Do you want to learn electronics so that you can build your own gadgets?

There is a ton of resources on learning electronics – so where do you start?

And what do you actually need?

And in which order?

If you don’t know what you need to learn you can easily waste a lot of time learning unnecessary things.

And if you skip some of the simple but crucial first steps you’ll struggle with even the basic circuits for a long time.

If your goal is to be able to build your own ideas with electronics then this checklist is for you.

When you follow the checklist below you will get up to speed fast – even if you have no experience from before.

While some of these steps might take you a weekend to tackle others can be done in less than an hour – if you find the right teaching material.

Start by reading through all the steps all the way to the end to get an overview.

Next decide what teaching material you will use to tackle each step.

Then start to learn electronics.

We live in an amazingly high-tech world surrounded by electronic gizmos and gadgets. Because our lives are so infused with electronics everyone -- engineers educators entrepreneurs students and artists alike -- can greatly benefit from learning more about them. Understanding how to read schematics solder program and build circuits instills a unique understanding of the world we live in; not to mention hacking and making with electronics is just plain fun!

Through our tutorials and kits we want to help make the world of electronics as approachable as possible. Anyone can (and should!) learn electronics. It's just a matter of finding somewhere to start.

Our tutorials explain teach and inspire electronics enthusiasts and beginners alike. We have a wide range of tutorials covering both basic electronics theory and project build examples. The tutorials are written by the experts and they are filled with high-quality images to help you through. If you're unsure of which tutorial to begin with check out the Starter Tutorials section of this tutorial.

On our online retail store we sell anything from beginner’s soldering kits to advanced development platforms. What better way to start learning than by doing? Our kits help explain basic electronics concepts while also allowing you build something fun and functional. Find our recommended beginner kits in the Starter Kits section of this guide and start building!