Introduction

GoatCAD is a schematic, PCB, and footprint editor in one application. It edits KiCad files in place, on your own disk.

• Installation — builds for macOS, Windows, and Linux.
• Getting started — open a project and move between the editors.
• KiCad compatibility — what round-trips, and where the edges are.

The file model

A project is a folder, not a database entry:

my-board/
├── my-board.kicad_pro   # project settings
├── my-board.kicad_sch   # schematic
└── my-board.kicad_pcb   # board

GoatCAD reads and writes those files directly. The same folder opens in KiCad, and git sees ordinary text diffs — schematic changes and layout changes land as separate commits.