PCB design software turns a schematic into a board layout and fabrication files, and prices range from free GPL tools to subscription suites with cloud workspaces.
This guide ranks twelve products on first-ninety-day effort, the invoice once modules are added, how designs leave the tool, and whether you can buy and run it without a partner.
Vendors can pay for visibility on this page. It never changes what an entry
says about a product, including the criticism, and we earn nothing when you click through to a
vendor. How that works.
In short
What PCB design software does
PCB design software captures electronic schematics, places and routes components on a printed circuit board, checks design rules, and exports Gerber and other files for fabrication and assembly.
In this order: setup effort, what it really costs, how your data comes back out, whether
you can leave, and who each PCB design tool is built for. One rule sits on top of those tests:
Places 1 to 3 go to challengers, vendors outside the best-known brands in a category, wherever the category has them; the established names follow from place 4 in their ranked order. Why those five, and why there is no
score out of ten, is on the how we work page.
Subscription tiers with token-based add-ons; price on request
—
Teams in Siemens tooling wanting a path from small tier to enterprise
Solo makers who want a visible price and a self-contained desktop licence
Country is where the vendor is headquartered or contracts from, which is a
different question from where your data is hosted. Where the two tell different stories, the
entry says so.
Community-run schematic and PCB suite released under the GPL
Ranked #1 of 12 in Best PCB Design Software in 2026.
Free tierPublished pricingElsewhere
KiCad is licensed under GNU GPL v3, and the About page states that the suite covers schematic capture and PCB layout with Gerber and IPC-2581 output. The layout editor has a router with shove and walkaround modes, plus DRC that accepts scripting.
Nothing is rented, so leaving costs nothing. What you do not get is accountability: the project directs professional users to separate support companies, and the Linux Foundation takes donations on its behalf.
What stands out
GPL v3
Community-run
Windows, Linux, macOS
Where it costs you
There is no vendor helpdesk; private support means hiring one of the commercial providers the project names.
The project page names no country of establishment, so a buyer who needs a contracting entity must go to a support firm.
Right for
Engineers and small firms who want to own their toolchain and formats
Wrong for
Teams whose procurement demands a vendor contract and named support desk
Not stated by the vendorFree software under GPL v3; donations go through the Linux Foundation
Pin-limited perpetual PCB editions with a free non-profit edition
Ranked #2 of 12 in Best PCB Design Software in 2026.
Published pricingElsewhere
DipTrace lists five editions on its buy page, from Starter with 300 pins and two signal layers up to Full with unlimited pins and layers, all perpetual, with 5.x updates included. A 30-day trial carries every feature.
Routing is push-and-shove with net-class and length constraints, and real-time DRC runs while you work. Plan the pin count of your biggest board before choosing, because the freeware edition stops at 300 pins and bars commercial work.
What stands out
Perpetual licence
Edition ladder
Windows and Mac
Where it costs you
The edition caps (pins and signal layers) decide the bill, so a growing design can force an upgrade mid-project.
A move to version 6.x or later is priced at 25% of the full price, per the buy page.
Right for
Small teams wanting a fixed one-off price and clear pin limits
Wrong for
Buyers needing hosted collaboration, subscriptions or a vendor naming its country
Not stated by the vendorPerpetual licence per edition with published prices; 30-day trial and a freeware edition
Library-managed schematic and board editor released under the GPLv3 licence
Ranked #3 of 12 in Best PCB Design Software in 2026.
Free tierPublished pricingElsewhere
LibrePCB publishes its source under GPLv3 and its official libraries under CC0-1.0, and states that commercial use is allowed. Its comparison page stresses an integrated library manager and project files built for version control.
It offers 15 interface languages. The honest limit is scope: the FAQ lists hierarchical sheets as a feature still to come, and the roadmap depends on one full-time founder funded by donations.
What stands out
GPLv3
Library manager
Windows, Linux, macOS
Where it costs you
The project FAQ says advanced features, for example hierarchical sheets, are not there yet, which limits large multi-sheet designs.
Support from the developers is paid only, and development depends on donations and sponsors.
