# Recommended PCB design s/w?

**URL:** <https://community.sparkfun.com/t/recommended-pcb-design-s-w/149>\
**Category:** New Product Ideas\
**Created:** [July 4, 2004, 1:27pm UTC](https://community.sparkfun.com/t/recommended-pcb-design-s-w/149 "2004-07-04T13:27:19Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 4\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![MJllc](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/cab0a1/32.png) [@MJllc](https://community.sparkfun.com/u/MJllc)\
**Post date:** [July 4, 2004, 1:27pm UTC](https://community.sparkfun.com/t/recommended-pcb-design-s-w/149/1 "2004-07-04T13:27:19Z")

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Hi all,

Can anyone recommend some PCB design software? (Of course, the ideal pie-in-the-sky thing would be free and 100% functional)… I’m using AutoCad to do line-by-line drawing and it’s a pian… Just curious if anyone has had good luck with a free one.

Thanks,

Jeff

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**Author:** ![SeanW](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ac8455/32.png) [@SeanW](https://community.sparkfun.com/u/SeanW)\
**Post date:** [July 6, 2004, 12:58pm UTC](https://community.sparkfun.com/t/recommended-pcb-design-s-w/149/2 "2004-07-06T12:58:19Z")

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Eagle ([cadsoft.de](http://cadsoft.de)) is great, it has a lot of PIC parts, an autorouter, and is supported in the community. It’s a commercial product, the free version lets you work on boards under a certain size (3"x5" comes to mind).

Sean

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**Author:** ![sparky](https://yyz1.discourse-cdn.com/sparkfun/user_avatar/community.sparkfun.com/sparky/32/6021_2.png) [@sparky](https://community.sparkfun.com/u/sparky)\
**Post date:** [July 13, 2004, 5:18pm UTC](https://community.sparkfun.com/t/recommended-pcb-design-s-w/149/3 "2004-07-13T17:18:48Z")

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Altium Protel DXP all the way baby. It’s $8k :shock: but there is nothing more powerful.

Also, Tsvetan at Olimex has put together a tremendous list of PCB software here: [http://www.olimex.com/pcb/dtools.html](http://www.olimex.com/pcb/dtools.html)

-Nathan

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**Author:** ![Marco\_1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c4cdca/32.png) [@Marco\_1](https://community.sparkfun.com/u/Marco_1)\
**Post date:** [November 4, 2004, 11:19pm UTC](https://community.sparkfun.com/t/recommended-pcb-design-s-w/149/4 "2004-11-04T23:19:19Z")

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Hi Jeff,

If you want to do simulation of analog circuits, OR to just have a program to draw production-quality schematics, LT SwitcherCAD is VERY good.

Best of all: it is completely FREE, easy to use, and unlimited. You can download it from Linear Technology’s website (http://www.linear.com/company/software.jsp)

- Marco

PS: no I don’t have LT shares 😉