Breadboard design software tested and compared
If you use breadboards, you might find breadboard design software helps with your building.
Breadboards are tremendously useful for beginners who can’t solder but are also used by veteran constructors for trying ideas out quickly.
When it comes to breadboard design software there are a few alternatives.
I looked at a lot of them before running out of steam and coming back to the two bits of software that I originally used. Unfortunately, most of the stuff that I tried wasn’t as good as I had hoped.
Some of it was pretty poor and some of it wanted me to work in a way I didn’t want to.
Some of them claim to simulate the circuit operation which considering they couldn’t even draw it properly is quite a claim.
I don’t want anything to simulate it I just want something to help me plan it out and not have to use a pencil, paper and rubber.
There are also some online breadboard design sites. I didn’t find anything that was particularly useful
If you have a circuit diagram that you want to build on a breadboard then have a look at my guide which is specifically about transferring a circuit diagram into a working breadboard project. It has some tips and tricks, especially for this task.
Virtual breadboard from Microsoft
The fact that it is from Microsoft put me off straight away. I managed to get it installed but when I tried to use it some things wouldn’t work.
I just wanted to plan out a circuit on a breadboard. It’s not really rocket science. I just wanted the software to display a breadboard and be able to put components that I want in places that I want and to be able to move them around.
I gave it as much time as I was prepared to and gave it up as a bad job.
There are three reviews on the website where you can download it. All three give it one star which I guess is the minimum you can score it.
My recommendation is I wouldn’t even waste your time downloading it.
Breadboard design software – LochMaster
LochMaster is primarily a stripboard design software.
I use this whenever I need a stripboard design. You simply start with a blank board and drag and drop components from a library to where you want them. Then you can move and rotate them easily and intuitively.
You can create blank boards to whatever size and design you want so it’s easy enough to create a blank stripboard layout with the same design as a breadboard.
If only it was as easy to create components. I’ve tried on multiple occasions and got nowhere. Someone must have worked out how to do it but honestly, it should be easy to do on software like this.
LochMaster costs around £40 and you can get it from Amazon. I consider this to be pretty good value as I use it for both stripboard and breadboard layouts.
It is particularly good at producing scaled printouts that can be printed off and used as component overlays for when you are building them. This considerably cuts down the errors you make in putting a component in the wrong hole, which is all too easy to do with a stripboard and breadboard.
If you want some further information about LochMaster check out my post:
Lochmaster 4.0, is it the best stripboard layout software?
In the article, I cover exactly how I use it and why I think it’s the best stripboard layout design software you can currently get.
Breadboard design software – Fritzing
I have used Fritzing for a while. The best thing about it in my opinion is that it actually looks like a breadboard. For creating images and diagrams it looks the part. You can at least produce a diagram of a breadboard design that others could follow.
The biggest disadvantage for me is that some components that I use aren’t in the library. I often use PCB mounting variable resistors that have the three terminals spaced .1 inch apart. There isn’t anything like it in the library.
There does seem to be a way to create components however I’ve tried it and couldn’t produce anything at all. I gave it some more time on another occasion but honestly, life’s too short.
You can also create circuit diagrams with Fritzing but I’ve found this to be a bit hit-and-miss.
It sometimes has a mind of its own and likes to put links where you don’t want them. Also, some of the symbols are a bit large compared to others and you can’t resize them. The symbols for variable resistors are huge.
Fritzing is not free but does a better job than all of the free stuff. At around 8 euros it’s hardly worth worrying about.
I know a lot of people will be looking for free software. Sometimes it’s best just to pay to get something that works. It’s also worth noting that by paying for Fritzing you are enabling future development. So hopefully they will make it easier to add custom components.
I use Fritzing to produce some quite complex designs. The picture above shows the breadboard envelope generator from my build a synthesiser on breadboards project.
Fritzing is also available for Linux as well as Windows.
Breadboard design software – conclusion
When it comes to software to help design layouts for breadboards and stripboards, although there is software out there it is nowhere near the quality of the software you can get for designing PCBs.
DesignSpark and Eagle for instance are both streets ahead of anything mentioned here but obviously only for PCBs and not breadboard.
The biggest problem I have with Fritzing and LochMaster is that it’s almost impossible to add components that aren’t there already.
When I need to use a component such as the variable resistor mentioned earlier I just put three wires in the breadboard where it should go and label it. It’s not great but it gets me a working diagram.
I tend to use LochMaster as my main design software and use Fritzing when I want a diagram that looks like a real breadboard.
If you are happy with your breadboard circuit you might want to make it permanent If so be sure to check out my guide about converting a solderless breadboard layout to a soldered circuit.
If you just want some ideas for something to build have a look at my article on building some simple breadboard projects.
Finally don’t forget to check out my post Breadboard – the complete guide for everything you need to know about breadboards.
“Hi, I’m Graham Moore and I’ve been building electronic projects since I was 12. I had a fascination for old radios and taking them to pieces but when my Nan bought me an electric soldering iron, I realised with a few components I could build stuff.
Learning to solder opened up many doors for me as electronics also became a career. I hope you get as much from it as i did”.