Right for
Hobbyists and small hardware teams who want clean version-control-friendly project files
Wrong for
Designers of large multi-sheet boards who need hierarchical schematics today
Not stated by the vendorFree software under GPLv3; funded by donations and sponsorship
German PCB layout CAD sold as perpetual editions by pin count
Ranked #4 of 12 in Best PCB Design Software in 2026.
Published pricingEurope
The vendor page lists editions named discover, light, student, campus, smart, medium, economy, professional, design station and mid, each with limits on pins, copper layers and simulation signals.
The free discover edition is for non-commercial use, 250 pins and two layers. Commercial licences start at smart. Software is licensed to your name and cannot be returned, according to the terms on the site, so test with discover before ordering.
What stands out
Perpetual licence
German vendor
Edition ladder
Where it costs you
Commercial editions are capped by pin count and copper layers, so a second layer count or more pins means another edition.
The shape-based autorouter on the site is a separate KONEKT plug-in, so that kind of routing is an extra purchase.
Right for
Small German-speaking engineering offices wanting a one-off licence and nearby vendor
Wrong for
Teams needing subscription billing, cloud collaboration or a large user base
GermanyPerpetual editions with published prices; free discover edition for non-commercial use
UK-made schematic and PCB design suite with a pin-limited trial
Ranked #5 of 12 in Best PCB Design Software in 2026.
Pricing on requestEurope
Pulsonix is sold through WestDev Ltd and a worldwide distributor network, with a Request A Quotation route on the Buy page. The Version 14.0 product list covers schematic capture, PCB layout, high-speed design, PulsonixSim, an advanced autorouter, a vault database and flexi-board design.
Extra schematic-only seats can be bought. The trial matches the full edition apart from the 100-pin limit, which is the number to check against your own boards.
What stands out
Quotation only
UK vendor
Trial available
Where it costs you
No price is shown anywhere, so budgeting needs a quotation or a distributor call.
The trial stops at 100 component pins, too small to test a mid-size board.
Right for
Mid-size hardware teams that want a UK-based vendor and a local distributor channel
Wrong for
Buyers who want to see a price list before talking to sales
United KingdomQuotation on request; trial with all features limited to 100 component pins
PCB layout combined with microcontroller circuit simulation in one suite
Ranked #6 of 12 in Best PCB Design Software in 2026.
Pricing on requestEurope
Labcenter states that a Proteus licence is owned in perpetuity and is not rented, so an old version keeps opening your designs without maintenance. Network licences use a USB dongle on one LAN subnet; cloud licensing lets administrators assign seats by group.
Proteus 9.2 added HDI micro-via support. The demo allows PCB layout evaluation without a time limit but not saving, and the simulation part expires after 14 days.
What stands out
Perpetual licence
Circuit simulation
Network or cloud seats
Where it costs you
Prices are not in the page text; the cost needs the package configurator or a quotation.
The demo cannot save your own designs, so a proper trial needs an evaluation licence from the vendor.
Right for
Embedded engineers who simulate firmware against their schematic before layout
Wrong for
Teams needing only layout, not paid simulation modules
United KingdomPerpetual licence by package; package prices on request
Modular PCB bundles from Zuken, sold perpetual or subscription
Ranked #7 of 12 in Best PCB Design Software in 2026.
Pricing on requestEurope
eCADSTAR sits in a bundle ladder named Engineer, Base+, Advanced HS, Advanced 3D and Ultimate+, with PCB Autorouting, Signal Integrity, Power Integrity, IBIS-AMI, SPICE and Thermal Analysis as optional modules.
Zuken explains on its blog that both perpetual and subscription licences exist. A 30-day evaluation includes all features. The classic CADSTAR is labelled legacy, and migration to eCADSTAR is offered, so existing CADSTAR users face a version change.
What stands out
Perpetual or subscription
Modular bundles
Zuken
Where it costs you
Autorouting and signal integrity are optional modules, so the entry bundle may not match the final invoice.
Prices are not on the product pages; a quotation is the stated route.
