ESP32-S3-USB-OTG
A development board by Espressif focusing on USB-OTG functionality, suitable for applications like video streaming over Wi-Fi and connecting to wireless USB devices.
ESP32-S3-USB-OTG Pinout
37 pins
| Pin | GPIO | Labels | Status | Capabilities | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 0 | BUTTON_OK | strapping | - | |
| 2 | 1 | A0HOST_VOLTSPWM | safe | adc | |
| 3 | 2 | A1BAT_VOLTSPWM | safe | adc | |
| 4 | 3 | A2T3PWM | strapping | adc · touch | |
| 5 | 4 | LCD_DCPWM | safe | - | |
| 6 | 5 | LCD_CSPWM | safe | - | |
| 7 | 6 | LCD_CLKPWM | safe | - | |
| 8 | 7 | LCD_MOSIPWM | safe | - | |
| 9 | 8 | LCD_RSTPWM | safe | - | |
| 10 | 9 | LCD_BLPWM | strapping | - | |
| 11 | 10 | BUTTON_UPPWM | strapping | - | |
| 12 | 11 | BUTTON_DOWNPWM | strapping | - | |
| 13 | 12 | DEV_VBUS_ENPWM | strapping | - | |
| 14 | 13 | BOOST_ENPWM | strapping | - | |
| 15 | 14 | BUTTON_MENUPWM | strapping | - | |
| 16 | 15 | LED_GREENPWM | safe | - | |
| 17 | 16 | LED_YELLOWPWM | safe | - | |
| 18 | 17 | LIMIT_ENPWM | safe | - | |
| 19 | 18 | USB_HOST_ENPWM | safe | - | |
| 20 | 19 | USB_DNPWM | uart | - | |
| 21 | 20 | USB_DPPWM | uart | - | |
| 22 | 21 | OVER_CURRENTPWM | safe | - | |
| 23 | 33 | SDMMC_D2PWM | safe | - | |
| 24 | 34 | SSSDMMC_D3PWM | safe | spi | |
| 25 | 35 | MOSISDMMC_CMDPWM | safe | spi | |
| 26 | 36 | SCKSDMMC_CLKPWM | safe | spi | |
| 27 | 37 | MISOSDMMC_D0PWM | safe | spi | |
| 28 | 38 | SDMMC_D1PWM | safe | - | |
| 29 | 39 | MTCKPWM | strapping | - | |
| 30 | 40 | MTDOPWM | strapping | - | |
| 31 | 41 | MTDIPWM | strapping | - | |
| 32 | 42 | MTMSPWM | strapping | - | |
| 33 | 43 | TXPWM | uart | uart | |
| 34 | 44 | RXPWM | uart | uart | |
| 35 | 45 | SDAPWM | strapping | i2c | |
| 36 | 46 | SCL | strapping | i2c | |
| 37 | - | LCD_MISO | safe | - |
Start with these
18 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
16 pins · 11 things to knowBUTTON_OKGPIO0 Bootstrapping pin (Chip boot mode selection) Strapping
Must be pulled high (default) or low (to enter UART download mode) at reset. Using it for other functions can interfere with boot mode configuration.
A2GPIO3 Bootstrapping pin (controls JTAG signal source) Strapping
Sampled at reset to select JTAG interface (USB Serial/JTAG controller vs. external pins). Improper use can disable external JTAG or alter debug interface.
LCD_BLGPIO9BUTTON_UPGPIO10BUTTON_DOWNGPIO11DEV_VBUS_ENGPIO12BOOST_ENGPIO13BUTTON_MENUGPIO14 General-purpose SPI2 (FSPI) IO MUX pins Other
IO MUX pin of the general-purpose SPI2 (FSPI) bus, not of the in-package flash - that sits on GPIO26-32. The datasheet lists it as a priority-2 pin ("can be freely used without restrictions"), so it is only taken if your board wires flash, an SD card or a display to FSPI.
- LCD_BLGeneral-purpose SPI2 (FSPI) IO MUX pin - hold/data line (FSPIHD)
- BUTTON_UPGeneral-purpose SPI2 (FSPI) IO MUX pin - chip select (FSPICS0)
- BUTTON_DOWNGeneral-purpose SPI2 (FSPI) IO MUX pin - data in (FSPID)
- DEV_VBUS_ENGeneral-purpose SPI2 (FSPI) IO MUX pin - clock (FSPICLK)
- BOOST_ENGeneral-purpose SPI2 (FSPI) IO MUX pin - data out (FSPIQ)
- BUTTON_MENUGeneral-purpose SPI2 (FSPI) IO MUX pin - write-protect/data line (FSPIWP)
MTCKGPIO39 JTAG test clock (MTCK); IO MUX alternates CLK_OUT3 and SUBSPICS1 (chip select on the alternative SUBSPI memory bus, unused on standard modules) JTAG
Default JTAG TCK - keep it free if you debug over JTAG. It is not a flash or PSRAM line on standard modules: those sit on GPIO26-37.
