Generating Outputs

Printing

KiCad can print the schematic to a standard printer using File→Print…​.

Print dialog

Printing options

Print drawing sheet: Include the drawing sheet border and title block in the printed schematic.

Output mode: Print the schematic in color or black and white.

Print background color: Include the background color in the printed schematic. This option is only enabled if Print in black and white only is disabled.

Use a different color theme for printing: Select a different color scheme for printing than the one selected for display in the Schematic Editor.

Page Setup…​: Opens a page setup dialog for setting paper size and orientation.

Preview: Opens a print preview dialog.

Close: Closes the dialog without printing.

Print: Opens the system print dialog.

Printing uses platform- and printer-specific drivers and may have unexpected results. When printing to a file, Plotting is recommended instead of Printing.

Plotting

KiCad can plot schematics to a file using File → Plot…​.

The supported output formats are Postscript, PDF, SVG, DXF, and HPGL.

Plot dialog

The Output Messages pane displays messages about the generated files. Different kinds of messages can be shown or hidden using the checkboxes, and the messages can be saved to a file using the Save…​ button.

The Plot Current Page button plots the current page of the schematic. The Plot All Pages button plots all pages of the schematic. One file is generated for each page, except for PDF output, which plots each schematic page as a separate page in a single PDF file.

Plotting options

Output directory: Specify the location to save plotted files. If this is a relative path, it is created relative to the project directory.

Output Format: Select the format to plot in. Some formats have different options than others.

Page size: Sets the page size to use for the plotted output. This can be set to match the schematic size or to another sheet size.

Plot drawing sheet: Include the drawing sheet border and title block in the printed schematic.

Output mode: Sets the output to color or black and white. Not all output formats support color.

Plot background color: Includes the schematic background color in the plotted output. The background color will not be plotted if the output format does not support color or the output mode is black and white.

Color theme: Selects the color theme to use for the plotted output.

Default line width: Selects the default width for lines without a specified thickness (lines that have thickness set to 0). Lines that have a set thickness will be plotted at that thickness instead.

Position and units: Sets the plotter origin and units. This option only applies for HPGL output.

Pen width: Sets the plotter’s pen width. This option only applies for HPGL output.

Open file after plot: automatically opens the plotted output file when plotting is complete.

Interactive PDF features

Plotted PDFs have several interactive features.

symbol fields popup

  • Hyperlinks can be clicked.

  • The table of contents is populated with schematic sheets as well as the symbols and hierarchical labels in each sheet.

  • Clicking on many schematic elements displays a popup menu containing relevant information.

    • Symbols display their symbol fields.

    • Hierarchical subsheets display their sheetname and filename, as well as an option to enter the sheet itself.

    • Labels display the resolved net and netclass.

    • Buses display their members.

Some of these features are not supported in all PDF readers.

Generating a Bill of Materials

KiCad can generate a Bill of Materials using Tools → Generate BOM…​ or the BOM icon button on the top toolbar. The generated BOM lists all of the components in the design, except for components with the Exclude from bill of materials property set.

BOM dialog

The BOM tool uses an external script to process the design information into the desired output format. Several BOM generator scripts are included with KiCad, and users can also create their own. BOM generator scripts generally use Python or XSLT, but other tools can be used as long as you can specify a command line for KiCad to execute when running the generator.

You can select which BOM generator to use in the BOM generator scripts list. The rest of the dialog displays information about the selected generator. You can change the displayed name of the generator with the Generator nickname textbox.

The pane at right displays information about the selected script. When the generator is executed, the right pane instead displays output from the script.

The text box at the bottom contains the command that KiCad will use to execute the generator. It is automatically populated when a script is selected, but the command may need to be hand-edited for some generators. KiCad saves the command line for each generator when the BOM tool is closed, so command line customizations are preserved. For more details about the command line, see the advanced documentation.

On Windows, the BOM Generator dialog has an additional option Show console window. When this option is unchecked, BOM generators run in a hidden console window and any output is redirected and printed in the dialog. When this option is checked, BOM generators run in a visible console window, which may be necessary if the generator plugin provides a graphical user interface.

BOM generator scripts

By default, the BOM tool presents three output script options.

