KiCad LCSC Manager Plugin

A KiCad plugin that allows you to search and import electronic components from LCSC/EasyEDA and JLCPCB directly into your KiCad projects, including symbols, footprints, and 3D models.

🚀 v0.5.0 — Footprint pipeline switched to upstream (2026-05-11): The footprint converter is now backed by a vendored copy of easyeda2kicad.py v1.0.1 (see plugins/lcsc_manager/vendor/easyeda2kicad/), eliminating the KicadModTree runtime dependency. Footprints that previously fell back to a 2-pad placeholder on installs without KicadModTree now convert correctly. See CHANGELOG.md and NOTICE.md for licensing.

v0.4.0 added a Settings dialog and per-project / global library-path overrides — see the "Customizing library paths" section below.

✨ Features

Advanced Component Search

• 🔍 Multi-parameter search: Search by component name, value, package type, and manufacturer
• 📊 Rich search results: View LCSC ID, name, package, price, stock, and library type (Basic/Extended)
• 🔀 Sortable columns: Click column headers to sort results by any field
• 👁️ High-quality previews: Symbol and footprint previews rendered directly from EasyEDA's SVG API
• ⚡ Fully asynchronous: Previews load independently — browse and import without waiting
• 💾 Preview caching: Better performance with cached previews
• ⌨️ Keyboard support: Enter to search, ESC to close

Component Import

• 📦 Automatically download symbols, footprints, and 3D models (WRL and STEP formats)
• 💰 Real-time stock, pricing, and datasheet information from JLCPCB API
• 📚 Add components to project-specific libraries
• ⚠️ Smart overwrite detection with selective import options
• 🎨 Seamless integration with KiCad 9.0+
• 🔄 Support for both LCSC/EasyEDA and JLCPCB parts

📥 Installation

Note about KiCad PCM: This plugin is not available in the official KiCad Plugin and Content Manager due to KiCad's commercial services policy. Plugins that directly integrate with commercial APIs (like LCSC/JLCPCB) require a formal contract between the service provider and the KiCad team. As a third-party developer, I cannot submit to the official PCM. However, you can install it through the methods below.

Method 1: Install via Custom Repository (Easiest)

1. Open the Plugin and Content Manager:

   • From the main KiCad window (the project launcher), click the Plugin and Content Manager button/icon, or
   • From an editor, go to Tools → Plugin and Content Manager

   macOS note: If you don't see it under the Tools menu, look on the main KiCad launcher window instead — on some builds the entry only lives there (toward the bottom of the window), not inside the PCB/Schematic editors.

2. Click Manage... (bottom-left)

3. Click Add Repository, paste this URL, and click OK:

   https://raw.githubusercontent.com/hulryung/kicad-lcsc-manager/main/repository.json
   

4. Close the repository manager, then switch the repository dropdown (top of the PCM) to LCSC Manager so the plugin appears in the list

5. Select LCSC Manager and click Install

6. Click Apply Pending Changes (bottom-right) — this is what actually downloads and installs the plugin

7. Quit and restart KiCad completely. If the plugin still doesn't load (the Install button hangs, or no icon appears), reboot your machine — on macOS a stale KiCad/Python state can block the first load until a full restart.

Method 2: Manual Installation

1. Download the latest release

   • Go to Releases
   • Download kicad-lcsc-manager-x.x.x.zip from the latest release

2. Extract to KiCad plugins directory

   Find your KiCad version (e.g., 9.0) and extract to:

   • Windows:

     C:\Users\[USERNAME]\Documents\KiCad\9.0\3rdparty\plugins\
     

   • macOS:

     ~/Documents/KiCad/9.0/3rdparty/plugins/
     

   • Linux:

     ~/.local/share/kicad/9.0/3rdparty/plugins/
     

3. Install Python dependencies ⚠️ REQUIRED

   IMPORTANT: The plugin will NOT work without these Python packages!

   Install them using KiCad's Python (not your system Python):

   macOS:

   /Applications/KiCad/KiCad.app/Contents/Frameworks/Python.framework/Versions/Current/bin/python3 -m pip install --user requests pydantic

   Windows (PowerShell):

   & "C:\Program Files\KiCad\9.0\bin\python.exe" -m pip install --user requests pydantic

   Linux:

   pip3 install --user requests pydantic

4. Restart KiCad completely

5. Verify installation

   • Open KiCad PCB Editor
   • You should see the LCSC Manager icon in the toolbar
   • Or go to Tools → External Plugins → LCSC Manager

Screenshots

Import components from LCSC/EasyEDA with real-time stock and pricing information

🚀 Usage

Where the plugin lives: LCSC Manager runs in the PCB Editor (pcbnew), not the Schematic Editor. KiCad's Python action-plugin API is only available in the PCB Editor, so Search and Import appears there — launch it from the PCB Editor even if you start your design in the schematic. Imported symbols are still added to your project's symbol library and become available in the Schematic Editor.

