PLCC-6 / 5050 SMD

PLCC-6 / 5050 SMD LEDs measure 5.0mm × 5.0mm and feature six pins — three independent anode/cathode pairs, one for each die (red, green, blue)…

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PLCC-6 / 5050 SMD LEDs measure 5.0mm × 5.0mm and feature six pins — three independent anode/cathode pairs, one for each die (red, green, blue) inside the package. The PLCC-6 / 5050 is the largest and highest-output standard SMD LED package, and it is the emitter you will find inside virtually every 5050-type LED strip sold worldwide. Whether you are building custom LED strip segments, replacing burned-out emitters on an existing strip, designing a high-brightness RGB lighting controller, or assembling commercial signage panels, the PLCC-6 / 5050 is the industry-standard part. We stock PLCC-6 / 5050 LEDs in RGB (common-anode and common-cathode configurations) as well as single-color white, warm white, cool white, red, green, and blue.

LED strip repair and custom strip fabrication are the highest-volume use cases for individual PLCC-6 / 5050 LEDs. Commercial LED strips (WS2812B, SK6812, and non-addressable 5050 RGB strips) use PLCC-6 emitters at densities of 30 or 60 LEDs per meter. When a single LED fails — which shows as a dead pixel on an addressable strip or a dark segment on a non-addressable strip — you can desolder the failed emitter and install a replacement rather than discarding the entire strip section. The r/led, r/homeassistant, r/WLED, and r/FastLED communities on Reddit discuss 5050 LED strip repair routinely. For custom strip fabrication, PCB designers lay out flexible or rigid PCBs with 5050 footprints at custom pitch, add WS2812B or SK6812 controller ICs for addressability, and populate the boards with individual PLCC-6 emitters during reflow. This approach lets you create LED strips in non-standard lengths, custom shapes (rings, arcs, zigzags), and specific color-temperature bins that commercial strips do not offer.

Architectural and commercial accent lighting make extensive use of the 5050 package. Cove lighting, under-counter illumination in restaurants and retail displays, hotel lobby accent lighting, bar and nightclub color-wash effects, museum exhibit spotlights, and outdoor building facade lighting all rely on 5050 LED strips or custom PCB arrays as the light source. Sign manufacturers use 5050 modules (small PCBs with 2–4 PLCC-6 LEDs and a built-in resistor) to backlight channel letters, lightbox signs, and menu boards. The 5050 package produces enough light per emitter (typically 12–22 lumens for white at 60mA total) that moderate LED densities achieve useful illumination levels — unlike smaller SMD packages that are limited to indicator-level brightness. Home automation enthusiasts integrate 5050-based strips with WLED firmware running on ESP32 or ESP8266, controlled via Home Assistant, Apple HomeKit, or Amazon Alexa for room-by-room color and brightness control.

Soldering PLCC-6 / 5050 LEDs by hand is straightforward due to the large package size and well-spaced pads. A standard fine-tip soldering iron (chisel tip 1–2mm), flux, standard 0.5–0.8mm solder wire, and tweezers are all you need. The 5050 body is 5mm square — easily visible and easy to position on the PCB pads without magnification. The six pads (three on each side) are spaced approximately 1.6mm apart center-to-center, which is generous enough that solder bridges are uncommon. Tack one corner pad, verify alignment and polarity (the package has a chamfered corner or dot marking the pin-1 / cathode reference), then solder the remaining five pads. For desoldering a failed LED from a strip, use flux and a hot-air station at 300–350°C to heat all six joints simultaneously — the LED lifts cleanly with tweezers. A soldering iron can also work by heating each pad sequentially and gently prying, but hot air is faster and safer for the flexible PCB substrate. For production, PLCC-6 LEDs reflow solder with standard profiles and are compatible with all common pick-and-place equipment.

Electrical specifications: each die in an RGB PLCC-6 / 5050 LED has its own forward voltage and current rating. Red ≈ 1.8–2.2Vf at 20mA max; green ≈ 2.8–3.4Vf at 20mA max; blue ≈ 2.8–3.4Vf at 20mA max. Total package current with all three channels at full brightness is 60mA. Single-color white variants typically drive at 60mA (three parallel white dies) and produce 12–22 lumens. The 5050 package has a larger thermal pad area than smaller PLCC packages, allowing better heat dissipation — important for continuous-duty applications like strip lighting where the LED runs at or near full current for hours. Even so, adequate heatsinking (aluminum channel extrusion, metal PCB substrate, or aluminum strip mounting) is recommended for strips running at high duty cycle in enclosed spaces to prevent thermal degradation. Each color channel needs its own current-limiting resistor. Our LED resistor calculator computes values for any supply voltage. On addressable strips (WS2812B/SK6812), the controller IC handles current regulation internally, so external resistors are not needed for the LED itself — only a data-line resistor (typically 330–470Ω) between the microcontroller and the first LED’s data input.

