Brandwave

Altium vs CircuitMaker:Which is more popular?

In September 2026, Altium had more branded searches than CircuitMaker among PCB design software worldwide. Altium had about 74,000 branded searches, while CircuitMaker had 4,400. Altium made up 7.4% of all PCB design software searches we track, and CircuitMaker accounted for 0.44%. When we asked ChatGPT and Google AI Overviews about PCB design software, Altium appeared in all five answers and CircuitMaker in two. Altium was mentioned before CircuitMaker in four out of five answers.

Among PCB design software worldwide in September 2026

Who do people search for more?

Altium, about 17 searches for every 1 for CircuitMaker

Altium 74K searchesCircuitMaker 4.4K searches

Who does AI mention more?

Altium, mentioned in every answer we collected

Altium in 5 of 5CircuitMaker in 2 of 5

Who does AI recommend more?

Altium, named ahead of CircuitMaker in 4 of 5 answers

Altium first in 4CircuitMaker first in 1

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Top PCB design software in ChatGPT and Google AI Overviews

In three ChatGPT questions and two Google AI Overviews, Altium appeared in all five answers. CircuitMaker was mentioned in two out of five: not in any of the three ChatGPT answers, but in both Google AI Overviews. Altium was listed before CircuitMaker in four out of five answers.

Most recommended by AI

Brands get a higher ranking if they are mentioned earlier in the answers.

  1. KiCad1st
  2. EasyEDA2nd
  3. Altium3rd
  4. Fusion 3604th
  5. OrCAD5th
  6. CircuitMaker6th

Mentioned by AI

Each dot is one answer, filled in when that answer mentions the brand.

  • Fusion 3605 of 5Named in 3 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 2 of 2 Google answers
  • KiCad5 of 5Named in 3 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 2 of 2 Google answers
  • EasyEDA5 of 5Named in 3 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 2 of 2 Google answers
  • Altium5 of 5Named in 3 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 2 of 2 Google answers
  • OrCAD3 of 5Named in 1 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 2 of 2 Google answers
  • CircuitMaker2 of 5Named in 0 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 2 of 2 Google answers

See every answer about PCB design software

5 answers

Brands are shown in the order each answer named them. The survey took place in the United States on October 21, 2026.

Is Altium or CircuitMaker more popular in search?

This chart shows how often people search Google for Altium and CircuitMaker by name. Each line represents a brand's share of searches for all six PCB design software we track, month by month, from English-language searches worldwide.

Altium and CircuitMaker among PCB design software worldwide, by month

Share of searches by month for Altium, CircuitMaker. The figures are in the table below the chart.

View monthly share of searches table
MonthFusion 360KiCadEasyEDAAltiumOrCADCircuitMaker
Oct 202554.6%16.4%20%6%2.2%0.8%
Nov 202554.9%16.5%20%6%1.8%0.81%
Dec 202557.8%17.4%17.4%5.2%1.6%0.69%
Jan 202661.8%15.2%15.2%5.6%1.7%0.61%
Feb 202655.2%16.6%20.2%6.1%1.5%0.54%
Mar 202650.7%18.5%22.7%5.6%2%0.5%
Apr 202650.9%18.6%22.8%5.6%1.7%0.5%
May 202646.6%20.8%25.5%5.1%1.5%0.46%
Jun 202650.3%18.4%22.5%6.8%1.7%0.4%
Jul 202653.1%19.5%19.5%5.8%1.7%0.34%
Aug 202650.3%22.5%18.4%6.8%1.7%0.4%
Sep 202645.3%24.8%20.2%7.4%1.8%0.44%

How has the Altium and CircuitMaker comparison changed over the last 12 months?

3 findings
  • Altium was ahead of CircuitMaker in every measured month of the 12 months ending September 2026.
  • Across the 12 months ending September 2026, Altium’s share of searches among PCB design software worldwide moved from 6% to 7.4%, and its estimated monthly branded searches moved from 60.5K to 74K.
  • Across the 12 months ending September 2026, CircuitMaker’s share of searches among PCB design software worldwide moved from 0.8% to 0.44%, and its estimated monthly branded searches moved from 8.1K to 4.4K.

How did search popularity change for PCB design software worldwide in September 2026?

2 changes

  1. In September 2026, Altium gained share of searches among PCB design software worldwide, from 6.8% to 7.4%.

  2. Estimated monthly branded searches for CircuitMaker worldwide fell 45.7% over 12 measured months, from 8.1K to 4.4K in September 2026.

How are branded searches counted?

2 search terms

Brandwave collects information about searches that people make online using Altium’s and CircuitMaker’s names. When viewed over time, estimated search volumes for these branded terms can be used to understand whether interest in the brands is growing, holding steady, or fading.

Altium

1 branded search term

  • altium

CircuitMaker

1 branded search term

  • circuitmaker

How the Brand Demand Index is measured

Other head-to-heads among PCB design software

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