What is a Breadboard Simulator?

A breadboard simulator, also known as a circuit simulator or electronic design automation (EDA) software, is a computer program that lets you virtually design and simulate electronic circuits. Instead of physically wiring components on a breadboard, you design your circuit schematic digitally and the software simulates the circuit’s behavior.

Breadboard simulators are an invaluable tool for saving time and iterated designs when prototyping electronics projects. They allow you to verify your circuit will work as expected before investing time and money into physical components. Advanced circuit simulators also enable more complex modelling and analysis of electronic designs.

Types of Circuit Simulation Software

There are a few different categories of breadboard simulation and circuit design software:

• SPICE simulators: SPICE (Simulation Program with Integrated Circuit Emphasis) is an analog electronic circuit simulator. SPICE simulators numerically solve the differential equations to model the behavior of electronic circuits. Popular SPICE-based simulators include LTspice, ngspice, and TINA.

• Digital/HDL simulators: These simulate digital circuits and are often used together with hardware description languages (HDLs) like Verilog and VHDL. Examples include ModelSim and Active-HDL.

• Schematic-based simulators: These let you design circuits graphically using a schematic editor and then simulate the circuit behavior. However, they may not give you access to the underlying SPICE simulation. Examples include CircuitLab and EasyEDA.

• Multiphysics simulators: These model not just the electronic circuit but also related physical domains like thermal, mechanical, and hydrokinetic effects. COMSOL Multiphysics is a leading example.

Many circuit simulators include a combination of these approaches. The right type of simulator depends on your circuit complexity, desired analysis, and preferred workflow.

11 Best Breadboard Simulators

Now let’s look at eleven of the best breadboard simulator software options:

1. LTspice

LTspice is a high performance SPICE simulation software produced by semiconductor manufacturer Analog Devices. It’s one of the most widely used SPICE simulators and supports schematic capture and waveform viewing. Although originally developed for Analog Device components, LTspice can simulate general circuits. The software is completely free to download and use.

Key features:
– Unlimited number of nodes and components
– Powerful SPICE simulator with schematic editor
– Import third-party models
– Waveform viewer and post-simulation analysis

2. Autodesk Tinkercad Circuits

Tinkercad Circuits is a free, web-based circuit simulator that runs in your web browser. Developed by CAD software giant Autodesk, it has a simple, intuitive interface for beginners to get started with circuit simulation and Arduino programming. Tinkercad provides a library of common components to build and simulate circuits. It’s a great tool for STEM students and hobbyists to learn circuit simulation.

Key features:
– Web-based breadboard simulator
– Interactive circuit simulation
– Arduino programming editor
– Component library and pre-built templates

3. CircuitLab

CircuitLab is a web-based schematic capture and circuit simulation platform. The software runs completely in your web browser. CircuitLab provides a full WYSIWYG schematic editor as well as SPICE-based analog and mixed-signal simulation. It includes common analyses like DC sweeps, transient, and AC frequency simulation. CircuitLab has a free plan for students and hobbyists as well as paid premium features for professional users.

Key features:
– Fully web-based
– WYSIWYG schematic editor
– SPICE circuit simulation
– Real-time collaboration
– Save and share circuits

4. National Instruments Multisim

NI Multisim is an industry-standard SPICE simulation and circuit design software for analog, digital, and power electronics. Multisim includes integrated PCB design features and is used in many universities for teaching electronic circuit theory. The software provides powerful simulation and analysis tools, with automated measurements and data visualization. Multisim is a premium software with a free trial version available.

Key features:
– Schematic capture and SPICE simulation
– Integrated PCB layout designer
– Over 26,000 component models
– Virtual instrumentation and analyses
– Simulink integration

5. Proteus

Proteus is an electronic design automation software for schematic capture, simulation, and PCB layout. Its simulator can model both analog and digital components, including microcontrollers. Proteus has built-in debugging tools and virtual instruments for signal analysis. The software is widely used for PCB design and embedded system development. Proteus offers a demo version and paid licenses.

Key features:
– Schematic capture and PCB layout
– Mixed-mode SPICE circuit simulation
– Co-simulation of firmware on microcontrollers
– Extensive component libraries
– 3D PCB visualization

6. MATLAB and Simulink

MATLAB is a powerful numerical computing environment and programming language developed by MathWorks. Together with its graphical block-diagram tool Simulink, MATLAB is widely used in engineering for circuit simulation and analysis. The software can model complex analog, digital, and mixed-signal systems. MATLAB and Simulink are premium software used in many industries, with student versions available.

Key features:
– Block diagram modelling with Simulink
– Equation-based modelling
– Analog and digital circuit simulation
– Complex math and matrix operations
– Toolboxes for signal/image processing, control systems, etc.

7. PartSim

PartSim is another free web-based circuit simulator that runs in any web browser. The software provides a simple drag-and-drop editor to build your circuits and has a library of common analog and digital components. PartSim can simulate basic circuits in real-time and plot output voltages and currents. More advanced features are available with the paid PartSim Pro plan.