  • bom_csv_grouped_extra outputs a CSV with a single section containing every component in the design. Components are grouped by value, footprint, DNP (do not populate), and any additional fields that are specified on the command line. To specify extra fields, add the desired field names as quoted strings at the end of the command line. For example, to include the MPN field, the end of the command line would be: <path to script>/bom_csv_grouped_extra.py "%I" "O.csv" "MPN". The columns in the BOM are:

    • Line item number

    • Reference designator(s)

    • Quantity

    • Value

    • Footprint

    • DNP

    • Specified extra fields

  • bom_csv_grouped_by_value outputs a CSV with two sections. The first section contains every component in the design, with a single component on each line. The second section also contains every component, but components are grouped by symbol name, value, footprint, and DNP (do not populate). The columns in the BOM are:

    • Line item number

    • Quantity

    • Reference designator(s)

    • Value

    • Symbol library and symbol name

    • Footprint

    • Datasheet

    • DNP

    • Any other symbol fields

  • bom_csv_grouped_by_value_with_fp outputs a CSV with a single section containing every component in the design. Components are grouped by value, footprint, and DNP (do not populate). The columns in the BOM are:

    • Reference designator(s)

    • Quantity

    • Value

    • Symbol name

    • Footprint

    • Symbol description

    • Vendor

    • DNP

Additional generator scripts are installed with KiCad but are not populated in the generator script list by default. The location of these scripts depends on the operating system and may vary based on installation location.

Operating System Location

Windows

C:\Program Files\KiCad\6.0\bin\scripting\plugins\

Linux

/usr/share/kicad/plugins/

macOS

/Applications/KiCad/KiCad.app/Contents/SharedSupport/plugins/

Additional scripts can be added to the list of BOM generator scripts by clicking the Plus icon button. Scripts can be removed by clicking the Delete icon button. The Edit icon button opens the selected script in a text editor.

For more information on creating and using custom BOM generators, see the advanced documentation.

Other ways to generate a BOM

KiCad offers several additional ways to generate a BOM, although the BOM tool is recommended.

  • The Symbol Fields Table can export a CSV which can be used as a BOM. This option includes all symbol information but offers limited control over the output.

  • The PCB Editor can export a BOM through File → Fabrication Outputs → BOM…​. This method provides no control over the output format and does not include all symbol information.

Generating a Netlist

A netlist is a file which describes electrical connections between symbol pins. These connections are referred to as nets. Netlist files contain:

  • A list of symbols and their pins.

  • A list of connections (nets) between symbol pins.

Many different netlist formats exist. Sometimes the symbols list and the list of nets are two separate files. This netlist is fundamental in the use of schematic capture software, because the netlist is the link with other electronic CAD software, such as PCB layout software, simulators, and programmable logic compilers.

KiCad supports several netlist formats:

  • KiCad format, which can be imported by the KiCad PCB Editor. However, the "Update PCB from Schematic" tool should be used instead of importing a KiCad netlist into the PCB editor.

  • OrCAD PCB2 format, for designing PCBs with OrCAD.

  • CADSTAR format, for designing PCBs with CADSTAR.

  • Spice format, for use with various external circuit simulators.

In KiCad version 5.0 and later, it is not necessary to create a netlist for transferring a design from the schematic editor to the PCB editor. Instead, use the "Update PCB from Schematic" tool.
Other software tools that use netlists may have restrictions on spaces and special characters in component names, pins, nets, and other fields. For compatibility, be aware of such restrictions in other tools you plan to use, and name components, nets, etc. accordingly.

Netlist formats

Netlists are exported with the Export Netlist dialog (File→Export→Netlist…​).

KiCad netlist export

KiCad supports exporting netlists in several formats: KiCad, OrcadPCB2, CADSTAR, Spice, and Spice Model. Each format can be selected by selecting the corresponding tab at the top of the window. Some netlist formats have additional options.

Clicking the Export Netlist button prompts for a netlist filename and saves the netlist.

Netlist generation can take up to several minutes for large schematics.

Custom generators for other netlist formats can be added by clicking the Add Generator…​ button. Custom generators are external tools that are called by KiCad, for example Python scripts or XSLT stylesheets. For more information on custom netlist generators, see the section on adding custom netlist generators.

Spice Netlist Format
Spice netlist export

The Spice netlist format offers several options.

