AI Thinker ESP32-CAM
ESP32 module with camera and microSD - perfect for surveillance, face detection, and image processing projects.
AI Thinker ESP32-CAM Pinout
31 pins · 2.54 mm pitch
| Pin | GPIO | Labels | Status | Capabilities | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | - | 5V | power | - | |
| 2 | - | GND | ground | - | |
| 3 | - | 3V33.3V | power | - | |
| 4 | 16 | IO16 | strapping | - | |
| 5 | - | GND | ground | - | |
| 6 | - | VCC | power | - | |
| 7 | - | GND | ground | - | |
| 8 | 0 | A11T1 | strapping | adc · touch | |
| 9 | 1 | TXPWM | uart | uart | |
| 10 | 2 | A12T2PWM | strapping | adc · touch | |
| 11 | 3 | RXPWM | uart | uart | |
| 12 | 4 | A10T0PWM | safe | adc · touch | |
| 13 | 5 | SSPWM | strapping | spi | |
| 14 | 12 | A15T5PWM | strapping | adc · touch | |
| 15 | 13 | A14T4PWM | strapping | adc · touch | |
| 16 | 14 | A16T6PWM | strapping | adc · touch | |
| 17 | 15 | A13T3PWM | strapping | adc · touch | |
| 18 | 18 | SCKPWM | safe | spi | |
| 19 | 19 | MISOPWM | safe | spi | |
| 20 | 21 | SDAPWM | safe | i2c | |
| 21 | 22 | SCLPWM | safe | i2c | |
| 22 | 23 | MOSIPWM | safe | spi | |
| 23 | 25 | A18DAC1PWM | safe | adc · dac | |
| 24 | 26 | A19DAC2PWM | safe | adc · dac | |
| 25 | 27 | A17T7PWM | safe | adc · touch | |
| 26 | 32 | A4T9PWM | safe | adc · touch | |
| 27 | 33 | A5T8PWM | safe | adc · touch | |
| 28 | 34 | A6 | strapping | adc | |
| 29 | 35 | A7 | strapping | adc | |
| 30 | 36 | A0 | strapping | adc | |
| 31 | 39 | A3 | strapping | adc |
Start with these
11 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 knowA11GPIO0 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.
A12GPIO2 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.
SSGPIO5 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.
A15GPIO12 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.
A14GPIO13 JTAG clock pin (TCK); also ADC2 channel 4 / Touch4 input. JTAG
Used for JTAG debugging (TCK); avoid using as GPIO if JTAG is needed.
A16GPIO14 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.
A13GPIO15 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.
A6GPIO34 Input-only GPIO (no output driver); ADC1 channel 6. Other
Cannot be used as output (no drive capability); only suitable for analog/digital input.
A7GPIO35A3GPIO39 Input-only GPIOs with ADC1 channels - no output driver Other
Cannot be used as output; only suitable for input.
- A7Input-only GPIO (no output driver); ADC1 channel 7.
- A3Input-only GPIO (no output); ADC1 channel 3, Hall sensor VN.
A0GPIO36 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).
Only if you know the tricks
1 pins · 1 thing to knowIO16 PSRAM CS# on WROVER-class modules and on ESP32-D0WDRH2-V3; in-package flash CS# on ESP32-U4WDH. Also UART2 RX. PSRAM
Wired to the memory die on PSRAM-equipped modules (WROVER, PICO-V3-02) and on in-package-memory chip variants (U4WDH, D0WDRH2-V3); an ordinary GPIO on a plain WROOM-32.
The AI Thinker ESP32-CAM pinout brings out 31 pins at a 2.54 mm pitch - 25 usable GPIO alongside the 5V, GND, 3V3 and VCC power rails.
For peripherals, I²C is mapped to SDA on GPIO21 and SCL on GPIO22; the SPI bus (MOSI, MISO, SCK, SS) is broken out in full; TX/RX on GPIO1 and GPIO3 cover serial logging and flashing.
On the analog side there are 16 ADC-capable pins for sensors and battery monitoring, 10 capacitive-touch inputs and 2 true DAC outputs.
If you want zero surprises, A10, SCK, MISO, SDA and 7 more are free of any such role - the safest first picks. 13 of the exposed pins carry boot-time or system duties on the ESP32 (A11, TX, A12 and 10 more).
Pinout notes The ESP32-CAM pinout is designed to provide versatile functionality for camera-based IoT applications. It features essential power pins like 5V, 3.3V, and GND,…
The ESP32-CAM pinout is designed to provide versatile functionality for camera-based IoT applications. It features essential power pins like 5V, 3.3V, and GND, ensuring stable power delivery for both the ESP32 chip and connected peripherals.
