Cherry Blossom for makers and hobbyists
You have a project on a breadboard and you want it on a real board. Cherry Blossom lets you describe that board in plain English and get back a schematic, a layout, a parts list and the files a fab house needs.
Can you make me a board to dim the 12 V LED strip over my desk? An ESP32-C3, a 12 V barrel jack with a buck converter down to 3.3 V, a logic-level MOSFET for the strip and two buttons.
Yes, if you know what your board should do and would rather not spend weeks learning schematic capture, footprints and routing first. You describe the board, an AI agent designs it in the browser, and you get Gerbers you can order from.
It is a worse fit if you enjoy laying out boards by hand, want a free tool, or need simulation. The viewers are read-only, so you change the board by asking for changes. There is no free tier right now: plans start at $20 a month, while KiCad is free.
Makers who want to learn layout later can export an editable KiCad project and pick it up from there.
Where it fits
- Makers who know what their board should do.
- Anyone moving a breadboard project onto a real board.
- People who would rather skip learning schematic capture and routing first.
- Makers who may learn layout later from the exported KiCad project.
Where it doesn’t
- Makers who enjoy laying out boards by hand.
- Anyone who wants a free tool. KiCad is free.
- Projects where you want to simulate the circuit first.
- Anyone who needs to open an old EAGLE or KiCad project.
How it works
Describe the board
Say what it should do and name any parts you already own. You can attach a photo or a sketch.
Wait for the build
An AI agent writes the board as tscircuit code and builds it. It keeps going if you close the tab.
Look it over
Check the schematic, layout, 3D view and BOM, and ask for changes in the chat. A verification gate checks every AI edit against manufacturing rules.
Order it
Download the Gerbers for any fab house, or use the PCBWay hand-off once the board passes a DRC check.
What do makers need from a PCB tool?
Most makers do not design boards every week. A full ECAD asks you to learn a lot before the first board: symbols, footprints, nets, design rules, routing. That is a big investment for one project that you want off a breadboard.
A way to start from what the board should do, rather than from an empty canvas.
Footprints that fit the parts you bought.
A check against manufacturing rules before you pay for a board.
Nothing to install, and the files a fab house asks for.
When should a maker use something else?
A board from a description, without learning ECAD first
What Cherry Blossom doesDrafts schematic, layout, BOM and Gerbers from your words
Where to look insteadCovered here
A free tool
What Cherry Blossom doesNo free tier right now
Where to look insteadRouting traces by hand
What Cherry Blossom doesRead-only viewers; export to KiCad to edit by hand
Simulating the circuit first
What Cherry Blossom doesNo simulation
Where to look insteadCircuit simulation software
Opening an old EAGLE or KiCad project
What Cherry Blossom doesCannot import design files
Where to look insteadThe tool that made it, or an EAGLE alternative
| What you need | What Cherry Blossom does | Where to look instead |
|---|---|---|
| A board from a description, without learning ECAD first | Drafts schematic, layout, BOM and Gerbers from your words | Covered here |
| A free tool | No free tier right now | Free PCB design software |
| Routing traces by hand | Read-only viewers; export to KiCad to edit by hand | KiCad or EasyEDA |
| Simulating the circuit first | No simulation | Circuit simulation software |
| Opening an old EAGLE or KiCad project | Cannot import design files | The tool that made it, or an EAGLE alternative |
If you are new to all of this and want to compare every option, the best PCB design software for beginners covers the manual tools as well.
What does Cherry Blossom cost a maker?
The Free plan is paused right now, so there is no free tier. Pro is $20 a month with 4M AI credits and 600 AI actions a day. Ultra is $140 a month with 32M credits and the frontier models. Usage past the allowance is $5 per 1M credits, only if you turn it on. The AI is included, with no API key and no per-seat licence.
The boards themselves are a separate cost. If you order through the PCBWay hand-off, you pay PCBWay at their own quote. Cherry Blossom takes no payment for boards.
The honest limits. Cherry Blossom is an early beta. You change a board by asking the agent, not by dragging traces yourself, so fine manual layout happens after a KiCad export. It is not a circuit simulator, it has no real-time multi-user editing, and it is not built for high-speed or RF sign-off.
Questions
Cherry Blossom is a good PCB design tool for makers and hobbyists who know what their board should do but have not learned a full ECAD. You describe the board in plain English, for example an ESP32 board with USB-C power and two buttons, and an AI agent designs it in the browser. You get a schematic, PCB layout, 3D view, BOM and fab-ready Gerbers. Footprints come from real part data, and a verification gate checks every edit against manufacturing rules. You change the board by asking the agent, because the viewers are read-only. Plans start at $20 a month and there is no free tier at the moment, so a maker who wants a free tool or enjoys routing by hand may prefer KiCad. You can export an editable KiCad project from Cherry Blossom at any time.
No. You describe what the board should do and the agent designs it. Knowing some basics helps you review the schematic and ask for better changes, but you do not draw anything yourself.
You can hand it off to PCBWay. Cherry Blossom uploads the fabrication files and opens PCBWay's own cart and quote, and you pay PCBWay directly. It refuses if the build is stale or fails its checks. You can also download the Gerbers and use any fab house.
Not right now. The Free plan is paused, so the entry plan is Pro at $20 a month. KiCad and EasyEDA are free if cost is the deciding factor.
Describe your board. See what comes back.
Schematic, layout and a verification gate, in the browser. Exports to Gerbers and KiCad.