When the use current sheet as root is selected, only the current sheet is exported to a subcircuit model. Otherwise, the entire schematic sheet is exported.

The save all voltages option adds a .save all command to the netlist, which causes the simulator to save all node voltages. The save all currents option adds a .probe alli command to the netlist, which causes the simulator save all node currents.

Exact behavior may vary between simulation tools.

Passive symbol values are automatically adjusted to be compatible with various Spice simulators. Specifically:

  • μ and M as unit prefixes are replaced with u and Meg, respectively

  • Units are removed (e.g. 4.7kΩ is changed to 4.7k)

  • Values in RKM format are rewritten to be Spice-compatible (e.g. 4u7 is changed to 4.7u)

The Spice netlist exporter also provides an easy way to simulate the generated netlist with an external simulator. This can be useful for running a simulation without using KiCad’s internal ngspice simulator, or for running an ngspice simulation with options that are not supported by KiCad’s simulator tool.

Enter the path to the external simulator in the text box, with %I representing the generated netlist. Click the Create Netlist and Run Simulator Command button to generate the netlist and automatically run the simulator.

The default simulator command (spice "%I") must be adjusted to point to a simulator installed on your system.

Spice simulators expect simulation commands (.PROBE, .AC, .TRAN, etc.) to be included in the netlist. Any text line included in the schematic diagram starting with a period (.) will be included in the netlist. If a text object contains multiple lines, only the lines beginning with a period will be included.

.include directives for including model library files are automatically added to the netlist based on the Spice model settings for the symbols in the schematic.

Spice Model Netlist Format
Spice netlist export

KiCad can also export a netlist of the schematic as a Spice subcircuit model, which can be included in a separate Spice simulation. Any hierarchical labels in the schematic are used as pins for the subcircuit model. Each pin in the model is annotated with a comment describing the pin’s electrical direction:

  • Input hierarchical labels are mapped to an input annotation

  • Output hierarchical labels are mapped to an output annotation

  • Bidirectional hierarchical labels are mapped to an inout annotation

  • Tri-state hierarchical labels are mapped to a tristate annotation

  • Passive hierarchical labels are mapped to a passive annotation

When the use current sheet as root is selected, only the current sheet is exported to a subcircuit model. Otherwise, the entire schematic sheet is exported.

Netlist examples

Below is the schematic from the sallen_key project included in KiCad’s simulation demos.

sallen_key demo schematic

The KiCad format netlist for this schematic is as follows:

