Espressif ESP32-LCDKit
ESP32 dev kit with display and touch support - ideal for HMI, GUI prototyping, and embedded visual interfaces.
Espressif ESP32-LCDKit Pinout
30 pins
| Pin | GPIO | Labels | Status | Capabilities | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | - | 5VVIN | power | - | 5V power input from the Micro-USB port |
| 2 | - | 3V33.3V | power | - | 3.3V regulated output |
| 3 | - | GND | ground | - | Ground |
| 4 | - | EN | control | - | Chip enable / reset (active-low), from the DevKitC header |
| 5 | 0 | IO0GPIO0 | strapping | adc · touch | Free header pin passed through from the DevKitC; boot/strapping pin (also parallel-screen data line D2) |
| 6 | 1 | TXGPIO1 | uart | uart · i2c | U0TXD USB programming line; also wired as the capacitive-touch I2C SDA |
| 7 | 2 | SD_D0GPIO2 | strapping | adc · touch | microSD data D0 (SDMMC) |
| 8 | 3 | RXGPIO3 | uart | uart · i2c | U0RXD USB programming line; also wired as the capacitive-touch I2C SCL |
| 9 | 4 | SD_D1GPIO4 | safe | adc · touch | microSD data D1 (SDMMC) |
| 10 | 5 | LCD_CSGPIO5 | strapping | spi | ILI9341 LCD chip-select (SPI2) |
| 11 | 12 | SD_D2GPIO12 | strapping | adc · touch | microSD data D2 (SDMMC) |
| 12 | 13 | SD_D3GPIO13 | strapping | adc · touch | microSD data D3 (SDMMC) |
| 13 | 14 | SD_CLKGPIO14 | strapping | adc · touch | microSD clock (SDMMC) |
| 14 | 15 | SD_CMDGPIO15 | strapping | adc · touch | microSD command (SDMMC) |
| 15 | 16 | IO16GPIO16 | safe | - | Free header pin passed through from the DevKitC |
| 16 | 17 | IO17GPIO17 | safe | - | Free header pin passed through from the DevKitC |
| 17 | 18 | LCD_RSTGPIO18 | safe | - | ILI9341 LCD reset (SPI2) |
| 18 | 19 | LCD_DCGPIO19 | safe | - | ILI9341 LCD data/command select (SPI2) |
| 19 | 21 | LCD_MOSIGPIO21 | safe | spi | ILI9341 LCD SPI MOSI (SPI2, shared with touch panel) |
| 20 | 22 | LCD_SCLKGPIO22 | safe | spi | ILI9341 LCD SPI clock (SPI2, shared with touch panel) |
| 21 | 23 | LCD_BLGPIO23 | safe | - | ILI9341 LCD backlight enable |
| 22 | 25 | DAC1GPIO25 | safe | adc · dac | Audio DAC left channel into the MIX3006 amplifier |
| 23 | 26 | DAC2GPIO26 | safe | adc · dac | Audio DAC right channel into the MIX3006 amplifier |
| 24 | 27 | LCD_MISOGPIO27 | safe | adc · touch · spi | ILI9341 LCD SPI MISO (SPI2, shared with touch panel) |
| 25 | 32 | TOUCH_CSGPIO32 | safe | adc · touch | Touch-panel chip-select (shares SPI2 with the LCD) |
| 26 | 33 | IO33GPIO33 | safe | adc · touch | Free header pin passed through from the DevKitC (also parallel-screen data line D5) |
| 27 | 34 | SD_DETGPIO34 | strapping | adc | microSD card-detect; input-only (ADC1) |
| 28 | 35 | IO35GPIO35 | strapping | adc | Free header pin passed through from the DevKitC; input-only (ADC1) |
| 29 | 36 | SENSOR_VPGPIO36 | strapping | adc | Free header pin passed through from the DevKitC; input-only (ADC1) |
| 30 | 39 | SENSOR_VNGPIO39 | strapping | adc | Free header pin passed through from the DevKitC; input-only (ADC1) |
Start with these
13 pins with no boot or system involvementFreely assignable - no strapping, flash, USB or JTAG duties. Ideal first picks for buttons, sensors and LEDs.
Fine - with a little care
13 pins · 12 things to knowIO0 Bootstrapping pin (enter bootloader when low); internal pull-up. Strapping
Must be HIGH during boot for normal startup; if held LOW on reset, forces flash programming mode.
TXGPIO1 Default UART0 TX pin for USB-serial programming and console. UART
Connected to on-board USB-UART for uploading and logs; drives serial output at boot, so using as GPIO can disrupt programming or console.
SD_D0GPIO2 Bootstrapping pin (must be low or floating at reset); internal pull-down. Strapping
If driven HIGH on reset (while IO0 is LOW), selects an unsupported SDIO boot mode, causing boot failure.
