Kvitová uses the pinpoint service stance and is known for her fast and well-placed serves. As a left-handed player, she executes the shot well by serving out wide away from her opponent, especially on the advantage-side of the court to her opponent's backhand, and then coming forward to finish off the point with a winner down the line. She is also noted for her exceptional timing. On forehands, she prefers to take the ball early, thus allowing her to produce down-the-line winners effectively. On backhands, she utilizes all the important muscle groups to produce shots with exceptional amount of power. When returning, she uses a short compact motion which allows her to return aggressively regardless of the serve speed. She is also known to attack weak second serves by producing powerful winners. She also possesses notable amount of variety in her game. Her volleys tend to come more from her forehand, her stronger side, which she executes by moving her racket in a straight line, also allowing her to disguise the shot well enough from her opponents. In the slice department, she has the ability to keep the ball low and performs the shot better on her backhand wing. Due to her tall frame, she is known to make up for her lack of speed by playing close to the baseline. Her game suits the fast courts and she cites grass as her favourite surface.

However, due to her high-risk game and aggressive style of play she is known to produce a high number of unforced errors in matches. Movement is another weakness in her game though it has shown significant improvement over the last couple of years as she is now able to run down more balls than before. She is known for her inconsistencies, inability to maintain focus during matches as well as impatience mid-rally. Kvitová sometimes struggles against defensive players, including Angelique Kerber, Simona Halep and Elina Svitolina, who prolong points to the extent that Kvitová feels she must hit a winner, thus increasing the chances of producing an unforced error. Against such opponents, she has been shown to break down physically due to her opponent's use of court craft, consistency and patience on court.

Kvitová and Angelique Kerber have met 16 times, with the head-to-head currently tied at 8–8. Their first three meetings came in 2012, the first in Stuttgart where Kvitová won in straight sets. Kerber then won their two next clashes in the quarterfinals of Rome and the semifinals of Cincinnati, both in three sets.

Kvitová followed up with three consecutive wins in their next meetings – in the final of the Pan Pacific Open and the round-robin stage of the WTA Tour Championships, both in 2013, and the Fed Cup final in 2014, all in three sets. That same winning streak then turned to Kerber's favour – in the round-robin stage of the WTA Finals in 2015, the semifinals of Stuttgart and the fourth round of the US Open, the latter two in 2016.

Kvitová and Caroline Wozniacki met 15 times. Kvitová leads the head-to-head 8–7. They played each other at least once a year, from their first meeting in 2009 up until 2018.

Their first meeting came in the second round of the 2009 Swedish Open with Wozniacki winning comfortably. The following year, in the first round of the Madrid Open, Wozniacki beat Kvitová once again. Two months later, Kvitová scored her first win over Wozniacki in the fourth round of the Wimbledon Championships, winning with the loss of just two games. At the end of the year, the two met in the third round of the China Open where Wozniacki beat Kvitová comfortably once more and ensured herself the world No. 1 ranking as a result.

Kvitová and Ashleigh Barty have met ten times, with the head-to-head levelled at 5–5, in what was described in February 2020 as "the best rivalry at the moment on the WTA Tour". They first met in 2012 at the French Open where, in her maiden Grand Slam main draw appearance, Barty was soundly defeated in straight sets. The pair's next clash came more than five years later, in 2017, in the final of Birmingham where Kvitová came back from a set down to claim the title, before replicating a similar victory in the Sydney final in 2019 to lift the title. They met once more two weeks later in the quarterfinals of the Australian Open where Kvitová moved past Barty in straight sets.