(export (version "E")
  (design
    (source "/usr/share/kicad/demos/simulation/sallen_key/sallen_key.kicad_sch")
    (date "Sun 01 May 2022 03:14:05 PM EDT")
    (tool "Eeschema (6.0.4)")
    (sheet (number "1") (name "/") (tstamps "/")
      (title_block
        (title)
        (company)
        (rev)
        (date)
        (source "sallen_key.kicad_sch")
        (comment (number "1") (value ""))
        (comment (number "2") (value ""))
        (comment (number "3") (value ""))
        (comment (number "4") (value ""))
        (comment (number "5") (value ""))
        (comment (number "6") (value ""))
        (comment (number "7") (value ""))
        (comment (number "8") (value ""))
        (comment (number "9") (value "")))))
  (components
    (comp (ref "C1")
      (value "100n")
      (libsource (lib "sallen_key_schlib") (part "C") (description ""))
      (property (name "Sheetname") (value ""))
      (property (name "Sheetfile") (value "sallen_key.kicad_sch"))
      (sheetpath (names "/") (tstamps "/"))
      (tstamps "00000000-0000-0000-0000-00005789077d"))
    (comp (ref "C2")
      (value "100n")
      (fields
        (field (name "Fieldname") "Value")
        (field (name "SpiceMapping") "1 2")
        (field (name "Spice_Primitive") "C"))
      (libsource (lib "sallen_key_schlib") (part "C") (description ""))
      (property (name "Fieldname") (value "Value"))
      (property (name "Spice_Primitive") (value "C"))
      (property (name "SpiceMapping") (value "1 2"))
      (property (name "Sheetname") (value ""))
      (property (name "Sheetfile") (value "sallen_key.kicad_sch"))
      (sheetpath (names "/") (tstamps "/"))
      (tstamps "00000000-0000-0000-0000-00005789085b"))
    (comp (ref "R1")
      (value "1k")
      (fields
        (field (name "Fieldname") "Value")
        (field (name "SpiceMapping") "1 2")
        (field (name "Spice_Primitive") "R"))
      (libsource (lib "sallen_key_schlib") (part "R") (description ""))
      (property (name "Fieldname") (value "Value"))
      (property (name "SpiceMapping") (value "1 2"))
      (property (name "Spice_Primitive") (value "R"))
      (property (name "Sheetname") (value ""))
      (property (name "Sheetfile") (value "sallen_key.kicad_sch"))
      (sheetpath (names "/") (tstamps "/"))
      (tstamps "00000000-0000-0000-0000-0000578906ff"))
    (comp (ref "R2")
      (value "1k")
      (fields
        (field (name "Fieldname") "Value")
        (field (name "SpiceMapping") "1 2")
        (field (name "Spice_Primitive") "R"))
      (libsource (lib "sallen_key_schlib") (part "R") (description ""))
      (property (name "Fieldname") (value "Value"))
      (property (name "SpiceMapping") (value "1 2"))
      (property (name "Spice_Primitive") (value "R"))
      (property (name "Sheetname") (value ""))
      (property (name "Sheetfile") (value "sallen_key.kicad_sch"))
      (sheetpath (names "/") (tstamps "/"))
      (tstamps "00000000-0000-0000-0000-000057890691"))
    (comp (ref "U1")
      (value "AD8051")
      (fields
        (field (name "Spice_Lib_File") "ad8051.lib")
        (field (name "Spice_Model") "AD8051")
        (field (name "Spice_Netlist_Enabled") "Y")
        (field (name "Spice_Primitive") "X"))
      (libsource (lib "sallen_key_schlib") (part "Generic_Opamp") (description ""))
      (property (name "Spice_Primitive") (value "X"))
      (property (name "Spice_Model") (value "AD8051"))
      (property (name "Spice_Lib_File") (value "ad8051.lib"))
      (property (name "Spice_Netlist_Enabled") (value "Y"))
      (property (name "Sheetname") (value ""))
      (property (name "Sheetfile") (value "sallen_key.kicad_sch"))
      (sheetpath (names "/") (tstamps "/"))
      (tstamps "00000000-0000-0000-0000-00005788ff9f"))
    (comp (ref "V1")
      (value "AC 1")
      (libsource (lib "sallen_key_schlib") (part "VSOURCE") (description ""))
      (property (name "Sheetname") (value ""))
      (property (name "Sheetfile") (value "sallen_key.kicad_sch"))
      (sheetpath (names "/") (tstamps "/"))
      (tstamps "00000000-0000-0000-0000-000057336052"))
    (comp (ref "V2")
      (value "DC 10")
      (fields
        (field (name "Fieldname") "Value")
        (field (name "Spice_Node_Sequence") "1 2")
        (field (name "Spice_Primitive") "V"))
      (libsource (lib "sallen_key_schlib") (part "VSOURCE") (description ""))
      (property (name "Fieldname") (value "Value"))
