An LQFP-32 package has a 7.00 mm square body, a 9.00 mm lead span, 0.80 mm pitch and eight gull-wing leads per side. Maximum seated height is 1.60 mm. Those figures come from NXP’s SOT358-1 outline, registered against JEDEC MS-026. The design question here is not whether you can build it, because you can, easily, but whether you want to spend roughly twice the board area a 32-pin QFN would take.

Key takeaways

• Body 7.00 mm nominal (6.9 to 7.1), lead span 9.00 mm nominal (8.85 to 9.15), pitch 0.80 mm, eight leads per side.
• Corner pins are 1, 8/9, 16/17 and 24/25, running counterclockwise from the index mark.
• A nominal IPC-7351B land pattern comes out at 0.50 mm × 1.75 mm pads, 10.15 mm toe-to-toe and 6.65 mm heel-to-heel.
• The 0.30 mm of clear copper between pads fits exactly one 0.10 mm trace at a 0.10 mm clearance rule, with no margin.
• LQFP-32 and TQFP-32 at 7 × 7 mm share one land pattern. Only the body thickness differs.

LQFP-32 package dimensions

The LQFP-32 is a low-profile quad flat package with 32 gull-wing leads, eight on each side of a 7.00 mm square plastic body. Lead pitch is 0.80 mm and the span across opposing lead tips is 9.00 mm. Maximum seated height is 1.60 mm.

Values below are from NXP document SOT358-1, issued 19 July 2017, which carries JEDEC outline code MS-026 and IEC code 136E03. Microchip’s 32-lead LQFP outline cites the same registration more precisely, as MS-026 variation BBA, issue D, January 2001.

[IMAGE 1: LQFP-32 outline, top and side view, with body, lead span, pitch and height callouts | alt: “LQFP-32 package dimensions showing 7 mm body, 9 mm lead span and 0.80 mm pitch”]

Symbol	Parameter	Value (NXP SOT358-1)
—	Lead count	32 total, 8 per side
D × E	Body size	6.9 to 7.1 mm, nominal 7.00 square
HD × HE	Lead span, tip to tip	8.85 to 9.15 mm, nominal 9.00 square
e	Lead pitch	0.80 mm
A	Maximum seated height	1.60 mm
A2	Body height	1.35 to 1.45 mm
A1	Standoff	0.05 to 0.20 mm
bp	Lead width	0.30 to 0.40 mm
c	Lead thickness	0.12 to 0.18 mm
Lp	Foot length	0.45 to 0.75 mm
L	Lead length	1.00 mm
y	Coplanarity	0.10 mm
θ	Lead form angle	0° to 7°

Why some listings say 9 × 9 mm

Both numbers are right; they measure different things. The molded body is 7 mm square, and 9 mm is the span including the leads. A DigiKey TechForum thread exists precisely because a reader found a 32-LQFP listed as 9 × 9 mm and asked whether it was a typo.

The distinction matters when you buy hardware rather than silicon. Test and programming sockets for this package are specified against the 9 × 9 mm tip-to-tip figure, not the body. Quote the number the vendor is asking for.

Pin numbering and orientation

Pin 1 sits at the index mark and numbering runs counterclockwise viewed from above. On the SOT358-1 outline, corner pins fall at 1, at 8 and 9, at 16 and 17, and at 24 and 25, closing at 32.

Seven pitch intervals at 0.80 mm span 5.60 mm across a 7.00 mm body edge, leaving 0.70 mm at each end. That margin is where pin-1 marking and any corner fiducial have to sit, and it is generous compared with fine-pitch parts.

[IMAGE 2: LQFP-32 pin numbering diagram with corner pins labeled | alt: “LQFP-32 pin numbering with corner pins 1, 8, 9, 16, 17, 24, 25 and 32”]

The LQFP-32 footprint, calculated

Inputs come from the drawing: lead span 8.85 to 9.15 mm, foot length 0.45 to 0.75 mm, lead width 0.30 to 0.40 mm, pitch 0.80 mm. Solder-joint goals for a nominal-density gull-wing pattern above 0.625 mm pitch are 0.50 mm toe, 0.35 mm heel and a positive 0.05 mm side.

That positive side goal is the important difference from fine-pitch packages. Below 0.625 mm pitch the side goal goes negative and the pad ends up narrower than the lead. Here the pad is deliberately wider. Fabrication and placement tolerances assumed at 0.05 mm and 0.025 mm; substitute your own.

Land-pattern parameter	Value	Derivation
Toe-to-toe span, Z	10.15 mm	L min 8.85 + 2 × 0.50 toe + RMS 0.31
Heel-to-heel span, G	6.65 mm	S max 8.25 − 2 × 0.35 heel − RMS 0.90
Pad length	1.75 mm	(Z − G) / 2
Pad width, X	0.50 mm	W min 0.30 + 2 × 0.05 side + RMS 0.11
Clear space between pads	0.30 mm	0.80 pitch − 0.50 pad
Pads per side	8	32 / 4
IPC-7351B pattern name	QFP80P900X900X160-32N	pitch, lead spans, height, lead count, nominal density

[IMAGE 3: calculated land pattern with Z, G and pad dimensions marked | alt: “LQFP-32 footprint land pattern with 10.15 mm toe span and 0.50 by 1.75 mm pads”]

The 10.15 mm outer span means the copper occupies 103 mm² against a 49 mm² package body, roughly 2.1 times the footprint of the part itself. Count that area, not the body size, when you budget board space.

