Grand Slam tournaments also feature both men’s and women’s competitions, although they are not directly run by the ATP or WTA.
Both tours follow a similar structure. Throughout the season, male and female players compete in tournaments of different categories, earn ranking points and move up or down the world rankings. The rankings themselves remain separate: there is an ATP world No. 1 and a WTA world No. 1. The most successful players of the season can qualify for the ATP Finals or WTA Finals.
How do the ATP and WTA Rankings work?
A player’s position in the world rankings is based on their tournament results over a 52-week period.
The number of ranking points awarded depends on the category of the tournament and the player’s result. For example, winning a Grand Slam singles title earns 2,000 ranking points, while winning an ATP 500 or WTA 500 singles title earns 500.
The rankings are updated regularly, and points do not remain on a player’s record indefinitely. Ranking points count for 52 weeks before dropping from the calculation. This is why tennis players are often said to be “defending points” they earned during the previous season.
For example, if a player wins a major tournament one year, they earn a significant number of ranking points. If they return the following year and exit much earlier at the same stage of the season, their overall points total may fall — and their position in the world rankings may change as a result.
The ATP and WTA ranking systems follow similar principles, but their rules are not identical. There are differences in which tournaments and results count towards a player’s ranking, so the ATP and WTA publish separate ranking rules for their respective tours.
How do ATP and WTA tournament categories differ?
The men’s and women’s professional tours have tournament categories of broadly similar levels. Some of the biggest regular events are the ATP Masters 1000 tournaments for men and WTA 1000 tournaments for women. These are followed by ATP 500 and WTA 500 events, and then ATP 250 and WTA 250 tournaments.
The numbers 1000, 500 and 250 indicate the level of the tournament and the number of ranking points the singles champion can earn for winning the title. The higher the category, the more ranking points are available and, as a rule, the stronger the field.
Professional tennis extends beyond the main ATP and WTA Tours. The men’s circuit also includes the ATP Challenger Tour, while the women’s circuit has WTA 125 tournaments. These sit below the main ATP and WTA events and often give players opportunities to earn ranking points that can help them qualify for higher-level tournaments. Further down the tournament structure is the ITF World Tennis Tour, which includes both men’s and women’s events.
Images: ATP Challenger
Where do the Grand Slams fit in?
The Australian Open, Roland Garros, Wimbledon and the US Open are the four most prestigious tournaments in professional tennis. But there is an important distinction: they are not ATP or WTA tournaments.
Each Grand Slam is organised by a separate tennis organisation in the country where the tournament takes place. The Australian Open is run by Tennis Australia, Australia’s national tennis federation; Roland-Garros by the French Tennis Federation; and the US Open by the United States Tennis Association. Wimbledon has a slightly different structure: the tournament is organised by the All England Lawn Tennis Club in partnership with the UK’s Lawn Tennis Association.
Despite this, Grand Slam results count towards both the ATP and WTA Rankings. These tournaments offer players the largest number of ranking points available at a single event, with the singles champions receiving 2,000 points.
Grand Slam tournaments are therefore a major part of the professional tennis season and have a direct impact on players’ positions in the world rankings, even though they are not organisationally part of either the ATP or WTA.
What is World Tennis?
Alongside the ATP and WTA, you may also come across the name World Tennis. This is the new name of the International Tennis Federation (ITF), which was rebranded in June 2026.
While the ATP and WTA oversee the men’s and women’s professional tours respectively, World Tennis has a different role. It is the international governing body for tennis, responsible for the rules of the game and the global development of the sport.
World Tennis runs the men’s and women’s World Tennis Tour and is responsible for a number of international team competitions, including the Davis Cup and Billie Jean King Cup. It is also responsible for tennis at the Olympic and Paralympic Games and works with the organisers of the Grand Slam tournaments.