      (property (name "Spice_Primitive") (value "V"))
      (property (name "Spice_Node_Sequence") (value "1 2"))
      (property (name "Sheetname") (value ""))
      (property (name "Sheetfile") (value "sallen_key.kicad_sch"))
      (sheetpath (names "/") (tstamps "/"))
      (tstamps "00000000-0000-0000-0000-0000578900ba"))
    (comp (ref "V3")
      (value "DC 10")
      (fields
        (field (name "Fieldname") "Value")
        (field (name "Spice_Node_Sequence") "1 2")
        (field (name "Spice_Primitive") "V"))
      (libsource (lib "sallen_key_schlib") (part "VSOURCE") (description ""))
      (property (name "Fieldname") (value "Value"))
      (property (name "Spice_Primitive") (value "V"))
      (property (name "Spice_Node_Sequence") (value "1 2"))
      (property (name "Sheetname") (value ""))
      (property (name "Sheetfile") (value "sallen_key.kicad_sch"))
      (sheetpath (names "/") (tstamps "/"))
      (tstamps "00000000-0000-0000-0000-000057890232")))
  (libparts
    (libpart (lib "sallen_key_schlib") (part "C")
      (footprints
        (fp "C?")
        (fp "C_????_*")
        (fp "C_????")
        (fp "SMD*_c")
        (fp "Capacitor*"))
      (fields
        (field (name "Reference") "C")
        (field (name "Value") "C"))
      (pins
        (pin (num "1") (name "") (type "passive"))
        (pin (num "2") (name "") (type "passive"))))
    (libpart (lib "sallen_key_schlib") (part "Generic_Opamp")
      (fields
        (field (name "Reference") "U")
        (field (name "Value") "Generic_Opamp"))
      (pins
        (pin (num "1") (name "+") (type "input"))
        (pin (num "2") (name "-") (type "input"))
        (pin (num "3") (name "V+") (type "power_in"))
        (pin (num "4") (name "V-") (type "power_in"))
        (pin (num "5") (name "") (type "output"))))
    (libpart (lib "sallen_key_schlib") (part "R")
      (footprints
        (fp "R_*")
        (fp "Resistor_*"))
      (fields
        (field (name "Reference") "R")
        (field (name "Value") "R"))
      (pins
        (pin (num "1") (name "") (type "passive"))
        (pin (num "2") (name "") (type "passive"))))
    (libpart (lib "sallen_key_schlib") (part "VSOURCE")
      (fields
        (field (name "Reference") "V")
        (field (name "Value") "VSOURCE")
        (field (name "Fieldname") "Value")
        (field (name "Spice_Primitive") "V")
        (field (name "Spice_Node_Sequence") "1 2"))
      (pins
        (pin (num "1") (name "") (type "input"))
        (pin (num "2") (name "") (type "input")))))
  (libraries
    (library (logical "sallen_key_schlib")
      (uri "/usr/share/kicad/demos/simulation/sallen_key/sallen_key_schlib.kicad_sym")))
  (nets
    (net (code "1") (name "/lowpass")
      (node (ref "C1") (pin "1") (pintype "passive"))
      (node (ref "U1") (pin "2") (pinfunction "-") (pintype "input"))
      (node (ref "U1") (pin "5") (pintype "output")))
    (net (code "2") (name "GND")
      (node (ref "C2") (pin "2") (pintype "passive"))
      (node (ref "V1") (pin "2") (pintype "input"))
      (node (ref "V2") (pin "2") (pintype "input"))
      (node (ref "V3") (pin "1") (pintype "input")))
    (net (code "3") (name "Net-(C1-Pad2)")
      (node (ref "C1") (pin "2") (pintype "passive"))
      (node (ref "R1") (pin "1") (pintype "passive"))
      (node (ref "R2") (pin "2") (pintype "passive")))
    (net (code "4") (name "Net-(C2-Pad1)")
      (node (ref "C2") (pin "1") (pintype "passive"))
      (node (ref "R2") (pin "1") (pintype "passive"))
      (node (ref "U1") (pin "1") (pinfunction "+") (pintype "input")))
    (net (code "5") (name "Net-(R1-Pad2)")
      (node (ref "R1") (pin "2") (pintype "passive"))
      (node (ref "V1") (pin "1") (pintype "input")))
    (net (code "6") (name "VDD")
      (node (ref "U1") (pin "3") (pinfunction "V+") (pintype "power_in"))
      (node (ref "V2") (pin "1") (pintype "input")))
    (net (code "7") (name "VSS")
      (node (ref "U1") (pin "4") (pinfunction "V-") (pintype "power_in"))
      (node (ref "V3") (pin "2") (pintype "input")))))

In Spice format, the netlist is as follows:

.title KiCad schematic
.include "ad8051.lib"
XU1 Net-_C2-Pad1_ /lowpass VDD VSS /lowpass AD8051
C2 Net-_C2-Pad1_ GND 100n
C1 /lowpass Net-_C1-Pad2_ 100n
R2 Net-_C2-Pad1_ Net-_C1-Pad2_ 1k
R1 Net-_C1-Pad2_ Net-_R1-Pad2_ 1k
V1 Net-_R1-Pad2_ GND AC 1
V2 VDD GND DC 10
V3 GND VSS DC 10
.ac dec 10 1 1Meg
.end