10 Best Altium Designer Courses and Certifications Online

Altium Designer is a widely used software suite for designing electronic circuits and printed circuit boards (PCBs). Unlike other design software, Altium Designer offers a comprehensive platform for all stages of PCB development, from schematic capture to board layout and manufacturing output. As such, it has become an essential tool for engineers, designers, and hobbyists alike. Given its popularity, there is a growing demand for online courses that teach Altium Designer, which can help users master the software and develop their skills. This article presents a brief overview of some of the best Altium Designer courses available online, highlighting their key features and benefits.

Here’s a look at the Best Altium Designer Courses and Certifications Online and what they have to offer for you!

10 Best Altium Designer Courses and Certifications Online

1. PCB Design: Make Arduino Nano using Altium Designer by Educational Engineering Team, Ashraf Said (Udemy) (Our Best Pick)

This course, titled “PCB Design: Make Arduino Nano using Altium Designer”, is taught by the Educational Engineering Team and Ashraf Said. The short description of the course is that it teaches Printed Circuit Board design by creating an Arduino Nano in Altium Designer software. The course is constantly updated and has had over 4000 students.

Students have left positive reviews, with one saying that it was “Excellent, very helpful, value for money” and another stating that they “learned to work with Altium designer that had once perceived as complex software to use”.

The course is designed for those who want to become a professional PCB designer and teaches how to design and layout Printed Circuit Boards using Altium Designer software. Students will create an Arduino Nano in Altium Designer software and then build it on a development platform. They will also learn how to set out, create, and edit their own PCB layout projects in Altium Designer software. The course is suitable for beginners.

The course teaches students how to design custom Arduino Nano Printed Circuit Boards from start to finish, from zero to production ready. It will improve their PCB design skills, which can help them start freelancing or get a job in PCB design with Altium Designer since it is one of the most used PCB design tools.

After completing the course, students can expect to have learned how to start PCB design using Altium Designer, create their own component library, create the Arduino Nano schematic in Altium Designer, wire components in schematic view, transfer the schematic into PCB, place components on board, create a multilayer board, route layers and place components on board, autoroute to save time, eliminate design errors, and create Gerber files for their manufacturer.

2. Learn to Design Your Own Boards by Robert Feranec (Udemy)

The “Learn to Design Your Own Boards” course is designed to teach the basics of board design, a skill that is essential for anyone who wants to work in electronics or design electronic products. The course is based on an Arduino project and uses Altium Designer software. Altium Designer is a professional software used to design all kinds of boards, from simple ones to motherboards or servers.

The course is divided into six sections. In the first section, students will start with the Arduino Uno reference schematic and learn how to redraw and modify it. In the second section, they will learn how to create components, draw schematic symbols, and footprints. The third section covers how to place components into the PCB. The fourth section teaches students how to route the PCB and offers tips on layout. The fifth section covers creating manufacturing documentation, including the Gerbers, Pick and Place, Drill file, and other files needed for manufacturing. In the final section, students will learn how to bring their board to life by flashing firmware and running a simple LED Blinky example.

By the end of the course, students will have the knowledge to create all the necessary documents needed to manufacture their board. They will be able to create a Bill of Materials (BOM), assembly drawings showing the position of components on the board, and generate professional documents. Additionally, the manufacturing documents created during the course can be used to build the board.

The course offers step-by-step videos that are easy to follow, even for those who are new to electronics or have never used Altium Designer before. The course takes 15 hours to complete and is open to anyone interested in learning board design.

3. Learn PCB Design By Designing an Arduino Nano in Altium by Augmented Startups (Udemy)

The “Learn PCB Design By Designing an Arduino Nano in Altium” course is offered by Augmented Startups and aims to provide a comprehensive learning experience for designing custom Arduino Printed Circuit Boards (PCBs) using Altium Designer. The course is suitable for individuals interested in improving their PCB design skills or pursuing a career in PCB design, with Altium Designer being one of the most commonly used tools in the industry.

The course covers various topics, starting with the basics of Altium Designer, such as how to download and install the software and navigate the user interface. The instructor guides students through creating their own component library, including adding 3D models and finding component models online.

Students will then learn to recreate the Arduino Nano schematic in Altium Designer and wire components in schematic view. Next, they will transfer the schematic to PCB view, define the board shape, and place components. The course also covers creating a multi-layer board and routing between layers, as well as using auto-route to save time.

Finally, the course teaches students to correct design errors and generate Gerber files, which are used by manufacturers to create the PCB. The course content will be updated regularly with new lectures, quizzes, and resources.

It should be noted that the course price will increase from $190 to $200 as of 1st June 2020 due to updated content. The course comes with a 30-day money-back guarantee.

