Best PCB software by use case
The overall ranking weighs seven criteria equally. Your situation probably doesn't. Here's the pick for five common ones, a runner-up, and the catch to know about.
Best for beginners: EasyEDA
You've never laid out a board and want one made this month.
EasyEDA (rank #2, 11/14). Nothing to install, parts with stock and price in the library, and ordering boards from JLCPCB a few clicks from the editor. It scores 2 on learning curve, the highest score.
Runner-up: KiCad (rank #1, 11/14). Takes a weekend longer to learn, but it's free for good and there's no fab tie-in. If you think you'll keep designing boards, starting here saves a switch later.
Watch out: EasyEDA's community parts vary in quality: check every footprint against the datasheet before you order.
Best for students: KiCad
You're learning electronics on a course, often on a Mac or Linux laptop.
KiCad (rank #1, 11/14). Free for any use and runs on Windows, macOS and Linux, so it works on whatever laptop you have and you can keep using it after you graduate. It's also the baseline every other tool here is compared with.
Runner-up: Altium Designer (rank #6, 8/14). Free through Altium's Student Lab while you study, and a widely used professional tool, so it's worth knowing. It runs on Windows only, and the free access ends when you're no longer a student.
Watch out: If your course mandates a tool, use it for coursework; nothing stops you learning KiCad alongside.
Best for open-source hardware makers: KiCad
You publish your designs so others can build, fork and improve them.
KiCad (rank #1, 11/14). An open-source tool means anyone can open your files for free, forever, on any operating system. Its plain-text files also sit well in a public Git repository.
Runner-up: CircuitMaker (rank #4, 9/14). Free, built for sharing designs with a community, with up to 16 signal layers and commercial use allowed. Windows only, and anyone who wants to edit needs CircuitMaker too.
Watch out: Publishing well takes more than the editor: a licence, fab outputs for each release and a way to view the board without installing anything. See After you pick.
Best for professional teams: Altium Designer
Several engineers, complex or high-speed boards, release processes and reviewers outside the design team.
Altium Designer (rank #6, 8/14). The deepest feature set here (high-speed, rigid-flex, managed libraries with supplier data) and Altium 365 for version history, browser review and comments. It scores 2 on every criterion except cost, learning curve and platform.
Runner-up: KiCad (rank #1, 11/14). Plenty of capability for most commercial boards with no licence cost per seat. Teams add Git and a review workspace for KiCad projects to get version history and browser review.
Watch out: Altium runs on Windows only. Budget for training as well as subscriptions.
Best for budget builds: KiCad
You want the lowest total cost: software, boards and parts.
KiCad (rank #1, 11/14). Costs nothing, has no layer or size caps that would force an upgrade, and exports files any fab accepts, so you can shop around for the cheapest board house.
Runner-up: EasyEDA (rank #2, 11/14). Also free, and if JLCPCB and LCSC are your cheapest options anyway, ordering straight from the editor saves time.
Watch out: The cheapest fab changes with board size, layer count and shipping. Compare quotes with the same Gerber files.
Not sure which you are?
Start with the full ranking, or compare the main options criterion by criterion on Altium vs KiCad vs EasyEDA vs Flux vs CircuitMaker.