JLCPCB vs PCBWay vs AISLER vs CircuitHub for a one-off PCB to Germany

For five bare 2-layer boards to Germany, JLCPCB and PCBWay are cheapest ($4.00 and $5.00 for 100×100 mm, plus shipping from $7.04 and $6.04), AISLER is the simplest (€40.50 for three boards including 19 % VAT, free shipping inside Germany, no customs), and CircuitHub is built for fast US assembly at a much higher price. For two assembled boards, JLCPCB's Economic assembly starts with an $8.18 setup fee and a $1.53 stencil plus parts and $3.07 per extended-part feeder; AISLER does not publish assembly prices. All figures checked on 4 November 2026 from each maker's own calculator or help pages.

Since 1 July 2026 the EU charges a flat €3 customs duty per tariff line on small parcels under €150 sent to consumers, and since 1 November 2026 a €2 fee per item. For a parcel from China that adds a few euros on top of VAT, depending on how the maker declares and ships it. Details are in the customs section below.

Five bare boards

2-layer, 100×100 mm, 1.6 mm, HASL. Checked 4 Nov 2026.

Maker	Quantity	Board price	Build time	Cheapest shipping to Germany
JLCPCB	5 (minimum 5)	$4.00	2 days (24 h: +$7.60)	Global Standard Direct Line $7.04, 9–11 business days
PCBWay	5	$5.00	24 h	Global Direct Shipping $6.04, 6–10 business days
AISLER	3 or 6 (sets of 3)	€40.50 / €64.33 incl. VAT	Budget: dispatched in 10 business days; Blitz (6 boards €118.02): 2 business days	Free, Deutsche Post / DHL Warenpost, untracked, 2 business days
CircuitHub	Bare boards not priced publicly.

JLCPCB's price is the web price; its JLCONE desktop app shows $2.00 for the same order. AISLER quotes lead-free HASL; JLCPCB and PCBWay are quoted with leaded HASL. For JLCPCB the listed board and shipping prices add up to $11.04 before VAT, duty and fees.

Two assembled boards

Maker	Minimum	Published assembly fees	Assembly time
JLCPCB Economic	2	Setup $8.18, stencil $1.53, $0.0016 per SMT joint, $3.07 per extended-part feeder; parts extra. Single-sided, 0402 minimum.	1–3 days
JLCPCB Standard	2	Setup $25.56 single-sided or $51.12 double-sided, stencil $8.21 / $16.42, $1.53 per feeder; parts extra. Both sides, down to 01005.	4 days and up
PCBWay	1	No separate setup or stencil fee published; stencil included in the quote. A sample quote for 2 boards with 20 unique parts showed $29.00 against a $170.91 list price, marked promotional and subject to review, excluding boards and parts.	3–5 days
AISLER	1	Unit prices not published; you upload the design for a price. Customer-supplied parts €15 per part.	Amazing Assembly 18 working days; 2-layer Assembly Blitz 9–12 working days incl. material
CircuitHub	1	5 boards, "2 layers, simple microcontroller", excluding parts: $1,023 in 3 days to $846 in 12 days. Price for 2 boards not published. Value Proto: 75 % off for up to 10 boards, no through-hole, no 0201, no consigned parts.	Grid Proto: 3 days (USA)

JLCPCB's "preferred extended" parts are exempt from the feeder fee in Economic assembly, so choosing basic and preferred-extended parts keeps a small order close to the setup fee plus parts. JLCPCB also charges at least $14.93 difference between Economic and Standard handling; a shortfall is billed.

VAT, customs and the new EU fees

EU €3 duty: From 1 July 2026 to 1 July 2028, a flat €3 customs duty on items in small parcels under €150 sent directly to consumers, levied per tariff sub-heading in the parcel (Council of the EU).
EU €2 fee: From 1 November 2026, all EU member states apply a fee of €2 per item (Council of the EU).
JLCPCB: Collects VAT at checkout through IOSS for consumer orders up to $170. Its customs FAQ (updated 28 Oct 2026) says the €3 applies per HS code on B2C parcels up to €150 and the €2 handling fee per declaration line is not collected through IOSS; Global Standard Direct Line is always B2C and pre-collects it. Business parcels go through formal customs clearance.
PCBWay: VAT and duty are not included unless you choose IOSS, DTP or DDP at checkout (terms of 22 Oct 2026).
AISLER: Ships from Germany: VAT included, no import.
CircuitHub: The customer pays import duties and taxes; shipping to Germany is not priced publicly.

Files and API

JLCPCB: Gerber, BOM and placement file. API for PCB, stencil, 3D printing and parts after approval (order history, business account).
PCBWay: Gerber and BOM; a KiCad plug-in orders straight from KiCad, assembly included. Partner API by approval.
AISLER: Reads KiCad files natively, no plug-in. No API.
CircuitHub: No Gerber-only orders. Native Altium and KiCad, Fusion export, ODB++ and IPC-2581.

Which one for a one-off

Lowest price: JLCPCB or PCBWay, if you can wait one to two weeks for shipping and accept the customs steps.
No customs, KiCad upload: AISLER: higher board price, but VAT is included and the parcel stays inside Germany.
Assembled in days, budget no concern: CircuitHub, in the USA, with import duties on top.
No new PCB at all: If your build already works on a dev board, you may not need a PCB. Order a PCB yourself or have it built compares the routes.

Prices change often. Re-check in each maker's calculator before you order.

Let your agent check it

estimate_build returns cost and lead-time ranges for ordering boards yourself at JLCPCB or AISLER versus having your build finished, with the sources it used. match_parts checks your BOM lines against JLCPCB basic and preferred-extended parts, which avoid the extended-feeder fee. Connect the Protoship MCP server once:

claude mcp add --transport http protoship https://mcp.protoship.dev
codex mcp add protoship --url https://mcp.protoship.dev

An agent without MCP calls GET https://protoship.dev/api/check?url=… with the link to your repo or config file.

Questions

Which is cheaper for prototypes, JLCPCB or PCBWay?

For five 2-layer 100×100 mm boards on 4 Nov 2026, JLCPCB listed $4.00 and PCBWay $5.00. Cheapest shipping to Germany was $7.04 at JLCPCB and $6.04 at PCBWay, so the totals are close.

Do I pay customs on PCBs from China to Germany?

VAT applies, and since 1 July 2026 a €3 EU duty per tariff line on small consumer parcels under €150, plus a €2 fee per item since 1 November 2026. JLCPCB collects VAT through IOSS and pre-collects the fees on Global Standard Direct Line.

Can I order a single assembled PCB?

Yes at PCBWay (minimum 1), AISLER (from a single board) and CircuitHub (minimum 1). JLCPCB assembles from 2 boards.

Is AISLER worth it compared with JLCPCB?

AISLER costs more per board (€40.50 for three 100×100 mm boards in Budget) but includes VAT, ships free inside Germany and has no customs.

Finish my build Let your agent check your project

Sources

Read on 4 November 2026.