20 in a Row: PCB Design Tool Sales Set Another Mark
MILPITAS, CA – Sales of printed circuit board and multichip module design tools rose 1.8% year-over-year in the fourth quarter, hitting a record $484.6 million, the ESD Alliance announced in April. It marked 20 straight quarters of year-over-year growth in the segment and beat the previous quarterly high by more than $10 million.
The segment’s four-quarter moving average rose 4.5%. The four-quarter moving average is calculated by comparing consecutive sets of four quarters and is used to smooth out fluctuations in data sets.
The steady gains reflect ongoing demand for board-level and system-level design tools as increasing complexity in high-speed, high-density electronics continues to push design requirements.
Overall, the electronic system design industry reached $5.5 billion in revenue, up 10.3% year-over-year.
“The electronic design automation (EDA) industry continues to report strong year-over-year revenue growth in Q4 2025,” said Wally Rhines, spokesperson for the ESD Alliance. “Product categories CAE, PCB and MCM, semiconductor IP (SIP), and services all reported gains. Geographic regions, including Americas, EMEA and APAC, reported growth in Q4, with a double-digit increase in Americas and APAC.”
Across the broader market, growth was seen in most categories and regions. The Americas and Asia-Pacific led with increases of 13.9% and 11.3%, respectively, while Europe, the Middle East and Africa also posted gains. Japan was the only region to report a decline.
Overall, the industry’s four-quarter moving average rose 10.1%, underscoring sustained expansion and highlighting the growing importance of PCB and multichip design within the wider electronic system design landscape.
Companies tracked in the report employed 71,517 people globally in the fourth quarter, up 13.8% from a year earlier and down 2.3% sequentially.
For more on the trends behind this sustained growth, including key drivers and emerging risks, listen to the PCB Chat podcast with Rhines.
Hot Takes
Full-year server shipment growth – previously expected to approach 20% year-over-year – is now projected to remain around 13%, falling short of fully reflecting underlying market demand, as suppliers prioritize capacity allocation to higher-market AI server products. (TrendForce)
Global smartphone shipments decreased 4.1% year-over-year to 289.7 million units in the first quarter, breaking a 10-quarter growth streak the market had seen since mid-2023. (IDC)
Taiwanese PCB fabricators reported combined imports and exports of rigid PCBs in March rose 17% and flex circuits were up 26%. (TPCA)
Surging demand for high-end PCBs driven by AI servers and switches is intensifying supply imbalances for upstream materials, with industry sources saying the rising cost of copper-clad laminate (CCL) is accelerating. (DigiTimes)
Global semiconductor revenue is projected to exceed $1.3 trillion in 2026, up 64%, the highest growth in the past two decades. DRAM prices are forecast to increase 125% this year. (Gartner)
North American PCB shipments in February rose 17.6% compared to the same month last year, and were up 5.1% sequentially and 13.9% year-to-date. Bookings slid 4.3% from a year ago but climbed 41% sequentially and are down 10.8% for the year. (GEA)
North and South American authorized component distributor revenues rose 7.1% to $30.9 billion in 2025. (ECIA)
Suppliers are seeing laminate price increases of 10–15% on high-end grades and 20–25% on mid/low grades, with expectations of further hikes. (Ventec)
Supply chain resources are tilting toward high-end products such as DDR5 and high-bandwidth memory (HBM), which, coupled with the high gold consumption of memory board products, is putting upward pressure on raw material prices. (TPCA)
North American EMS shipments rose 7.6% in February from the same month last year, and 7.1% sequentially. Year-to-date shipments are up 3.9%. Orders upticked 1.7% year-over-year and 19.1% from the previous month. YTD bookings are down 0.7%. (GEA)
Major suppliers are continuing to phase out production of mature products below DDR4, pushing consumer DRAM contract prices to rise 45–50% sequentially in the current quarter, accounting for ongoing supply reductions, order transfers and the slower pace of capacity expansion among Taiwanese suppliers. (TrendForce)
Samsung Electro-Mechanics is reportedly raising FC-BGA substrate prices as AI and HPC demand continues to outpace supply. (DigiTimes)End of article content