For communication, the ESP32-CAM (also written as ESP32CAM, ESP 32 CAM, or ESP-CAM) includes RX and TX for UART, making it easy to connect to external serial devices. Additionally, SDA and SCL support I2C communication, while SPI pins like MISO, MOSI, SCK, and SS enable high-speed data transfer for sensors, displays, and storage.
One of the key features of the ESP32-CAM is its dedicated camera interface, which includes multiple GPIOs for connecting the OV2640 camera module. It also has a microSD card slot, allowing you to store captured images and videos easily.
Since the ESP32-CAM does not have a built-in USB-to-serial converter, programming requires an external FTDI or USB-to-TTL adapter connected to the RX and TX pins. Proper boot mode selection is also necessary when flashing firmware.
Pins to Avoid or Use with Caution
| Pin Name | Label | Reason to Avoid |
|---|---|---|
| IO0 | BOOT | Must be pulled low to enter flash mode. Avoid using as a regular GPIO. |
| IO4 | CAM_D2 | Used by the camera module. Avoid using if the camera is in use. |
| IO12 | MTDI | Bootstrapping pin. Can cause issues if pulled high at startup. |
| IO13 | MTCK | Used for flash mode configuration. Avoid using if unsure. |
| IO14 | MTMS | Connected to the camera. Avoid using as a general GPIO. |
| IO15 | MTDO | Strapping pin. Can interfere with boot mode if pulled incorrectly. |
For general GPIO usage, IO2, IO16, and IO17 are the safest and most flexible choices.
Getting started
flash your first firmware in ~2 minutesBoard: ESP32 Wrover Module Flash Size: 4MB (32Mb) PSRAM: QSPI PSRAM 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:esp32cam]
platform = espressif32
board = esp32dev
framework = arduino
monitor_speed = 115200
upload_speed = 921600
board_build.arduino.memory_type = qio_qspi
build_flags = -DBOARD_HAS_PSRAMesp32dev - or type it after board =.esp32:
board: esp32dev
variant: esp32
framework:
type: esp-idf
psram:
mode: quad
speed: 80MHz
# 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).Downloads
Free for non-commercial use, credit espboards.dev · License
Board illustration
The bare AI Thinker ESP32-CAM board drawn to scale at 40.5 × 27 mm, with no pin labels on it. Made for slide decks, wiring diagrams and project write-ups where a photo is too busy. Take the scalable SVG for print or editing, the high-resolution PNG to drop straight in, or the transparent PNG when you need it with no background behind it.
Pinout diagram
Every pin on both sides of the board with its functions, drawn by ESPboards from the ESP32 Series Datasheet v5.3 - the same sheet shown at the top of this page. The PNG is a high-resolution image for screens, the SVG is vector so it stays sharp at any size, and the PDF is laid out to print on A4 or Letter.
Yours to use, share and adapt for non-commercial work, as long as you credit espboards.dev - the full terms and ready-made credit lines are here.
Specifications
ESP32 · 40.5 × 27 mm · vs other ESP32 chips →Dimensions
About this board
At its core is the ESP32 - a dual-core Xtensa with both Bluetooth Classic and BLE.
Expect to pay about $10.00 - less than the ~$20 most ESP32 boards go for.
Onboard you'll find 4MB (QSPI) PSRAM, an OV2640 camera (1600x1200), a microSD slot, status LEDs (Red (GPIO33), Flash (GPIO4)) and Reset buttons.
The ESP32-CAM (also written as ESP32CAM, ESP 32 CAM, or ESP-CAM) is a low-cost Wi-Fi + Bluetooth camera module powered by Espressif’s ESP32-S chip. It comes with an OV2640 camera, microSD slot, and GPIO pins, making it perfect for IoT, security, and AI vision projects. In this guide, you’ll find the ESP32-CAM pinout, wiring diagrams, datasheet, technical specs, and setup instructions for AI Thinker and similar modules.
- u.FL/IPEX connector for external antenna (0Ω resistor jumper selects onboard PCB or external)
- No onboard USB - program via an external FTDI/USB-to-TTL adapter on U0R/U0T
FAQ
5 common questionsWhat is the ESP32-CAM used for?›
What voltage does the ESP32-CAM require?›
What is the resolution of the ESP32-CAM's OV2640 camera?›
Does the ESP32-CAM have Bluetooth?›
How do I program the ESP32-CAM?›
Where to buy
prices are typical street pricesResources
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