Stencil and escape routing

A 0.50 × 1.75 mm aperture in a 0.127 mm foil gives an area ratio of 1.53. Even a 0.150 mm foil returns 1.30. Both sit far above the 0.66 floor used for fine-pitch work, so the LQFP-32 will never be the part that dictates your stencil thickness. Choose the foil for the passives and the connectors instead.

Routing is the one place to be careful. The 0.30 mm gap between pads accepts exactly one 0.10 mm trace with 0.10 mm clearance on each side, with no margin at all. Loosen to 0.127 mm rules and nothing fits. With eight pads per side escaping outward, a 32-lead LQFP fans out comfortably on two layers either way.

LQFP-32 vs TQFP-32 vs QFN-32

Package	Body / area	Pitch	Height	Example device	I/O	Price and stock (checked Aug 2026)
LQFP-32	7 × 7 mm / 49 mm²	0.80 mm	1.4 mm body, 1.60 mm max	ST STM32G031K8T6	30	$1.97 at qty 1; 26,967 in stock
TQFP-32	7 × 7 mm / 49 mm²	0.80 mm	1.0 mm body	Microchip ATMEGA328-AU	23	$2.42 at qty 1; 2,917 in stock
UFQFPN-32	5.1 × 5.1 mm / 26 mm²	0.50 mm	0.55 mm	ST STM32G031K8U6 (same die as row 1)	30	Out of stock at RS; shipping quoted from April 2027

[IMAGE 4: size comparison of LQFP-32, TQFP-32 and UFQFPN-32 | alt: “LQFP-32 board area compared with TQFP-32 and a 5 mm UFQFPN-32”]

The first two rows share a land pattern. Breakout-board and stencil vendors sell one product for both, which is the practical proof: at 7 × 7 mm and 0.80 mm pitch, the only thing that changes is Z-height. A TQFP-32 will always clear an enclosure that accepted an LQFP-32, so it is a legitimate second source when the pinout matches.

The third row is the real trade. Halving the area costs you the ability to inspect a solder joint optically, and on this particular die it currently costs you availability too.

Assembly, thermal and sourcing notes

The standard LQFP-32 outline carries no exposed thermal pad. Heat leaves through 32 leads into board copper. Infineon’s PG-LQFP-32-800 page lists exposed paddle as No, and NXP’s SOT358-1 drawing shows none. Exposed-pad versions do exist, and Allegro’s package designator table lists an eLQFP at 1.4 mm body thickness against MS-026BBCHD for 32 and 48 terminals, but treat that as a specific part attribute rather than a family default. The page currently ranking first for this keyword claims a 4 × 4 mm exposed pad as a general LQFP-32 feature. It is not.

One genuine advantage at 0.80 mm pitch: NXP publishes both a reflow and a wave-soldering footprint for SOT358-1, the wave version with a 45° solder thief. Almost nothing finer than this pitch is wave-solderable at all.

On sourcing, this is commodity territory. One STM32 part alone shows nearly 27,000 pieces at a single authorized distributor. Treat cheap broker stock accordingly. Open-market listings for ATmega328P-AU run from about $3.07 to $8.53 per piece against $2.42 for an authorized, in-stock equivalent, and paying more for a less traceable part is the usual signal to stop and check provenance.

Frequently asked questions

What are the dimensions of an LQFP-32 package?

The body is 7.00 mm square, toleranced 6.9 to 7.1 mm, and the lead span is 9.00 mm nominal at 8.85 to 9.15 mm, per NXP SOT358-1. Body height is 1.35 to 1.45 mm with a 1.60 mm maximum seated height. Lead width is 0.30 to 0.40 mm and foot length 0.45 to 0.75 mm.

Is LQFP-32 7 × 7 mm or 9 × 9 mm?

Both. The plastic body is 7 mm square; 9 mm is the span across the lead tips. Datasheets and package tables usually quote the body, while sockets and adapters are specified tip to tip. Use 9 mm when ordering a test socket and 7 mm when checking mechanical clearance to a neighboring part.

What is the difference between LQFP-32 and TQFP-32?

Body thickness, and effectively nothing else. Both are 7 × 7 mm at 0.80 mm pitch with a 9 mm lead span, so they share a land pattern. LQFP is 1.4 mm nominal body; TQFP is 1.0 mm. If your enclosure fits an LQFP-32, it fits a TQFP-32.

Can you hand-solder an LQFP-32?

Yes, and it is one of the easier fine-pitch packages to do. At 0.80 mm pitch with 0.30 mm between pads, drag soldering with flux and a chisel tip works reliably, and every joint is visible for inspection afterward. That inspectability is the main reason to keep choosing it over a QFN.

The decision

Choose the LQFP-32 when board area is not your binding constraint and you want joints you can see, rework and probe: prototypes, low-volume industrial builds, anything that will be serviced, and any board still going through a wave process. Build the footprint from the drawing numbers above rather than from an unverified library part.

Move to the 32-pin QFN only when the 103 mm² of land pattern genuinely does not fit, and confirm stock on the specific package variant before you commit: as this was written, the QFN version of the same STM32 die was quoting into 2027 while the LQFP-32 shipped from stock.