4. PCB Designing in Altium Designer by Sujithkumar MA (Udemy)

The PCB Designing in Altium Designer course, taught by Sujithkumar MA, provides an introduction to Printed Circuit Boards (PCBs) and how to design them using Altium Designer software. The course covers the basic elements of a PCB, the need for PCBs, steps involved in fabrication and design, types of PCBs, and mounting technologies like PTH and SMT.

PCBs are circuit boards that connect electronic components through copper conductive tracks embedded in a substrate. The course then dives into Altium Designer software and teaches how to create a schematic and a PCB. Students will learn how to use various tools and widgets in the software, route footprints in a PCB, analyze the morphology of holes and solder pads, print texts in Top Overlay, and create libraries for different components. The course concludes with understanding 2D and 3D layouts of the PCB.

Upon completion of this course, students will have a strong foundational understanding of PCBs and be able to design a PCB using Altium Designer software. The course is broken down into sections, including fundamentals of PCBs, terminologies and types involved in PCB design, working with Altium Designer to create a schematic, making the PCB from the schematic, and creating component libraries in Altium Designer.

5. Altium Designer 16 – Basics (Arduino FIO) by Eu Jin Ooi (Udemy)

This course, titled “Altium Designer 16 – Basics (Arduino FIO),” is designed to guide learners through the fundamentals of Altium Designer, including schematic and PCB design, component creation, and output generation. The course aims to help learners develop a strong foundation in Altium Designer, leading to improved PCB design skills and practices. Upon completion of the course, learners will have the necessary tools to design their own custom PCB in a short amount of time.

The course covers a range of topics, including installation, licensing, and the graphical user interface of Altium Designer, component creation, schematic design, PCB design, electrical rule checks, cross-probing between schematic and PCB views, and output generation. The course comprises 29 lectures and five hours of instructor-led content.

The course is intended for beginners to intermediate-skilled Altium Designer users, engineers transitioning to Altium Designer, aspiring product entrepreneurs, students and researchers looking to design custom PCBs, and anyone interested in designing PCBs.

The course is structured into several sections covering installation, licensing, and the graphical user interface, developing custom components, schematic design and verification, PCB design, library editing, and output generation. Learners will need an internet connection to download Altium Designer, an Altium Designer license or 15-day trial license, and a computer that meets the requirements of Altium Designer.

6. Altium Course Learn Altium Designer today by Educational Engineering Team (Udemy)

Altium Designer Circuit Board Design Course is an online, self-paced course that teaches individuals how to design PCBs with Altium Designer. The course covers basic to advanced PCB design topics, includes more than 10 hours of video tutorials and hands-on labs, and offers a comprehensive guide to the software. Altium Limited offers different courses that teach individuals how to use the PCB design software, and the course is highly recommended for those who wish to learn Altium.

Altium Designer is a popular PCB design software used by engineers worldwide. The software has a steep learning curve, but a great online course offered by Altium can teach individuals everything they need to know about the software. Since the course is free, it is ideal for anyone interested in learning Altium.

The Altium Course is highly recommended for individuals who want to take their PCB design skills to the next level. The course offers the opportunity to learn how to use the software for advanced design tasks, including 3D printing, and discover tips and tricks to improve workflow and get the most out of the software. Participants can also gain practical experience with real-world projects from different industries, take their designs to production, and create schematic designs and PCB layouts for single- and multi-board projects.

After completing the Altium Course, individuals can create more efficient designs, develop their skills in a fun and interactive way, gain a strong understanding of the software and its capabilities, get ahead of the competition, and gain confidence in their ability to design and create electronic circuits. Sign up for the Altium Course now to take your career to the next level!

The course content and sections include introduction and getting started, note, know your way around Altium, PCB design: make Arduino Nano using Altium Designer, design and create any custom component in Altium Designer.

7. Design and Create Any Custom Component in Altium Designer by Educational Engineering Team, Ashraf Said (Udemy)

This course, entitled “Design and Create Any Custom Component in Altium Designer,” is instructed by the Educational Engineering Team and Ashraf Said. The course provides a comprehensive guide to designing, testing, and manufacturing any custom component using the electronic software Altium. The course is suitable for beginners with no prior experience in electronics. It offers access to everything from the basics of schematic capture to 3D modeling and physical circuit simulation. The course also includes video lectures and a software package.

The course offers an A-Z guide that allows you to make factory-quality components that meet your exact needs. With this course, you will gain the skills to design and create any custom component in Altium Designer. The course offers a pathway to develop a successful business with this knowledge.