RXGPIO3 Default UART0 RX pin for USB-serial programming (console input). UART
Used for receiving data from USB-UART (programming); also pulled HIGH at boot for console communication, so using as GPIO can disrupt uploads.
LCD_CSGPIO5 Bootstrapping pin; internal pull-up; VSPI CS0 (default SPI chip-select); acts as FSPIWP (flash write-protect) on internal-flash variants. Strapping
Must be HIGH during boot; if pulled LOW at reset, alters SDIO slave timing and may prevent normal boot.
SD_D2GPIO12 Bootstrapping pin; JTAG TDI; sets flash voltage (VDD_SDIO); also HSPIQ (flash data line). Strapping
Keep LOW during boot (internal PD); pulling HIGH at reset selects 1.8V flash mode, causing flash brownout if 3.3V flash is used.
SD_D3GPIO13 JTAG clock pin (TCK); also ADC2 channel 4 / Touch4 input. JTAG
Used for JTAG debugging (TCK); avoid using as GPIO if JTAG is needed.
SD_CLKGPIO14 JTAG mode select pin (TMS); also HSPI CLK and PWM-capable GPIO. JTAG
Used for JTAG debugging (TMS); driving it as GPIO may interfere with JTAG or produce spurious signals at boot.
SD_CMDGPIO15 Bootstrapping pin; JTAG TDO; controls UART0 boot log output; also HSPICS0 (secondary SPI CS). Strapping
Keep HIGH during boot (internal PU); if LOW on reset, bootloader log is silenced and boot mode may change.
SD_DETGPIO34 Input-only GPIO (no output driver); ADC1 channel 6. Other
Cannot be used as output (no drive capability); only suitable for analog/digital input.
IO35SENSOR_VNGPIO39 Input-only GPIOs with ADC1 channels - no output driver Other
Cannot be used as output; only suitable for input.
- IO35Input-only GPIO (no output driver); ADC1 channel 7.
- SENSOR_VNInput-only GPIO (no output); ADC1 channel 3, Hall sensor VN.
SENSOR_VPGPIO36 Input-only GPIO (no output); ADC1 channel 0, Hall sensor VP. Other
Cannot be used as output; only suitable for input (e.g., analog read).
Across 30 pins, the Espressif ESP32-LCDKit exposes 26 GPIO plus 5V, 3V3 and GND for power.
Peripheral wiring is straightforward: TX/RX on GPIO1 and GPIO3 cover serial logging and flashing.
Beyond plain digital I/O you get 16 ADC-capable pins for sensors and battery monitoring, 10 capacitive-touch inputs and 2 true DAC outputs.
13 of the exposed pins carry boot-time or system duties on the ESP32 (IO0, TX, SD_D0 and 10 more) - check the guidance above before wiring anything to them. SD_D1, IO16, IO17, LCD_RST and 9 more are free of any such role - the safest first picks.
Getting started
flash your first firmware in ~2 minutesBoard: ESP32 Dev Module Flash Size: 4MB (32Mb) Flash Mode: DIO Partition Scheme: Default 4MB with spiffs (1.2MB APP/1.5MB SPIFFS) Upload Speed: 921600
// toggle GPIO4 - wire an LED and resistor to it
void setup() {
pinMode(4, OUTPUT);
}
void loop() {
digitalWrite(4, HIGH); delay(500);
digitalWrite(4, LOW); delay(500);
}[env:esp32-lcdkit]
platform = espressif32
board = esp32dev
framework = arduino
monitor_speed = 115200
upload_speed = 921600esp32dev - or type it after board =.esp32:
board: esp32dev
variant: esp32
framework:
type: esp-idf
# blink - GPIO4
output:
- platform: gpio
pin: 4
id: led_out
light:
- platform: binary
name: "LED"
output: led_outesp32dev (same ids as PlatformIO).esptool.py --chip esp32 --port /dev/ttyACM0 \
--baud 921600 write_flash 0x1000 firmware.bin--port = your /dev/tty* (macOS/Linux) or COMx (Windows).Specifications
ESP32 · vs other ESP32 chips →About this board
Inside sits the ESP32 - a dual-core Xtensa with both Bluetooth Classic and BLE.
At $30.00 it's on the expensive side for an ESP32 board - most land around $20.
Around the module: a microSD slot, a speaker connector and an amplifier (MIX3006).
The ESP32-LCDKit is a carrier board with an integrated LCD/touch interface that hosts a removable ESP32 core module (an ESP32-DevKitC, bought separately) rather than an onboard module. It is designed for applications requiring graphical displays, including smart home panels, HMI interfaces, and IoT control panels. The board supports Wi-Fi and Bluetooth connectivity, multiple peripheral interfaces, and expansion options, making it an excellent choice for embedded display applications.
Where to buy
prices are typical street pricesResources
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