If you are looking for a program or website to draw perfboard layouts, there are more choices than you might expect. Schools and clubs often use graph paper or Excel, hobbyists abroad use dedicated programs such as DIYLC, and these days there are web tools that run right in the browser. This guide compares the common ways to draw a perfboard layout by how easy they are to change, whether they check connections, and how long they take to learn, then suggests which one fits which situation. Programs that design schematics and PCBs, such as KiCad and EasyEDA, are covered separately in free circuit design software compared.
How to choose a perfboard layout tool
Look at four things when choosing a layout tool.
- Cost of changes: how much you have to redraw when you move one part. A layout almost never stays the way you first drew it, so this matters most.
- Connection checking: whether the tool confirms that the wiring you drew matches the schematic and that power and GND are not joined.
- Copper-side view: whether you can see the side you will solder, mirrored left to right, straight away.
- Setup and learning: whether it needs installing, whether the menus are in your language, and how long it takes to pick up.
Drawing a layout on graph paper
This is the oldest method and is still widely used. Treat one square as one hole and draw the parts and wires. It needs almost nothing and you can use it in class right away. But moving one part means erasing and redrawing everything around it, and for the copper side you have to hold the paper up to the light or redraw it. Whether the connections are right is entirely up to your eyes.
Drawing a perfboard layout in Excel
Make the cells square, use one cell per hole, and fill in colors. Copy, paste, and undo work, so it is easier to change than paper and you can share the file. On the other hand, cells have no idea of a connection: the colors are just colors, and the program does not know which line belongs to which net. You also have to recolor the copper-side drawing yourself with left and right swapped.
Drawing a layout in PowerPoint
Draw the part bodies with shapes and join them with lines for the wires. It is handy for good-looking slides, but it is hard to snap things exactly to the hole grid, and connecting lines often do not follow when you move a part. The result is only a picture, so there is no connection checking or simulation.
Dedicated perfboard design programs: DIYLC and VeeCAD
DIYLC (DIY Layout Creator) is a free desktop program widely used for perfboard, stripboard, and guitar effects pedal layouts. It uses drawings shaped like real parts and can highlight connected areas, so it is far more accurate than paper. VeeCAD is a Windows program specialized for stripboard (Veroboard) layouts, where the copper runs in continuous strips. Both have to be installed on a PC, and neither has a simulation that checks whether the circuit actually works.
Patterndo: a perfboard layout website with nothing to install
Patterndo is a free website built for drawing perfboard layouts. It opens straight in the browser with no install and no sign-up. Place parts on a 2.54 mm grid and draw wires and jumpers, and it works out the nets for you, so the diagnostics panel flags shorts, polarity mistakes, and missing connections, and the simulation shows voltages and whether LEDs light up. One button shows the copper side mirrored, and a linked move keeps connected wiring attached when you move a part. It can also load a schematic image and draw the connections you still need as dashed lines.
Perfboard layout tools at a glance
| Method | Cost of changes | Connection check | Copper-side view | Setup and learning |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Graph paper | High | None | Redraw by hand | Start right away |
| Excel / Sheets | Medium | None | Recolor by hand | Start right away |
| PowerPoint | Medium | None | Mirror by hand | Start right away |
| DIYLC / VeeCAD | Low | Highlights connected areas | Supported | Install, English menus |
| Patterndo | Low | Automatic nets and diagnostics | One button | Browser, English or Korean |
Which method to use when
- You need a rough sketch within ten minutes in class: graph paper is fastest. Just copy it out neatly once more before soldering.
- You need to hand in or share a finished layout: a web editor or a dedicated program is better. With Patterndo, one share link opens the same board.
- It is your first soldered project and you are worried about mistakes: use a tool that checks connections and simulates. The drawing order is explained in how to draw a perfboard layout.
- You are not sure perfboard is the right choice at all: read perfboard vs breadboard vs PCB first.
Summary
Graph paper, Excel, and PowerPoint let you start right away, but changes are tedious and you have to check the connections yourself. Dedicated programs such as DIYLC and VeeCAD are accurate, but installing them and working in their menus takes effort. If you draw perfboard layouts often or want to catch mistakes before soldering, a web editor that opens in the browser and handles nets, diagnostics, and simulation saves the most work.