Alternatives to KiCad

A full electronics design suite: draw the schematic, lay out the board, view it in 3D, send it to a fab. The listings below can replace it for an important use case. Each note says what changes if you switch.

Replacements

Listings that take over the same core job as KiCad.

  • Altium Designer

    Professional PCB design suite covering schematics, layout, and simulation.

    PaidProprietaryWindows

    Altium Designer is expensive professional Windows-only PCB software with stronger simulation and plentiful industry training resources.

  • EasyEDA

    Design electronic schematics and printed circuit boards in a browser.

    FreemiumProprietaryWeb

    EasyEDA moves schematic and PCB design into the browser on a freemium model, with separate costs for manufacturing orders.

  • Horizon EDA

    Design circuit boards from schematics through manufacturing files.

    FreeOpen sourceWindowsLinux

    Horizon EDA is free GPL-3.0 software for Windows and Linux only, with parts management, interactive routing and design-rule checks.

  • Fritzing

    Document electronics projects with breadboard, schematic and PCB views.

    PaidOpen sourceWindowsmacOSLinux

    Fritzing adds breadboard views for documenting projects, is GPL-3.0 open source, and charges for official compiled downloads.

  • LibrePCB

    A free, open-source electronics design suite for drawing schematics and laying out printed circuit boards.

    FreeOpen sourceWindowsmacOSLinux

    LibrePCB is free and open source on Windows, Linux and macOS, with a Git-friendly file format but fewer ready-made parts and no simulation.

  • DipTrace

    Schematic capture and PCB layout software with constraint-driven design and interactive push-and-shove routing.

    PaidProprietaryWindows

    DipTrace is commercial Windows software with push-and-shove routing and detailed rule checks, sold under a perpetual licence rather than free.

  • Proteus Design Suite

    Electronics design software combining schematic capture, circuit and microcontroller simulation, and PCB layout.

    PaidProprietaryWindows

    Proteus Design Suite is paid Windows software that simulates microcontroller firmware with the circuit, beyond KiCad's basic simulation.

Also worth comparing

These listings name KiCad as their own alternative, so the relationship runs both ways.

  • CircuitMaker

    Free schematic and PCB design software from Altium with a community component library.

    FreeProprietaryWindows

    KiCad is free, open-source PCB design for Windows, macOS and Linux with no project privacy limits, no board or layer limits, and large bundled libraries.

  • DesignSpark PCB

    Schematic capture and printed circuit board layout software with a free plan and paid tiers.

    FreemiumProprietaryWindows

    KiCad is free, open-source PCB design with a 3D viewer and Gerber export on Windows, macOS and Linux, with no limits and no paid feature tiers.

  • Lepton EDA

    An open-source electronic design automation suite for schematic capture and netlisting, forked from gEDA.

    FreeOpen sourceLinux

    KiCad is free and open source on Windows, macOS and Linux, adding PCB layout, 3D viewing and Gerber export to schematic capture.

  • OrCAD X

    Cadence's commercial PCB design suite for schematic capture, simulation and board layout.

    PaidProprietaryWindows

    KiCad is free and open source on Windows, macOS and Linux with no board size or layer limits, though its simulation is basic next to dedicated SPICE packages.

Similar software

Related functionality, not a direct replacement.