The Nano Family is a series of boards with the same form factor and pin layout. This standardized form factor makes it easier for makers and third-party manufacturers to design hardware accessories compatible with the wide range of Nano boards.
Despite the similarities, there are subtle differences in some Nano boards in order to support their unique functionalities. In this article:
Pinout differences
The table below presents an overview of the pinout differences visible on the board’s silk:
| Board | "RST/REC/B1" pin | “REF/ B0” pin | “5V/ VUSB/ VBUS” pin |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nano | RST | REF | 5V |
| Nano Every | RST | REF | 5V |
| Nano 33 BLE | RST | REF | VUSB |
| Nano 33 BLE Rev2 | RST | REF | VUSB |
| Nano 33 BLE Sense | RST | REF | VUSB |
| Nano 33 BLE Sense Rev2 | RST | REF | VUSB |
| Nano 33 IoT | RST | REF | VUSB |
| Nano Matter | B1 (Boot 1) | B0 (Boot 0) | 5V |
| Nano R4 | B1 (Boot 1) | B0 (Boot 0) | 5V |
| Nano RP2040 Connect | REC | REF | VUSB |
| Nano ESP32 | B1 (Boot 1) | B0 (Boot 0) | VBUS |
Understanding these pinout differences is important if you are designing custom hardware or using third-party accessories for the Nano form factor. For example, an accessory created for the Nano Every might not work correctly with the Nano ESP32, since one of the RST pins on the Nano Every corresponds to the B1 (BOOT1) pin on the Nano ESP32.
Operating voltage differences
The boards in the Nano Family operate at different voltages:
Boards that operate at 5 V:
- Arduino Nano
- Arduino Nano Every
- Arduino Nano R4
Boards that operate at 3.3 V:
- Arduino Nano 33 BLE
- Arduino Nano 33 BLE Sense
- Arduino Nano 33 BLE Sense Rev2
- Arduino Nano 33 IoT
- Arduino Nano Matter
- Arduino Nano RP2040 Connect
- Arduino Nano ESP32
Jumper pads
Some boards in the Nano family have jumper pads that can be soldered or cut to reroute connections and modify the board’s default behavior.
3.3V pads
Some Nano boards that operate at 3.3 V have an exposed trace that can be cut to bypass the step down converter. This disables the USB port, but allows you to power the board directly with a 3.3 V source for lower power consumption.
Nano boards that can be powered directly with 3.3 V
VUSB pads
On Nano boards that operate at 3.3 V, USB power (~5 V) can be supplied directly to the VUSB/VBUS/5V pin. On some boards, a VUSB jumper pad must be bridged to enable this pin.
Supply USB power via the VUSB, VBUS or 5V pin on Nano boards
I2C pads
The Nano 33 BLE, the Nano 33 BLE Sense, and Nano 33 BLE Sense Rev2 have two pairs of unnamed pads on the back of the board:
These exposed pads can be used for installing pull-up resistors when using the I2C protocol. Read more about I2C and pull-up resistors
