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On April 21, 2009, EDN reported that Altium had cut the price of Altium Designer, its PCB design tool, to $3,995 for a perpetual license, down from more than $12,000. The report also described a $195-per-month subscription purchased in 12-month blocks. These are historical terms, not a newly announced 2026 price cut.
What Altium cut in 2009
EDN reported on April 21, 2009, that Altium reduced the perpetual-license price of Altium Designer to $3,995 from more than $12,000. The article also said Altium was promoting a subscription at $195 per month, purchased in 12-month blocks. Those figures describe the offers reported in 2009; they are not current quotes. Read the EDN report.
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The report also put Altium’s desktop NanoBoard NB2 reconfigurable development platform at $1,995. It does not establish whether the NB2 is still available.
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| Offer in the 2009 EDN report | License or item | Reported price and terms |
|---|---|---|
| Altium Designer | Perpetual license | $3,995, reduced from more than $12,000 |
| Altium Designer | Subscription | $195 per month, purchased in 12-month blocks |
| NanoBoard NB2 | Reconfigurable development platform | $1,995; current availability not established |
What Altium meant by “unified” design
As described by Altium and reported by EDN, the application brought hardware, software, and programmable-hardware design into one environment, with a single view of the design across the process. That is Altium’s positioning as reported in the article, not an independent evaluation of how well the approach worked.
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EDN identified Rob Irwin as Altium Designer product marketing manager. Irwin argued: “One of the reasons we’ve been doing this is because we think that the traditional ‘divide and conquer’ approach to electronics designs is not going to be appropriate for the next generation of electronic products.” The article also reported that Irwin said the reduced-price Altium Designer was the same tool, rather than a basic or “lite” edition. Source: EDN, April 21, 2009.
How the reported deal differs from Altium’s current offer
Altium’s pricing page, accessed October 4, 2026, lists Altium Develop at $1,990 per year for one Altium Designer Author and a workspace, with up to four additional authors available at $995 per year each. Altium’s migration page describes Develop as backward compatible with Altium Designer Standard. These current statements describe a different offer and licensing period from the 2009 perpetual license and 12-month-block subscription; they do not establish that features or licensing conditions are identical across the two eras.
| Offer | Period and model | Reported price | Included components stated by source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Altium Designer, 2009 report | Perpetual license | $3,995; reduced from more than $12,000 | EDN reported the price; the report does not specify a component bundle in the cited terms. |
| Altium Designer, 2009 report | Monthly subscription purchased in 12-month blocks | $195 per month | EDN reported the subscription price; the report does not specify a component bundle in the cited terms. |
| Altium Develop, current page accessed October 4, 2026 | Annual subscription | $1,990 per year for one author and workspace; $995 per year for each of up to four additional authors | One Altium Designer Author and a workspace; extra authors are separately priced. |
Altium pricing and Altium Develop migration information. Pricing and product terms can change; consult Altium for a current quote.
What the comparison does—and does not—show
The 2009 story documents a sharp reduction in the stated perpetual-license price and a separately described subscription option. Altium’s current page instead presents an annual Develop subscription with an author-and-workspace basis. Because the sources describe different years, product frameworks, and license models, the prices should not be treated as like-for-like measures of cost or capability. The sources cited here do not establish a performance comparison, adoption figures, or present-day NanoBoard NB2 stock.
Quick Recap
Product prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on Amazon at the time of purchase will apply.
