NewAltium Designer extension · AD26 and Altium Develop
The interactive HTML BOM for Altium, with a guide that places every part.
Placemate turns your Altium PCB into one offline HTML file. It highlights every part of the current BOM line in 2D and 3D, marks pin 1 and polarity, and tracks each board you build. Place the parts, press Space, and the next line comes up.
- Pay once, lifetime licence
- Instant download
- Files open in any browser, offline
- 1 fileBoard, BOM and 3D models in one offline HTML file
- 1 keyPress Space when the parts are on, and the next line comes up
- 20 boardsBuild up to 20 boards at once, with progress per board
- 0 uploadsNo server, no account. The file makes no network requests
How it works
From Altium to the bench in three steps
No export scripts, no Python, no BOM spreadsheets. One menu command in the PCB editor makes the file.
- 1
Generate in Altium
Select Placemate » Generate… in the PCB editor. Pick the variant, the number of boards and the placement order.
- 2
Open it on any device
One self-contained file: board, BOM and 3D models. No install, no account, no internet. Put it on the tablet next to your microscope.
- 3
Place, press Space, repeat
The guide shows one BOM line and highlights its parts on every board. Press Space when they are on,S to skip a line for later, U to undo.
See the guide work
No more hunting for C47 on the drawing
A static BOM makes you search the board for every designator. Placemate shows you where each part goes, on every board, in the order that you place them.
8 capacitors, 3 boards, one key
The guide shows the line 22uF_10V. All 8 parts are highlighted and numbered in a short path, in 2D and in 3D. A grid shows each part on each board. Press Space and the next open line comes up.
The cathode, marked on every LED
Placemate reads the pad names and the schematic pin names. It marks the cathode, the plus pad and pin 1, and says it in words: “the cathode is pad 1 (pin C)”.
Pin 1 at a glance
The view zooms to the part and marks pin 1. The card says it in words, so you can check it before the part goes down.
Your STEP models, in the browser
Placemate converts the 3D models of your Altium library into compact meshes and puts them into the file. Orbit, pan and zoom with mouse or touch.
Live demo
Try the real file. Right here, right now.
This is the Placemate file of our EuroC board, exactly as Altium made it. 104 parts, 36 BOM lines, 23 3D models, 3 boards in the build. Nothing to install.
- Space Done, next line
- S Skip for later
- U Undo
- 2 3 2D or 3D view
- Z Zoom to the parts
Open it on your tablet next to the microscope. It works offline.
Features
Everything a hand-assembled prototype needs
Built by hardware engineers who place 0402 parts under a microscope. Every feature saves a look at the drawing or a part that goes on the wrong way.
Every part of the line, highlighted
Coral marks on the board, numbered in a short path. The view zooms to the parts. Arrows point to parts out of view.
2D and 3D side by side
A sharp 2D drawing with copper, pads and silkscreen, and a WebGL 3D view with the STEP models of your library.
Pin 1 and polarity marks
Cathode, plus pad and pin 1 come from the pad and schematic pin names, never from a guess on pad numbers.
Build 1 to 20 boards at once
Place a line on board 1, 2 and 3, then go on. Progress for each board and in total, or work on one board only.
Skip for later, undo anything
Part not in stock? Press S. Skipped parts come back at the end. U takes back the last action, also on all boards.
The placement order you want
Phases SMD top, SMD bottom and THT. Sort by prefix (C, R, L, D … U, J), by package size, ICs first or area by area.
Hands-free with a foot pedal
One key for each step. Map Space, S and U to a USB foot pedal and keep the tweezers in your hand.
Offline and private
One HTML file, no server, no account, no tracking. The file makes no network requests. Your design stays yours.
Progress that does not get lost
The browser keeps the build. Export it, or save a copy of the HTML file with the progress inside.
Altium variants and alternates
Pick the variant in the dialog. Alternate parts show their own value, for example 4k75 1%.
Exact Altium geometry
All pad shapes and TrueType text as polygons, the way the board looks in Altium, not a stroke-font copy.
Find any part in a second
Type a designator, a value or a footprint. Both views zoom to the part and the guide opens its line.
Compare
Placemate, iBOM and BoasTools compared
InteractiveHtmlBom is a great free tool for KiCad. BoasTools brought its viewer to Altium in 2021. Placemate is built from scratch for hand assembly from Altium.
| Feature | Placematefor Altium | InteractiveHtmlBomiBOM, for KiCad | BoasToolsiBOM viewer for Altium |
|---|---|---|---|
| Reads Altium Designer projects | AD26 and Altium Develop | KiCad, EasyEDA, Eagle, Fusion 360, Allegro | Altium extension |
| One offline HTML file | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Guided placement, one BOM line at a time | Yes | BOM table with checkboxes | iBOM viewer |
| 3D view with your STEP models | Yes | No | No |
| Several boards in one build | 1 to 20, progress per board | Declined, issue #227 | No |
| Skip for later and undo | Yes | No | No |
| Placement order and phases (SMD, THT) | Yes | Requested, issue #246 | No |
| Zoom to the selected parts | Yes | Requested, issue #559 | No |
| Polarity marks: cathode, plus pad, pin 1 | From pad and pin names | Pin 1 | Pin 1 |
| Exact pads and TrueType text | Yes | KiCad shapes | Rect, circle, oval; text as lines |
| Altium variants | Yes | Not applicable | No |
| Progress kept outside the browser | Export, or a copy of the file | localStorage only | Not tested |
Based on the public documentation and our tests with AD26 and Altium Develop in October 2026. The issue numbers refer toInteractiveHtmlBom on GitHub. Something out of date? Tell us and we fix it.