Right for
Mid-size teams choosing perpetual or subscription billing and adding modules gradually
Wrong for
Hobbyists and buyers who want a free permanent edition
United KingdomPerpetual or subscription licence, quotation on request; 30-day evaluation
Full-featured PCB editor sold inside the Altium Develop subscription
Ranked #8 of 12 in Best PCB Design Software in 2026.
Published pricingNorth America
Altium Develop combines Altium Designer with one workspace for shared projects, libraries and review, and lets unlimited users review and comment without an author seat. The page lists rigid-flex, HDI, 3D-MID and harness design.
Students are pointed to a separate Student Lab. The website terms of service are governed by California law with mandatory arbitration. Test whether the workspace model fits how your team already stores files.
What stands out
Subscription
Altium 365 workspace
Multi-board design
Where it costs you
The base annual price is not shown in the page text, only the add-on author price.
Teams of more than five ECAD authors must move to the separate Agile Teams product.
Right for
Product teams building rigid-flex or multi-board hardware with review workflows
Wrong for
Individuals wanting a one-off licence or an offline-only setup
United StatesAnnual subscription per author; 30-day access; extra author price published
Browser PCB editor tied to LCSC parts and JLCPCB fabrication
Ranked #9 of 12 in Best PCB Design Software in 2026.
Free tierPublished pricingAsia-Pacific
The pricing page promises that core features stay free and permits commercial use of boards designed in EasyEDA.
Free accounts get 0.5GB of cloud storage and two part builds per month, with email replies in two to three working days; the paid individual plan raises this to 10GB, six parts per month and one working day. Menu links connect the editor to LCSC parts and JLCPCB prototyping, so the tool leans toward one supply chain.
What stands out
Browser-based
Free for individuals
JLCPCB link
Where it costs you
The free version shows ads in the editor that cannot be removed without a paid account.
The enterprise tier is marked coming soon on the pricing page, so team features are not yet on sale.
Right for
Makers ordering boards from JLCPCB who want to start in a browser
Wrong for
Companies needing a local-jurisdiction contract or ad-free work at no cost
Hong KongFree for individuals; paid tier billed annually, price published
Browser PCB editor with AI assistance metered by monthly usage units
Ranked #10 of 12 in Best PCB Design Software in 2026.
Published pricingElsewhere
Flux imports Altium, KiCad, Eagle, Fusion Electronics, EasyEDA and DipTrace libraries as parts, and pulls live stock from Digi-Key, Mouser and LCSC for the bill of materials.
Board quotes come from JLCPCB, PCBWay, OSH Park and AISLER. Enterprise adds SOC 2-aligned infrastructure and a two-hour response SLA. Because AI usage is counted in ACUs, estimate your monthly prompts before you pick a tier.
What stands out
Browser-based
AI assistant
Usage-metered
Where it costs you
After the trial, private projects cannot be edited or exported without a paid plan.
AI usage is metered in ACUs, so the real bill depends on how heavily you prompt.
Right for
Small teams exploring AI-assisted layout who import libraries from Altium, KiCad or EasyEDA
Wrong for
Firms needing offline use or fixed annual costs without metering
Not stated by the vendorPlans by monthly AI usage units; 7-day trial on individual plans; Teams seat price published
GPL-licensed PCB package with unified part, package and board editor
Ranked #11 of 12 in Best PCB Design Software in 2026.
Free tierPublished pricingElsewhere
Horizon EDA is published on GitHub under GPL v3. Its documentation describes a part pool where parts, packages and symbols are managed in one editor, real-time stock data supplied by Kitspace, interactive length tuning and panelisation.
The project's goal is a complete flow from schematic to fabrication outputs. Expect to learn from documentation and issue threads, since no paid help is advertised, and the project site gives no country or company.
What stands out
GPL v3
Windows and Linux
Part pool
Where it costs you
The README lists Linux and Windows only, so Mac users must build it themselves.
No vendor or support channel exists beyond GitHub and the chat room.
