Getting Started with ESP8266 WiFi Transceiver (Review)

The ESP8266 is a Wi-Fi module great for IoT and Home Automation projects. This article is a getting started guide for the ESP8266 development board.

About the ESP8266

The ESP8266 is a $4 (up to $10) Wi-Fi module. It allows you to control inputs and outputs as you would do with an Arduino, but it comes with Wi-Fi.
So, it is great for home automation/internet of things applications.

So what can you do with this low cost module?

create a web server
send HTTP requests
control outputs
read inputs and interrupts
send emails
post tweets

If you want to create a web server with the ESP8266, we highly recommend following our tutorial: Build an ESP8266 Web Server

ESP8266 specifications

11 b/g/n protocol
Wi-Fi Direct (P2P), soft-AP
Integrated TCP/IP protocol stack
Built-in low-power 32-bit CPU
SDIO 2.0, SPI, UART

Comparing the ESP8266 with other Wi-Fi solutions on the market, it is a great option for most “Internet of Things” projects! It’s easy to see why it’s so popular: it only costs a few dollars and can be integrated in advanced projects. We’ve published dozens of free ESP8266 projects and tutorials.

There is a successor of the ESP8266 – the ESP32. The ESP32 combines Wi-Fi and Bluetooth and is dual core. Read the following article to find the differences between the ESP8266 and the ESP32:

ESP32 vs ESP8266 – Pros and Cons

ESP8266 Versions

The ESP8266 comes in a wide variety of versions (as shown in the figure below). The ESP-12E or often called ESP-12E NodeMCU Kit is currently the most practical version, in our opinion.

We highly recommend using the ESP8266-12E NodeMCU Kit, the one that has built-in programmer and lots of GPIOs. The built-in programmer makes it easy to prototype and upload your programs.

For a comparison between the different ESP8266 boards, you can read the following article:

ESP8266 Wi-Fi Development Boards Comparison

ESP8266 Pinout

The most widely used ESP8266 development boards are the ESP-01, the ESP8266-12E NodeMCU Kit and the Wemos D1 Mini. We’ll show you the pinout for those boards. If you’re using another development board, make sure you have the right pinout.

ESP-12E NodeMCU Kit Pinout

Here’s a quick overview of the ESP-12E NodeMCU Kit pinout:

WeMos D1 Mini Pinout

Here’s the Wemos D1 Mini pinout:

ESP8266-01 Pinout

Here’s the ESP-01 pinout.

We recommend taking a look at our ESP8266 GPIO guide that shows in great detail the function of each GPIO and how to use them:

ESP8266 Pinout Reference: Which GPIO pins should you use?

Programming the ESP8266 Using Arduino IDE

There are several ways to program the ESP8266. We often use Arduino IDE or MicroPython.

You can follow one of the next tutorials to get started with the ESP8266 in Arduino IDE or MicroPython:

Recommended ESP8266 Projects

After installing the ESP8266 board add-on in your Arduino IDE or flashing MicroPython formware, you can start making projects with the ESP8266.

Here’s a selection of some of our most popular and beginner-friendly projects with the ESP8266:

Getting Started with ESP8266 WiFi Transceiver (Review)