The course offers an A-Z guide to designing, drawing, and testing any electronic component using one of the most popular software in the electronics industry. The course aims to make participants a master in making their own electric components. Mass producing any electronics item that participants find useful is also possible with the skills gained in the course.

The course includes video lectures and a software package that provides an introduction to electronic circuit design software. There are also lessons for beginners, allowing learners to become experts. By the end of the course, participants will be able to make fully functional electronic components and prepare them for mass production like a professional.

Participants only need a laptop and headphones to take this course. The course is open for comments and suggestions. The course offers a hands-on learning approach, allowing learners to become experts in making their own electronic items. The course content includes an introduction, downloading and installing Altium Designer, creating your component, using the newly created item, and a bonus lecture on coupons, gifts, and more.

8. Learn PCB Designing In Altium PCB Designer 20 in Just 3 hrs by PCB Design Academy (Udemy)

The PCB Design Academy is offering the “Learn PCB Designing In Altium PCB Designer 20 in Just 3 hrs” course, which teaches PCB design using Altium Designer. The course is aimed at those interested in working in electronics or designing electronic products, as PCB design is essential for achieving these goals. Altium Designer is a comprehensive and user-friendly professional tool used in different companies to design all kinds of boards.

The course focuses on designing a customized PCB of Arduino Pro Mini by following step by step tutorials. Students will start from the reference schematic of Arduino Pro Mini and work through all the steps to make their own customized PCB. The course covers the following topics: drawing new schematics, creating new libraries, creating schematic symbols and footprints, placement of components in the design area, routing of PCB, creating a bill of material (BOM), generating PCB fabrication files (Gerber Files), generating PCB production documentation (Assembly Drawings, Schematic in PDF format, etc.), and creating 3D models of the PCB.

The course is aimed at beginners to intermediate skilled Altium Designer users, engineers migrating into Altium Designer, aspiring product entrepreneurs, students and researchers looking to design their custom PCB, and anyone interested in designing a PCB. The course is to the point and can be completed in just three hours. Students will be able to design any customized PCB in Altium Designer upon completion of the course.

All the design documentation and Gerbers files produced in the course can be used to build a PCB. Components can be sourced from DigiKey or Farnell and soldered by the student. The course is enjoyable and offers good luck to all students.

9. Design Your PCB Board Using Altium Designer (Arduino Nano) by Tariq Alrefai (Udemy)

This course titled “Design Your PCB Board Using Altium Designer (Arduino Nano)” is instructed by Tariq Alrefai. The course provides a basic understanding of designing electronic boards or products. It teaches the use of the right software to open doors to many companies and to obtain well-paid jobs. The course is designed for beginners who are new to electronics or have never used Altium Designer before.

The course provides hands-on experience in working with PCB design, exposure to complete PCB design, knowledge of electronic components, and understanding of electronics project design flow. It starts with the Arduino Uno reference schematic and teaches how to redraw, modify it, and improve it. It also covers tips for component selection and important circuits.

The course videos are step-by-step and within 10 hours, learners will learn to create all the necessary documents needed to manufacture the board. The course covers drawing schematic, creating components, drawing schematic symbols and footprints, placing components into the PCB, routing PCB, creating 3D models of the board, creating Bill of Material (BOM), creating assembly drawings showing the position of components on the board, generating Gerbers, Pick and Place, Drill file and other files needed for manufacturing, and preparing professional documents needed to manufacture the PCB and assemble the board.

The manufacturing documents created during the course can be used to build the board. The course is divided into sections such as Introduction, Schematic Toolbar, Draw the schematic & Creating libraries, Finalizing Schematic, PCB Toolbar, PCB Placement, PCB Layout, and Manufacturing Files.

10. Learn PCB Designing with Altium Designer for 2019 by Ashish Prabhakar (Udemy)

The course “Learn PCB Designing with Altium Designer for 2019” is being offered by Ashish Prabhakar. The course aims to teach students how to design their own schematics and PCB using Altium Designer with easy steps. This course is suitable for anyone who wants to learn PCB design with the help of Altium Designer, especially college students.

The course is designed in a way that students can easily understand the basic concepts of PCB design by following the steps mentioned in the tutorial. It covers a wide range of topics, including an introduction to Altium, schematic design of circuits, netlist use for schematic design, PCB conversion of schematic design of circuits, output file generation (Gerber Generation and PDF Files), and footprints creation/land pattern creation. The course also provides an overview of the IPC used for PCB design.

The course is divided into modules, with the first module covering the topics mentioned above. By the end of the first module, students will have a basic understanding of PCB design using Altium Designer. The course instructors aim to provide hands-on experience to the students, which will help them to apply the concepts learned in the course in real-life scenarios.