Right for
Linux users who like a part-pool library model and are comfortable reading GitHub docs
Wrong for
Companies needing support contracts, Mac installs or ready-made libraries
Not stated by the vendorFree software under GPL v3
Siemens PCB line from PADS Pro Essentials to Xpedition Enterprise
Ranked #12 of 12 in Best PCB Design Software in 2026.
Pricing on requestElsewhere
PADS Pro Essentials offers hierarchical schematics, routing, dynamic planes and 3D visualisation with community support monitored by Siemens experts. Xpedition Standard adds AI-assisted features, supply chain data, version control and token-based add-ons for signal integrity, rigid-flex and ECAD-MCAD work.
Siemens publishes wizard-based migration tools from Altium, OrCAD and Eagle. Ask for the token count your own designs would consume before comparing prices with a flat licence.
What stands out
Tiered product line
Token add-ons
Cloud-connected
Where it costs you
No prices appear on the product pages, and the tier names make the right entry point unclear.
Advanced analysis such as signal integrity is a token add-on, so the final bill exceeds the base tier.
Right for
Teams in Siemens tooling wanting a path from small tier to enterprise
Wrong for
Solo makers who want a visible price and a self-contained desktop licence
Not stated by the vendorSubscription tiers with token-based add-ons; price on request
PCB design software captures electronic schematics, places and routes components on a printed circuit board, checks design rules, and exports Gerber and other files for fabrication and assembly. The differences that matter are rarely in the feature list, so this is
the order we would work through them.
01
Decide whether you need a published price
8 of the 12 tools here publish what they cost; the other 4 quote per organisation. The ones you can compare without a sales call: KiCad, DipTrace, LibrePCB, TARGET 3001!, Altium Designer, EasyEDA, Flux, Horizon EDA.
02
Decide how much the jurisdiction matters
These 12 vendors are established in 5 countries across 4 regions (Elsewhere 6, Europe 4, North America 1, Asia-Pacific 1). That decides whose disclosure law applies to what the vendor holds, wherever the servers are.
Choosing PCB design software by board size and layer count
Start with the biggest board you expect to build, counted in pins and copper layers. DipTrace and TARGET 3001! sell editions capped by those two numbers, so a design that grows past 1000 pins or four layers pushes you to a higher edition, and Pulsonix limits its trial to 100 component pins.
KiCad, LibrePCB and Horizon EDA carry no such caps, but LibrePCB's FAQ says hierarchical sheets are still missing, which hurts large boards. Build one real board of your usual complexity in the trial before you buy, then read the caps of the edition that fits it. A vendor that cannot show where its limits fall in writing leaves you to discover them mid-project.
Count pins and copper layers on your largest planned board
Check which edition caps apply to that board
Test hierarchical schematics if your boards have several sheets
Perpetual licences, subscriptions and free software
Three billing models compete. DipTrace, TARGET 3001! and Proteus sell perpetual licences, and Labcenter states that a Proteus licence is owned and not rented. Altium Designer comes inside the Altium Develop subscription, billed per year, with extra authors at $995 a year each. eCADSTAR offers both perpetual and subscription, and Flux and EasyEDA add monthly plans, Flux metered in ACUs.
KiCad, LibrePCB and Horizon EDA cost nothing under GPL licences. Compare three years of cost, not the first invoice, and include modules: eCADSTAR sells autorouting and signal integrity separately, and Xpedition sells signal integrity through token add-ons. Ask for written quotes where the page shows no price, as Pulsonix and Proteus do.
Add three years of cost including optional modules
Ask for a written quotation where no price is shown
Check whether upgrades to a new major version are charged
Libraries, simulation and the supply chain around the board
The editor is only part of the job; parts data and fabrication links decide how fast a board ships. Flux imports Altium, KiCad, Eagle, Fusion Electronics, EasyEDA and DipTrace libraries and pulls live stock from Digi-Key, Mouser and LCSC. EasyEDA connects to LCSC and JLCPCB. LibrePCB stresses a library manager and CC0 libraries, and Horizon EDA keeps parts and packages in one editor with stock data from Kitspace.
