ETAP vs Altium Designer

ETAP8.9Visit Altium Designer8.4Visit

Higher score ETAP #1 in Electrical Design Software 8.9/10 Pricing on request · 30-day trial Free trial✓ 4 of 4 features Visit ETAP

vs

Altium Designer #6 in Electrical Design Software 8.4/10 30-day trial Free trial✓ 3 of 4 features Visit Altium

• ETAP fits best

  Power-system engineering teams needing field workflows

• Altium Designer fits best

  End-to-end PCB electrical design

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Side by side

Feature	ETAP 8.9/10 Visit ↗	Altium Designer 8.4/10 Visit ↗
At a glance
Editor score	8.9	8.4
Ranking	#1 in Electrical Design Software	#6 in Electrical Design Software
Best for	Power-system engineering teams needing field workflows	End-to-end PCB electrical design
Pricing model	Paid	Paid
Starting price	—	—
Free plan	—	—
Free trial	30 days	30 days
Free trial length	30 days	30 days · no card needed
Deployment	Desktop, Cloud, Mobile	Cloud, Desktop
Platforms	Web, Windows, iOS, Android	Web, Windows
Support	Phone, Docs	Live chat, Tickets, Community, Docs
Integrations	7 integrations	9 integrations
Built for	Mid-market, Enterprise	Solo, Small business, Mid-market, Enterprise
Features ETAP 4/4 · Altium Designer 3/4
Schematic capture	✓	✓
Panel design	✓ (best)	Not checked yet
Standards libraries	✓	✓
MCAD integration	✓	✓
Specs
Electrical simulation	Advanced	Basic
Deployment	Hybrid	Hybrid
Our review
Pros	Combines single-line modeling with load-flow and short-circuit analysis Supports coordination, harmonics, cable sizing, and panel schedules Connects desktop, web, mobile, APIs, and engineering software	Combines schematic capture, PCB layout, SPICE simulation, and 3D validation Supports ECAD-MCAD synchronization with major CAD platforms Covers libraries, constraints, BOMs, and manufacturing releases
Cons	Pricing requires a sales quote rather than published numeric prices Advanced protection and harmonics features require higher plans The 30-day offer is a trial/demo, not a perpetual free plan	Paid product with no permanent free plan The listed desktop platform is Windows Electrical simulation is categorized as basic
Our verdict	ETAP is an electrical power-system software platform for utilities, infrastructure, buildings, industrial organizations, transportation operators, and engineering teams. Its scope covers intelligent single-line diagram modeling, load-flow… Read the review →	Altium Designer is a Windows-based electronic and PCB design environment for engineers and hardware teams. It brings hierarchical and multi-channel schematic capture, interactive PCB routing, SPICE simulation, design-rule management,… Read the review →

Strengths and trade-offs

• ETAP — where it wins

  • Combines single-line modeling with load-flow and short-circuit analysis
  • Supports coordination, harmonics, cable sizing, and panel schedules
  • Connects desktop, web, mobile, APIs, and engineering software

  Where it doesn't

  • Pricing requires a sales quote rather than published numeric prices
  • Advanced protection and harmonics features require higher plans
  • The 30-day offer is a trial/demo, not a perpetual free plan

• Altium Designer — where it wins

  • Combines schematic capture, PCB layout, SPICE simulation, and 3D validation
  • Supports ECAD-MCAD synchronization with major CAD platforms
  • Covers libraries, constraints, BOMs, and manufacturing releases

  Where it doesn't

  • Paid product with no permanent free plan
  • The listed desktop platform is Windows
  • Electrical simulation is categorized as basic

• ETAP8.9/10 · Pricing on request · 30-day trial

  A broad electrical engineering platform for modeling, analysis, field workflows, and automation.

  Visit ETAPFull verdict →
• Altium Designer8.4/10 · 30-day trial

  A broad PCB design environment for teams that need connected electrical and mechanical workflows.

  Visit AltiumFull verdict →