Free tool
Radio Path Chooser
Module or your own radio? Answer five questions and see both paths side by side, what each one has to certify, what it typically costs and how long it takes, the integration conditions that keep an inherited grant valid, and the changes that quietly void it.
Five questions
Pick your markets, radio technology, volume and antenna approach to compare paths.
Engineering guidance based on how these projects usually run, not a legal assessment or a quotation. Cost and timeline are indicative bands for one product in the markets you selected; module datasheets and grant conditions always take precedence.
Frequently asked questions
Does a pre-certified module mean I skip radio testing?
For the radio parameters, largely yes: provided you respect the module's integration conditions: approved antenna, RF layout, firmware limits and labelling. Your finished product still needs its own EMC compliance, and any change to the antenna or RF conditions moves responsibility back to you.
What voids a modular approval?
Most often the antenna: a different type, a higher-gain part, or a custom PCB antenna instead of the reference design. Changes to the RF layout, transmit power, channel plan or an added band do it too, as do mechanical changes around the antenna.
When is designing your own radio worth it?
At high volume, where the per-unit module premium outweighs the RF design and certification cost, or when no module physically fits the product. Below roughly six figures a year it rarely pays back once you count tuning respins and the full test campaign.
Why is cellular different?
Beyond regulatory approval, cellular products need carrier and industry approvals, PTCRB, GCF and often operator-specific testing. A certified module carries those, which is why almost every product below very high volume uses one.
Can I reuse EU radio evidence for the UK and the US?
For the UK largely yes, since designated standards mirror the EN standards. For the US, no: the FCC has its own limits and procedures, and an intentional radiator needs a grant issued through a TCB.
Related reading
- The Radio Equipment Directive (2014/53/EU)What RED covers, when it replaces the EMC and Low Voltage Directives, the radio, EMC and safety testing involved, and where connected products lose time.
- The EMC Directive (2014/30/EU)What the EMC Directive covers, whether it applies to your product, the emissions and immunity testing involved, and the failures we see most often in the chamber.
- The Low Voltage Directive (2014/35/EU)When the LVD applies, how EN 62368-1 works in practice, what safety testing involves, and the construction decisions that cause late redesigns.
Free tools
Compliance Route Finder
Answer five questions about your product and target markets to get the directives, standards, test order and documentation you will need.