Proteus adds microcontroller simulation next to the layout, which matters if firmware and hardware are tested together. Before choosing, import one of your existing libraries and confirm that footprints, 3D models and manufacturer part numbers survive the move, because rebuilding a library by hand is where migrations usually stall for weeks.
Import an existing library and inspect footprints and 3D models
Check which fabricators and parts suppliers connect directly
Confirm whether simulation is included or a paid module
Support, contracts and where the vendor stands
Who answers when a board fails to export decides the real cost of free tools. KiCad names two commercial support providers, KiCad Services Corporation and KiCad Europe OÜ, while LibrePCB offers paid support through its founder. Xpedition's PADS Pro Essentials tier relies on a community monitored by Siemens staff, and Pulsonix works through a network of distributors by country.
EasyEDA's terms are governed by Hong Kong law, Altium's website terms by California law, and eCADSTAR is published by Zuken Limited, registered in England and Wales. Match the contract you need to the jurisdiction in writing, and ask where designs are stored when the tool runs through a cloud workspace, since leaving later means retrieving the files from that vendor.
Name who answers support questions and in what time
Read which law governs the licence or terms
Ask where project files are stored in cloud workspaces
What goes wrong most often when buying PCB design software
Buying an edition by its headline price without checking the pin and layer limits against your largest board.
Treating a free GPL tool as free of cost and ignoring the time spent without a vendor helpdesk.
Judging a trial by a toy board when the trial caps pins, saving or simulation time.
Comparing a subscription with a perpetual licence on first-year cost instead of three years including modules.
07
Frequently asked questions
6 answers
What is the best PCB design software in 2026?
KiCad leads our ranking of 12. A community project under GPL v3 for Windows, Linux and macOS, so there is no key, seat count or vendor to negotiate with, and your files never depend on a subscription.
Gerber and IPC-2581 output come with the suite. The cost is the missing contract: help comes from forums, documentation and the paid support firms the project lists, such as KiCad Services Corporation and KiCad Europe OÜ.
Which PCB design tools publish their pricing?
8 of the 12, with the pricing model each one publishes:
KiCad: Free software under GPL v3; donations go through the Linux Foundation.
DipTrace: Perpetual licence per edition with published prices; 30-day trial and a freeware edition.
LibrePCB: Free software under GPLv3; funded by donations and sponsorship.
TARGET 3001!: Perpetual editions with published prices; free discover edition for non-commercial use.
Altium Designer: Annual subscription per author; 30-day access; extra author price published.
EasyEDA: Free for individuals; paid tier billed annually, price published.
Flux: Plans by monthly AI usage units; 7-day trial on individual plans; Teams seat price published.
Horizon EDA: Free software under GPL v3.
The other 4 quote per organisation.
Is there a free PCB design tool?
KiCad, LibrePCB, EasyEDA, Horizon EDA offer a free tier or a free self-hosted edition.
Where are these PCB design software vendors established?
In 5 countries across 4 regions: Elsewhere 6, Europe 4, North America 1, Asia-Pacific 1.
KiCad: Not stated by the vendor.
DipTrace: Not stated by the vendor.
LibrePCB: Not stated by the vendor.
TARGET 3001!: Germany.
Pulsonix: United Kingdom.
Proteus: United Kingdom.
eCADSTAR: United Kingdom.
Altium Designer: United States.
EasyEDA: Hong Kong.
Flux: Not stated by the vendor.
Horizon EDA: Not stated by the vendor.
Xpedition: Not stated by the vendor.
What should you use instead of KiCad?
DipTrace and LibrePCB are the next two on this page. DipTrace is for small teams wanting a fixed one-off price and clear pin limits; LibrePCB is for Hobbyists and small hardware teams who want clean version-control-friendly project files.
Who should not buy KiCad?
Teams whose procurement demands a vendor contract and named support desk. There is no vendor helpdesk; private support means hiring one of the commercial providers the project names..
If your PCB design software product belongs among these 12, tell us what it does and who it is for. Inclusion is an editorial call; what a listing is and is not is set out under software advice.