Quick Start

1. Open KiCad PCB Editor with a saved project
2. Launch the plugin:
   • Click the LCSC Manager icon in the toolbar, or
   • Go to Tools → External Plugins → LCSC Manager

Search and Preview Components

3. Search for components:

   • Enter search terms (e.g., "RP2040", "10uF", "0603")
   • Optionally filter by package type (e.g., "LQFN", "SOT23")
   • Press Enter or click Search

4. Browse results:

   • View component list with LCSC ID, name, package, price, stock, and type
   • Click any column header to sort results
   • Select a component to view previews

5. Review previews:

   • Symbol tab: Symbol preview from EasyEDA
   • Footprint tab: Footprint preview from EasyEDA
   • Previews load asynchronously - you can browse and import while loading

Import Components

6. Select import options:

   • ✓ Import Symbol
   • ✓ Import Footprint
   • ✓ Import 3D Model

7. Click "Import Selected" to add the component to your project

8. Find imported components in your project libraries (default paths):

   • Symbol: <project>/libs/lcsc/symbols/lcsc_imported.kicad_sym
   • Footprint: <project>/libs/lcsc/footprints.pretty/
   • 3D Models: <project>/libs/lcsc/3dmodels/

Customizing library paths

Click the ⚙ Settings… button in the import dialog to change where LCSC components are stored. Four values are configurable:

Field	Default	Purpose
library_path	libs/lcsc	Root folder relative to the project
symbol_lib_name	lcsc_imported.kicad_sym	Symbol library filename
footprint_lib_name	footprints.pretty	Footprint library folder
model_3d_path	3dmodels	3D model folder

Settings can be saved at one of two scopes:

• Global — ~/.kicad/lcsc_manager/config.json. Applies to every project unless overridden.
• This project only — <project>/.lcsc_manager.json. Overrides the global config for that project. Commit this file if you want the layout shared with your team, or add it to .gitignore if it's personal.

Resolution order is default < global < project. The Settings dialog shows a live preview of the resolved absolute paths and indicates which scope each value comes from. Changes apply to future imports only — existing libraries are not moved automatically.

Tips

• Search by LCSC ID: Enter part numbers like "C2040" for exact matches
• Search by value: Try "10uF", "100nF", "10k" to find capacitors and resistors
• Filter by package: Add package filter like "0603", "0805", "SOT23" for better results
• Browse quickly: Click through components rapidly - previews load in the background
• Check stock: Basic parts are usually cheaper and more available than Extended parts

🗑️ Uninstallation

To remove the plugin from your system:

bash uninstall_test.sh

The script will:

• Detect and remove the plugin from KiCad plugins directory
• Optionally remove Python dependencies (if not used by other apps)
• Optionally remove configuration and logs

Alternatively, manually remove:

• Plugin: ~/Documents/KiCad/9.0/3rdparty/plugins/com_github_hulryung_kicad-lcsc-manager/
• Config/Logs: ~/.kicad/lcsc_manager/

📋 Requirements

• KiCad: 9.0 or later (recommended)
  • May work with KiCad 7.0+ but not officially tested
• Python: 3.9+ (bundled with KiCad)
• Python packages:
  • requests>=2.31.0 - For API calls
  • pydantic>=2.5.0 - For data validation
• Internet connection: Required for downloading components from LCSC/JLCPCB

Development

Setup Development Environment

# Clone the repository
git clone https://github.com/hulryung/kicad-lcsc-manager.git
cd kicad-lcsc-manager

# Install dependencies
pip install -r requirements.txt

# Run tests
python -m pytest tests/

Project Structure

kicad-lcsc-manager/
├── plugins/lcsc_manager/    # Main plugin code
│   ├── api/                 # LCSC/EasyEDA API client
│   ├── converters/          # Symbol, footprint, 3D model converters
│   ├── library/             # KiCad library management
│   ├── preview/             # Preview rendering
│   └── utils/               # Config, logging utilities
├── scripts/                 # Build and packaging scripts
├── tests/                   # Integration tests
├── .github/workflows/       # CI/CD (auto-release on tag)
└── README.md

Related Projects

Check out my other KiCad and LCSC-related tools:

🌐 EasyEDA2KiCad Web

A web-based tool to convert EasyEDA/LCSC components to KiCad format with real-time 2D and 3D visualization. Perfect for previewing components before importing them into your project.

