Eagle vs Kicad
- Thread starter hpdonat
- Start date
fontoponto
Active member
Eagle is dead for the hobbyists.
Started using KiCad last year, first and really only experience with PCB software so I can't speak to the others, but seems to do everything I need for two layer guitar pedal pcbs. Some of the features were not very intuitive for me, so I recommend going through a tutorial series on youtube.
derevaun
Well-known member
Eagle is being discontinued in June 2026. IMHO the only reason to use it is if you're already settled into its paradigms and two years is a pretty long time. Plus, there are still a lot of open/shared projects that are in Eagle. Otherwise, KiCAD is the better choice of those two, to invest in.
I still use Eagle for bigger projects, but Diptrace and EasyEDA have been easy to pick up, and I'm not sure I'll need to put myself through learning KiCAD anytime soon.
I still use Eagle for bigger projects, but Diptrace and EasyEDA have been easy to pick up, and I'm not sure I'll need to put myself through learning KiCAD anytime soon.
Vicious C
Well-known member
I’m still not over the Eagle crap. I’ve been using it for years and have over 60 designs and even more projects invested in it. I need to learn KiCad ASAP and transfer all my projects. Just overwhelmed with having to learn a new program from scratch. So to agree with previous statements, go for KiCad or Diptrace
I have been using Eagle for years. The main positive is there are great video walkthroughs for it by jkokura on the madbean forums. There is also a great madbean library that makes it easier to get going. That is how I started and they are well worth a look. I’m not saying it doesn't have a learning curve but they point you in the right direction and you can get it sorted with those resources fairly quickly with a little work. I tried diptrace and found it pretty unusable (on a mac). It was very klunky and just not fun. I have recently started playing with Kicad. There are videos that have been shared and some decent things on youtube that are making it easier but I still have much to learn. I did find the madbean library for it here in the Kicad forum and that made it a little easier. I have been doing tiny projects like switchboards and a basic fuzz just to get used to the new steps. I do think its easier to do a schematic in Kicad but past that I am having to relearn a lot. That being said I love all the features Kicad has to offer like the bom list (and interactive html bom). The 3d board view is a bonus but not really necessary. It is kinda cool though. I have to work on my routing and dimensions etc… but that will come with enough practice. Long story short if I have to get a project done I am going to use Eagle and import it into Kicad once its done to take advantage of the other features. I do think in the future with some more practice I will transition over to Kicad fully. If you havent put much into either one I would say go for Kicad. Kicad would probably be easier to learn if I didn't have Eagle habits that I am already familiar with. I also use an older version( 7.7 )and it is started to quit more so I know my time is limited. I refuse to pay for the new service when there is a great free alternative out there that I just need to take the time to learn.
chris.knudson
Well-known member
There seems to be a lot more people using KiCad, and you'll find a lot more resources on the Internet about it. I've never used Eagle, so I can't speak to ease of use. However, if access to resources and a knowledge bas is your deciding factor. I think you'll find plenty of useful stuff about KiCad out there.
cdwillis
Well-known member
I started out trying to learn Kicad and found it very unintuitive. I found a tutorial for Eagle by Storyboardist and it was so much easier imo. It's a real bummer that Eagle has an EOL now. I'm still using it because I'm familiar with it, but I'm eventually going to move to Kicad. If you're just starting you might as well start with Kicad.
t1redhands
Active member
I'm super bummed that Eagle is going obsolete. I even bought a Windows PC to run it. At this point I'm too busy to stumble around learning and failing at a new system so I'm putting off making a switch. I was planning on EasyEDA but with reports of JLCPCB recently being inaccurate I'll probably try Diptrace. I don't know, I'm not thrilled about it, haha!
Robert
Reverse Engineer
If you have a Windows PC I think you'll be able to pick up DipTrace pretty quickly...
Vicious C
Well-known member
Is there cost to Diptrace? Or is there a free version like others
hpdonat
New member
yeah, I'm convinced
