PCB is one of the most important and integral part of all the electronic gadgets we are using today. PCB’s changed the way the devices are built, since the size of the device/gadget heavily depends on its size. Even flexible PCB’s are making their way into market today. So it is important for one to develop PCB designing skill. However, not all hobbyists and enthusiasts can afford to buy a designing software and that’s where these free PCB designing software will come into play.
Here is a list of Top 10 free PCB design software which might help to design a professional electronic circuit on your own.
There are many free PCB designing software available all over the internet and it might be confusing as to which one to choose from. In this article I have compiled a list of top 10 free PCB designing software after making my own research through several forums and seeking advice from several experts.
Hope this list will help you choose the one which fits your needs.
10) Express PCB
Express PCB software is easy to learn and use even for the beginners in PCB designing. User friendly interface with drag and drop feature makes it a lot easier and faster to complete the design of a board. You can get this software from this link ” Download Express PCB”.
9) Osmond PCB
Osmond PCB is a free software which runs in MAC PC’s. This software provides many features such as unlimited board sizes, multiple board layers etc,. It can be used to design boards up to 700 pins which is good enough for starters and beginners. You can download this software from this link ” Download Osmond PCB “.
8) TIny CAD
TinyCAD helps the user to draw circuit diagrams and export it as a PCB netlist on the go. It also comes with simple symbol libraries that helps the user to get started quickly. Also it allows users to publish the designs as image files for documentary purposes. You can download the Software in this link “Download TinyCad”.
7) ZenitPCB
Zenitpcb is an excellent schematic capture and PCB designing software which allows user to convert any schematic into a PCB layout on the go. Friendly user interface and part libraries makes it one of the best designing software. You can download this software using this link “Download ZenitPCB software“.
6) gEDA
This Software runs across multiple platforms such as Unix, Linux, Windows as well as Mac systems. This Tool is widely used for electronics as well as electrical circuit designing that comes with schematic capture, prototyping, production and bill of materials. This makes this Software suitable for manufacturing and production purposes. You can download this software through this link “Download gEDA software“
5) DesignSpark PCB
DesignSpark PCB is specially designed to help the user to convert their design into PCB faster with unique design options. This makes the software more optimized. Also access to online libraries of 80k+ parts and instant billing makes it one of best options when comes to free PCB designing software. You can download the software from this link “DesignSpark PCB download“
4) Fritzing
This software tool helps Circuit designers, enthusiasts and hobbyists to build their own design and develop their own projects. Rich user interface and documentation of the projects you build using this tool makes this a great choice when comes to free PCB designing software. “Download Fritzing PCB software”
3) KiCAD
KiCAD is an EDA software that runs across multiple platforms such as Windows, Linux and Apple OS. It suits to design and create a professional schematics and printed Circuit boards up to 32 copper layers with additional technical layers. “Download KiCAD PCB software”.
2) Eagle
Eagle CAD comes with schematic capture and PCB layout design. It provides the option for converting the designed schematic into PCB board with ease. Vast libraries and the ability to run across variety of platforms such as Windows, Linux and Mac makes it a great choice for designing. It also offers paid version with extensive features but the free version. With that being said, the free is remarkably competent and suits perfectly for hobbyists and enthusiast. “Download Eagle PCB Software”.
1) Free PCB
Free PCB is an open source PCB design editor for Windows. This software was designed in such a way it makes learning and designing a lot easier than in other free PCB software. Also, it can be used to develop some quality professional electronic layout and printed boards. 16 copper layers, board dimensions of 60×60, import and export of netlists and much more makes this a best choice among the free PCB software. “Download Free PCB software”.
Hope the above lists helps you to get some idea about the free 10 best PCB designing software and to choose the one that fits your requirement. The above list was compiled based on the results from polls, forums and suggestions from the experts. However you may want to analyze each of these software and choose one that fits your need.
KiCad is available under kicad.org
It is not only free but also open source.
Also used by e.g.CERN.
Since its takeover by AutoCAD, Eagle is no longer free.
Thank you for sharing.There is another free PCB design software.
EasyEDA is a free, zero-install, Web and cloud-based PCB design software, integrating powerful schematic capture, mixed-mode circuit simulation and PCB layout in a seamless cross-platform browser environment, Work can be kept private, shared or made public. Schematics and libraries can be imported from Altium, Eagle, KiCad and LTspice. Files can be exported in a number of formats including JSON. Low cost PCB fabrication is also offered as an option.
Just try it at https://easyeda.com
I use EDWinXP of Visionics which is very best PCB design software. http://www.visionics.a.se
You forgot CircuitMaker
http://www.circuitmaker.com
Geda – http://www.geda-project.org/