Pricing
$25 per seat. Pay once, place forever.
A seat is yours for life, with every future version. No subscription, no account, no cloud. Buy a seat for each engineer who makes Placemate files in Altium.
Fermium Placematev0.3.0
$25USD per seat, once
lifetime licence
Total $25.00 USD, tax included
Secure checkout by Stripe. Card and the local payment methods of your country. VAT invoice for companies.
- Company, 4 seats or more? Pay by invoice
- 10 seats or more? Get a custom price
Included in every seat
- Lifetime licence with all future versions
- Altium extension for Altium Designer 26 (AD26) and Altium Develop
- Windows Setup: installs into every Altium on the computer
- The placemate command-line tool for scripted builds and checks
- Unlimited boards, variants and HTML files
- HTML files that anyone can open, no seat needed to view
- E-mail support from the engineers who build it
Instant download. The link shows right after the payment and comes by e-mail.
Purchase order? Pay by invoice and enter the PO number. The invoice is due in 30 days.
Pay by invoiceFor companies, from 4 seats. Payment within 30 days by bank transfer or card.
The invoice is on its way.
View and pay the invoice nowWhat is Placemate?
Placemate is an extension for Altium Designer that turns a PCB project into one offline HTML file for the hand assembly of prototype boards. The file shows the board in 2D and 3D, highlights all parts of the current BOM line, marks pin 1 and polarity, and tracks the progress of every board you build.
Is Placemate an interactive HTML BOM (iBOM) for Altium?
Yes. Placemate gives Altium users what InteractiveHtmlBom gives KiCad users: a self-contained HTML page with a searchable BOM linked to the board drawing. Placemate adds a guided placement mode, a 3D view, polarity marks and progress for several boards.
How is Placemate different from InteractiveHtmlBom?
InteractiveHtmlBom is a free and excellent plugin for KiCad, EasyEDA, Eagle, Fusion 360 and Allegro, but it has no native Altium support. It shows a BOM table with checkboxes. Placemate reads Altium directly and guides you one BOM line at a time, with a 3D view, a build quantity of up to 20 boards, skip and undo, and a placement order. If you design in KiCad, use InteractiveHtmlBom.
I used BoasTools. Why switch to Placemate?
BoasTools exports Altium data into the iBOM viewer from 2021. Placemate has its own 2D and 3D renderer with the exact Altium pad shapes and TrueType text, supports variants, and is built for AD26 and Altium Develop.
Which Altium versions does Placemate support?
Placemate supports Altium Designer 26 (AD26) and Altium Develop on Windows 10 and Windows 11, 64-bit. The Setup program finds every Altium installation on the computer and installs the extension into the ones you select.
Does Placemate work with KiCad, Eagle or EasyEDA?
No. Placemate reads Altium PCB projects only. For KiCad, EasyEDA, Eagle and Fusion 360 we recommend the free InteractiveHtmlBom project.
Does the person who assembles the board need a licence?
No. The seat is for the person who makes the files in Altium. Anyone can open a Placemate HTML file in a current browser on a PC, a tablet or a phone, without an installation and without an account.
Does the HTML file need internet or upload my design?
No. The file contains the board, the BOM and the 3D meshes, and it makes no network requests. Your design stays on your computer and on the devices that you copy the file to.
What does "per seat" mean?
A seat is one user of the Altium extension. Buy one seat for each engineer who makes Placemate files. One seat costs $25 once and is valid for life.
Is Placemate a subscription?
No. You pay $25 per seat once, and the seat is yours for life. There is no subscription and no account.
Do I get new versions?
Yes, all of them. A seat is a lifetime licence for all versions of Placemate, also the future ones. The link in your purchase e-mail always downloads the current version.
What do I get after the payment?
The confirmation page shows the download link of the Windows Setup program right after the payment. We also send the link by e-mail. The Setup program installs the Altium extension and the placemate command-line tool.
Can our company pay by invoice?
Yes, from 4 seats. Fill in the invoice form on the pricing page, with a purchase order number if you need one. Stripe sends the invoice by e-mail. Pay it within 30 days by bank transfer or card. The download link comes by e-mail as soon as the payment arrives.
Is there a price for 10 seats or more?
Yes. For 10 seats or more we make you a custom price. Write to contact@fermium.ch with the number of seats.
Can I try Placemate before I buy it?
Yes. The live demo on this site is a real Placemate file of our EuroC board. You can use it in the browser or download it and open it offline.
Which browsers can open the files?
Current versions of Chrome, Edge, Firefox and Safari on Windows, macOS, Linux, iPadOS and Android. The 3D view needs WebGL 2, which all of these browsers support.
Your next prototype, placed in one go
Generate the file in Altium, open it next to the microscope, and press Space. No more lost parts, no more parts on the wrong way.