PCB vs PCBA — What You're Actually Selling
The bare board vs assembled board distinction — and why it changes deal size by 5–50x.
This is one of the most important distinctions in the industry, and confusing them in front of a customer is a rookie mistake.
PCB (Bare Board)
A PCB by itself is the empty green board. No chips, no resistors, nothing soldered to it. It's just the substrate with copper traces.
You sell bare PCBs to:
- Contract manufacturers (CMs) who do their own assembly
- Engineering teams doing in-house assembly
- Customers who buy boards from one supplier and components from another
PCBA (Assembled Board)
A PCBA is the board PLUS all the electronic components soldered onto it — resistors, capacitors, chips, connectors, etc. It is a finished or near-finished electronic module.
You sell PCBAs to:
- OEMs (Original Equipment Manufacturers) who want a one-stop shop
- Startups and small companies that don't have assembly capability
- Larger companies looking to outsource so they can focus on design, not factory operations
Why It Matters for Sales
PCBA deals are typically 5x to 50x larger in dollar value than bare PCB deals because the component cost (the "BOM" — bill of materials) is added to the board cost. A $5 bare board might become a $100 PCBA after components are added.
Margins on bare boards are tighter (typical gross margin 20–35%). Margins on PCBA can be similar in percentage but much larger in absolute dollars because of the BOM markup.
Other Services You May Sell Around the Board
- Component sourcing / kitting — You buy the parts on the customer's behalf.
- Conformal coating — A protective spray for moisture/chemical resistance.
- Functional testing — Powering up the board and running tests.
- In-Circuit Test (ICT) and Flying Probe — Electrical tests of the assembled board.
- Box build / system integration — Putting the PCBA into an enclosure with cables, displays, fans, etc. — basically the whole finished product.
- Cable and wire harness assembly — Often sold alongside PCBA.
- Design for Manufacturability (DFM) review — Engineering review to catch problems before production.
- Engineering / layout services — Helping the customer design or redesign the board.
- PCB = bare board. PCBA = board with components.
- PCBA deal size is much bigger. Always ask: "Do you need just the bare boards, or do you want them assembled?"
- Add-on services (coating, test, box build) increase deal size and stickiness.
Practice questions
A $5 bare board might become a PCBA worth roughly how much after components are added?
Which is an example of an add-on service that increases deal size?
What's the BOM?
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