Software

Almost everything here is free. Start with a logger and CHIRP; add the rest as you need it.

Platform pages list what actually runs where, including the awkward cases: Windows · macOS · Linux and BSD · Android · iOS and iPadOS

By task

Logging

• N3FJP, Log4OM, DXKeeper — general logging with LoTW and eQSL upload.
• N1MM+ — the standard contest logger, free, Windows only.
• CQRLOG, Klog, MacLoggerDX — the Linux and macOS equivalents.
• HAMRS — simple, cross-platform, POTA/SOTA-friendly, good on a tablet in the field.
• QRZ.com, Club Log, LoTW, eQSL — online logbooks and confirmation services that

most software syncs to.

Digital modes

• WSJT-X — FT8, FT4, WSPR, MSK144, Q65.
• JTDX — an FT8 fork with more aggressive decoding.
• fldigi — PSK31, RTTY, Olivia, and NBEMS emergency messaging.
• JS8Call — conversational and store-and-forward messaging on the FT8 waveform.
• Winlink Express or Pat — email over radio.
• MMSSTV, QSSTV — slow-scan television.

Radio programming and control

• CHIRP — programs nearly every handheld and mobile; cross-platform and free. Always read from

the radio and save a backup before writing.

• Hamlib / rigctld — the CAT control layer nearly every other program uses.
• Manufacturer tools (RT Systems, Yaesu, Icom) — paid, Windows-centric, but sometimes the only

option for a specific radio.

SDR

• SDR++, SDRangel, GQRX, SDR#, CubicSDR — general receivers.
• GNU Radio — build your own signal chain block by block.
• See software-defined radio for hardware.

Propagation and planning

• VOACAP Online — point-to-point HF predictions.
• PSK Reporter and the Reverse Beacon Network — where you are actually being heard.
• Gpredict, SatPC32, Look4Sat — satellite passes and

Doppler tuning.

• DX Maps, SolarHam — real-time openings and space weather.

Antenna and circuit design

• EZNEC (now free), 4nec2, xnec2c — antenna modelling.
• SimSmith, SimNEC — matching networks and transmission lines.
• LTspice, QUCS, KiCad — circuit simulation and board layout for

homebrew projects.

• NanoVNA-Saver, NanoVNA-App — desktop front ends for a NanoVNA.

Notes that apply everywhere

• Most digital software needs three things: audio in, audio out, and a way to key the radio. A

modern radio with a single USB cable provides all three; older radios need an interface such as a SignaLink or a home-made isolated cable.

• Clock accuracy matters. FT8 and friends fail outside about ±2 seconds. Use NTP, and on

Windows use something better than the default time service.

• Set the sound card to the radio's rate (usually 48 kHz), disable all system sounds on that device,

and keep ALC at zero.

• Keep a backup of your log. Export ADIF regularly, and upload to LoTW or Club Log so a dead disk

is an inconvenience rather than a loss.