PCB design notes: the 5050 footprint has six pads arranged in two rows of three on opposite sides of the 5.0mm × 5.0mm body. Pad dimensions are approximately 1.5mm × 0.9mm with 1.6mm center-to-center spacing. In KiCad, use LED_SMD:LED_RGB_5050 or the appropriate single-color variant from the footprint library. In EasyEDA, search “5050 LED” or “WS2812B” for addressable variants. The thermal pad on the underside of the package (present on some variants) should connect to a copper pour for heat dissipation on high-duty-cycle boards. Always verify the pinout against the specific manufacturer’s datasheet, as pin assignments (common-anode vs. common-cathode, die-to-pin mapping) vary between suppliers.

Choosing between PLCC-6 / 5050 and other packages: if you need a smaller RGB LED, the PLCC-4 / 3528 (3.5mm × 2.8mm, 4 pins) offers RGB in a more compact body, though at lower brightness. For single-color indicator applications where RGB is not needed, PLCC-2 / 3528 (single-color, 2 pins) or chip-type packages (0805, 1206) are more cost-effective. For higher power per emitter beyond what 5050 provides (0.5W+), see our 5630/5730 SMD LEDs. For through-hole RGB prototyping, browse our RGB LEDs category. For through-hole single-color LEDs, see DIP LEDs and diffused LEDs. The SMD LEDs parent category lists all surface-mount packages.

Frequently Asked Questions

“5050” is the metric package code describing the LED’s physical dimensions: 5.0mm × 5.0mm. The “PLCC-6” part of the name indicates Plastic Leaded Chip Carrier with 6 pins. This is the largest standard SMD LED package and the emitter used in virtually all 5050-type LED strips. The six pins connect to three independent LED dies (red, green, blue in RGB variants, or three parallel white dies in single-color white variants), each with its own anode and cathode.
Yes. Use a hot-air rework station at 300–350°C to heat the six solder joints on the failed LED simultaneously. Once the solder reflows, lift the dead LED off with tweezers. Clean the pads with flux and solder wick, position the replacement PLCC-6 LED (checking polarity), and reflow the new part with hot air or solder each pad individually with a fine-tip iron. On addressable strips (WS2812B/SK6812), a dead LED will also block the data signal to all LEDs downstream, so replacing the failed emitter restores the entire section. This is far cheaper than discarding and replacing a full strip segment.
The numbers refer to the LED package size on the strip. 5050 strips use PLCC-6 LEDs (5.0mm × 5.0mm, 6 pins, three dies per LED) — they are significantly brighter and can produce RGB color in a single emitter. 3528 strips use smaller PLCC-2 LEDs (3.5mm × 2.8mm, 2 pins, single die) — they are dimmer and typically single-color only. 5050 strips draw more power per meter and produce more heat, so they benefit from aluminum channel heatsinking for long runs. 3528 strips are thinner, more flexible, and adequate for subtle accent lighting.
At full white (all three channels at 20mA), a 5050 RGB LED draws approximately 60mA total. At a typical 5V operating voltage, that is about 0.3W per LED. A 60-LED/meter strip therefore draws about 18W per meter at full brightness. Single-color white 5050 LEDs (three parallel white dies at 60mA total) produce 12–22 lumens. For strips over 2 meters, inject power at both ends (or at intervals) to prevent voltage drop causing dimming at the far end.
For short runs at moderate brightness, self-adhesive mounting to a flat surface provides adequate heat dissipation. For continuous runs over 1 meter at full brightness — especially in enclosed spaces like coves, channels, or tight enclosures — an aluminum channel extrusion or an aluminum-backed PCB substrate is recommended. Excessive heat reduces LED lifespan and causes color shift (especially on white LEDs). Aluminum channels also provide a clean mounting profile and accept snap-on diffuser covers for even light distribution.
A WS2812B is a 5050 RGB LED with a built-in WS2811 controller IC integrated into the package. This controller handles per-pixel addressable control over a single data wire — each LED has its own address and can display a different color independently. A bare 5050 RGB LED (like the ones on this page) has no internal controller — you drive the three color channels directly with external circuitry (resistors + microcontroller PWM or a dedicated LED driver IC). Bare 5050 LEDs are used when you want direct analog control, when you are building non-addressable strips, or when you are designing custom PCBs with your own controller topology.