Features:

• Web-based interface (no installation required)
• Real-time 2D footprint preview
• 3D model visualization
• Instant conversion and download

📋 BOM Extender

BOM (Bill of Materials) extension tool that automatically fetches LCSC component information and exports enhanced BOMs.

Features:

• Automatic LCSC component lookup
• Stock and pricing information
• Export to various formats
• Batch processing support

---

Credits

Code ported from easyeda2kicad.py v1.0.1

Starting with v0.3.0, this plugin incorporates conversion logic directly ported from the upstream project easyeda2kicad.py v1.0.1 by uPesy (AGPL-3.0). Every ported function carries a "Ported from easyeda2kicad.py v1.0.1 <module>" docstring for full traceability.

What was ported:

Upstream source	Ported into
kicad/export_kicad_3d_model.py — _get_obj_bbox, get_materials, get_vertices, generate_wrl_model	plugins/lcsc_manager/converters/model_3d_converter.py — 3D model centering, Z bottom alignment, Rec.601 luminance, EE placement offset
easyeda/easyeda_importer.py — Easyeda3dModelImporter.parse_3d_model_info	model_3d_converter.py::_extract_3d_model_info — extracts uuid, c_origin, z, c_rotation from SVGNODE
kicad/parameters_kicad_footprint.py — KI_LAYERS table	converters/jlc2kicad/footprint_handlers.py::layer_correspondance — correct mapping for all 17 EasyEDA layers
kicad/export_kicad_footprint.py — _SOLID_REGION_LAYERS, _parse_solid_region_path	footprint_handlers.py::_SOLID_REGION_LAYERS filter + h_SOLIDREGION M/L/H/V/A/Z parser
kicad/export_kicad_footprint.py — pad number normalization	footprint_handlers.py::_normalize_pad_number
kicad/parameters_kicad_footprint.py — KI_VIA template	footprint_handlers.py::h_VIA — plated THT emission
easyeda/easyeda_importer.py — add_easyeda_pin	converters/jlc2kicad/symbol_handlers.py::_extract_pin_number — canonical multi-unit pin number
easyeda/easyeda_api.py — _create_ssl_context	api/lcsc_api.py::_discover_ca_bundle — macOS KiCad certifi fallback
easyeda/easyeda_api.py — _get_cache_path/_read_from_cache/_write_to_cache	api/lcsc_api.py::_cache_path/_cache_read/_cache_write — opt-in disk cache

Other related projects

This plugin was originally structured using concepts and base handler code from:

• JLC2KiCad_lib — base jlc2kicad handler structure (MIT)
• easyeda2kicad_plugin — KiCad plugin wrapper
• KiCAD-EasyEDA-Parts — alternative implementation

License

MIT License — see LICENSE file for the plugin wrapper code.

License note: Portions of the conversion logic are ported from easyeda2kicad.py, which is licensed under AGPL-3.0. Each ported function is marked with a docstring attribution. Users redistributing this plugin should review both the MIT license of the plugin wrapper and the AGPL-3.0 license of the upstream easyeda2kicad.py project.

❓ FAQ

Why isn't this available in the official KiCad PCM?

According to KiCad's commercial services policy, plugins that directly integrate with commercial APIs (like LCSC/JLCPCB) require a formal contract between the service provider and the KiCad team. As a third-party developer, I cannot submit to the official PCM without such a contract.

However, you can still easily install this plugin via:

• Custom repository in KiCad PCM (recommended)
• Manual installation from GitHub releases

How do I update the plugin?

If installed via custom repository:

• The plugin will show update notifications in KiCad PCM
• Click "Update" when a new version is available

If installed manually:

• Check the Releases page for new versions
• Download and extract the new version to the same location
• Restart KiCad

Does this work with KiCad 7 or 8?

This plugin is primarily developed and tested with KiCad 9.0. It may work with KiCad 7.0+ but is not officially tested or supported.

The previews are not showing. What should I do?

Previews are fetched directly from EasyEDA's SVG API and displayed in a WebView. Make sure you have an internet connection. If a component has no preview data on EasyEDA, a placeholder message will be shown.

Can I search for components without LCSC part numbers?

Yes! You can search by:

• Component name (e.g., "RP2040", "ATmega328")
• Component value (e.g., "10uF", "100k")
• Package type (e.g., "0603", "SOT23", "LQFN")
• Or any combination of these

Are 3D models included?

Yes, both WRL (VRML) and STEP formats are downloaded when available. They are automatically linked to the footprint.

🤝 Contributing

Contributions are welcome! Please feel free to submit a Pull Request.

💬 Support

If you encounter any issues or have questions, please open an issue on GitHub.