Key features:
– Web-based, runs in browser
– Basic real-time circuit simulation
– Drag-and-drop schematic editor
– Import SPICE subcircuits
– PartsSim Pro for advanced simulation

8. EasyEDA

EasyEDA is a web-based EDA tool that provides schematic capture, circuit simulation, and PCB design. The free online version is very full-featured and easy to use. EasyEDA has an integrated SPICE simulator with basic analyses like AC, DC, and transient simulation. The software has an extensive component library with simulation models and lets you create custom components.

Key features:
– Online EDA suite
– Schematic editor, simulator, and PCB layout
– Real-time collaboration
– Template designs and open-source projects
– Revision control and backup

9. TINA

TINA-TI is a free SPICE-based analog circuit simulator offered by Texas Instruments. The software has a full SPICE simulation engine with a schematic editor, waveform viewer, and analyses like DC, AC, transient, and Fourier. TINA-TI includes TI component models and reference designs for power and analog applications. There is also a paid version of TINA from DesignSoft with additional features.

Key features:
– Free SPICE simulator from TI
– TI component models and reference designs
– Schematic-based circuit simulation
– Waveform viewer and analysis options
– Upgrade to full TINA software

10. OrCAD

OrCAD is a suite of EDA tools for circuit simulation and PCB design, now owned by Cadence. OrCAD includes the PSpice SPICE simulator with analog and mixed-signal simulation abilities. The software is used by many circuit design engineers and has advanced analysis capabilities. OrCAD has a free “lite” version to get started with, plus premium paid versions.

Key features:
– Schematic editor and capture
– PSpice analog and mixed-signal simulation
– Advanced circuit analyses
– Hierarchical design and reuse
– PCB layout and design

11. Ngspice and GNUcap

Ngspice and GNUcap are two popular open-source circuit simulators. Ngspice is based on Berkeley SPICE and provides a non-graphical SPICE simulation engine. GNUcap is a similar general-purpose circuit simulator. Both are free and cross-platform, running on Linux, macOS, and Windows. However, they lack graphical editors and are better for advanced users comfortable in a programming environment.

Key features:
– Free and open-source
– Command-line, non-graphical interface
– Spice-compatible simulators
– Actively developed by community
– Integrate into custom workflows

Comparison Table

Here’s a comparison table of the breadboard simulators reviewed above:

Simulator	Category	Platform	Pricing	Difficulty
LTspice	SPICE	Windows	Free	Intermediate
Tinkercad Circuits	Web-based	Web	Free	Beginner
CircuitLab	Schematic/SPICE	Web	Free/Paid	Beginner
NI Multisim	SPICE	Windows	Paid	Intermediate
Proteus	SPICE/PCB	Windows	Paid	Intermediate
MATLAB/Simulink	Multiphysics	Windows/Mac	Paid	Advanced
PartSim	Web-based	Web	Free/Paid	Beginner
EasyEDA	Web-based	Web	Free/Paid	Beginner
TINA-TI	SPICE	Windows	Free	Intermediate
OrCAD	SPICE/PCB	Windows	Free/Paid	Advanced
ngspice/GNUcap	SPICE	Cross-platform	Free	Advanced

Breadboard Simulator FAQ

What is the best free breadboard simulator?

Some of the best free breadboard simulators are:
– LTspice for analog circuit simulation
– Tinkercad Circuits for beginners
– CircuitLab free version
– PartSim web simulator
– TINA-TI from Texas Instruments

Is there a circuit simulator for beginners?

Yes, breadboard simulators like Tinkercad Circuits, CircuitLab, and PartSim have easy-to-use interfaces for beginners to get started with circuit simulation.

Can you simulate Arduino circuits?

Simulators like Tinkercad Circuits and Proteus allow you to simulate Arduino microcontroller circuits together with code execution.

What is the best circuit design software?

The best circuit design software depends on your needs, but some leading options are:
– OrCAD for PCB design
– NI Multisim for education and simulation
– EasyEDA for web-based simulation and PCB design
– MATLAB and Simulink for advanced modelling

Are circuit simulators accurate?

Circuit simulators are quite accurate, especially SPICE-based simulators. However, simulation always involves approximations. It’s best to verify your simulated design with real-world measurements.

Conclusion

There are many great breadboard simulators and circuit design programs available today, for everyone from beginners to professional engineers. The best circuit simulator for you depends on your budget, the complexity of your circuits, and preferred workflow.

If you’re just getting started with electronics, Tinkercad Circuits and CircuitLab are great free options. For more advanced analog circuit simulation, the free LTspice is hugely popular. And if you need professional-grade schematic capture and PCB design, premium software like NI Multisim and OrCAD are industry standards.

No matter which breadboard simulator you choose, these virtual circuit design tools are invaluable for saving time, learning electronics, and optimizing your designs. By testing your circuits virtually before building them physically, you’ll be able to prototype and validate your electronics projects much faster.