MTDOGPIO40 JTAG test data out pin (MTDO) JTAG
Default JTAG TDO output for debugging. Using it as GPIO will interfere with JTAG debugging functionality.
MTDIGPIO41 JTAG test data in pin (MTDI) JTAG
Default JTAG TDI input for debugging. Should be reserved for JTAG or left unused if JTAG is to remain available.
MTMSGPIO42 JTAG test mode select pin (MTMS) JTAG
Default JTAG TMS signal for debugging. Using this pin for other purposes will disable the JTAG interface (unless JTAG is rerouted to USB).
TXGPIO43 UART0 transmit pin (U0TXD), default serial console TX UART
Used for bootloader output and UART console logs. If repurposed, you will lose the default serial output (and programming via UART0).
RXGPIO44 UART0 receive pin (U0RXD), default serial console RX UART
Used for bootloader input (download mode via serial). If repurposed, you cannot use the default UART0 download mode for programming the chip.
SDAGPIO45 Bootstrapping pin (selects VDD_SPI flash voltage) Strapping
Determines flash/PSRAM power voltage (3.3 V vs 1.8 V) at boot. Must match hardware configuration; using as GPIO can upset flash supply setting.
SCLGPIO46 Bootstrapping pin (used with GPIO0 for boot mode; controls ROM log output) Strapping
Must be at a defined level during reset (with GPIO0) to select normal or download boot and UART/USB print mode. This pin is input-only (no output drive), so it should be left for its intended strapping function.
Only if you know the tricks
2 pins · 1 thing to knowUSB_DNGPIO19USB_DPGPIO20 USB OTG differential data pair (D- and D+) USB
By default connected to the on-chip USB Serial/JTAG controller. Using it as general GPIO without reconfiguring IO MUX will interfere with USB functionality.
- USB_DNUSB OTG negative differential data line (USB_D-)
- USB_DPUSB OTG positive differential data line (USB_D+)
The ESP32-S3-USB-OTG breaks out 37 pins in total: 36 GPIO for your project.
Peripheral wiring is straightforward: I²C is mapped to SDA on GPIO45 and SCL on GPIO46; the SPI bus (MOSI, MISO, SCK, SS) is broken out in full; TX/RX on GPIO43 and GPIO44 cover serial logging and flashing.
Beyond plain digital I/O you get 3 ADC-capable pins for sensors and battery monitoring and 1 capacitive-touch inputs.
16 of the exposed pins carry boot-time or system duties on the ESP32-S3 (BUTTON_OK, A2, LCD_BL and 13 more) - check the guidance above before wiring anything to them. A0, A1, LCD_DC, LCD_CS and 14 more are free of any such role - the safest first picks.
Getting started
flash your first firmware in ~2 minutesBoard: ESP32S3 Dev Module USB CDC On Boot: Enabled Flash Size: 8MB (64Mb) Flash Mode: DIO Partition Scheme: 8M with spiffs (3MB APP/1.5MB SPIFFS) Upload Speed: 921600
// toggle GPIO1 - wire an LED and resistor to it
void setup() {
pinMode(1, OUTPUT);
}
void loop() {
digitalWrite(1, HIGH); delay(500);
digitalWrite(1, LOW); delay(500);
}[env:esp32s3usbotg]
platform = espressif32
board = esp32-s3-devkitc-1
framework = arduino
monitor_speed = 115200
upload_speed = 921600esp32-s3-devkitc-1 - or type it after board =.esp32:
board: esp32-s3-devkitc-1
variant: esp32s3
framework:
type: esp-idf
# blink - GPIO1
output:
- platform: gpio
pin: 1
id: led_out
light:
- platform: binary
name: "LED"
output: led_outesp32-s3-devkitc-1 (same ids as PlatformIO).esptool.py --chip esp32s3 --port /dev/ttyACM0 \
--baud 921600 write_flash 0x0 firmware.bin--port = your /dev/tty* (macOS/Linux) or COMx (Windows).Good to know
board-specific quirks worth 60 seconds
Specifications
ESP32-S3 · vs other ESP32 chips →About this board
Inside sits the ESP32-S3 - a dual-core Xtensa with vector extensions suited to AI workloads.
At $35.00 it's on the expensive side for an ESP32-S3 board - most land around $29.
With 36 GPIO broken out, you get more pins to play with than most ESP32-S3 boards offer.
Around the module: an LCD 1.3" 240x240 display, a microSD slot, status LEDs (Green (GPIO15), Yellow (GPIO16), Charge) and Menu/Up/Down/Boot/Reset buttons.
It flashes over native USB - no serial-converter driver needed, which isn't a given among ESP32-S3 boards.
- USB-A female HOST port + USB-A male DEV port for USB-OTG host/device demos
- ESP32-S3-MINI-1-N8 (8MB flash, no PSRAM)
Where to buy
prices are typical street pricesResources
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