Documentation sections

LDO Dropout Voltage Calculator

POSThttps://rftools.io/api/py/v1/calculate

Slug voltage-regulator-dropout. Calculate LDO minimum input voltage from dropout specification, determine power dissipation, and estimate efficiency at a given supply voltage.

Inputs

Send every one of these in inputs, in the units shown. Most are required: a call without one is refused (400) and costs nothing; one the calculator can do without takes the default shown. An input outside its range is still computed and flagged in the provenance.

Inputs of voltage-regulator-dropout
Name	Unit	Range	Default	Description
voutnumber	V	0.1 … 36	3.3	Regulated output voltage
iloadnumber	mA	0.1 … 10000	500	Maximum load current drawn from the regulator
vdropoutnumber	mV	1 … 5000	300	Typical LDO dropout voltage from datasheet at rated current
rds_onnumber	mΩ	0 … 10000	0	MOSFET Rds(on) for LDO pass device — enter 0 if not applicable or unknown
vinnumber	V	0.1 … 60	5	Actual input supply voltage for power and efficiency calculations

Outputs

Returned in values, by key. A value that is unbounded or undefined is null.

Outputs of voltage-regulator-dropout
Field	Unit	Description
vinMinheadline	V	Minimum input voltage to maintain regulation: Vout + Vdropout + Iload*Rds
vinRec	V	Recommended input voltage with 10% margin above minimum
powerDiss	mW	Power dissipated in the regulator at the given Vin
efficiency	%	Regulator efficiency: Vout/Vin × 100%

Calling it

Calculate: one call, the request and response in full, and its errors.
Batch: this calculator with others, or a sweep, in one request.
Solve for a target: the value of one input that brings an output to a target.

curl -X POST https://rftools.io/api/py/v1/calculate \
  -H "X-API-Key: $RFTOOLS_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "slug": "voltage-regulator-dropout",
    "inputs": {
      "vout": 3.3,
      "iload": 500,
      "vdropout": 300,
      "rds_on": 0,
      "vin": 5
    }
  }'

import rftools

client = rftools.Client()  # reads RFTOOLS_API_KEY, or the key `rftools login` saved

result = client.calculate("voltage-regulator-dropout", {"vout": 3.3, "iload": 500, "vdropout": 300, "rds_on": 0, "vin": 5})
print(result.values)
print(result.warnings, result.provenance.formula_ref)

const response = await fetch("https://rftools.io/api/py/v1/calculate", {
  method: "POST",
  headers: {
    "X-API-Key": process.env.RFTOOLS_API_KEY,
    "Content-Type": "application/json",
  },
  body: JSON.stringify({
    "slug": "voltage-regulator-dropout",
    "inputs": {
      "vout": 3.3,
      "iload": 500,
      "vdropout": 300,
      "rds_on": 0,
      "vin": 5
    }
  }),
});
console.log(response.status, await response.json());

package main

import (
	"bytes"
	"fmt"
	"io"
	"net/http"
	"os"
)

func main() {
	body := []byte(`{
	  "slug": "voltage-regulator-dropout",
	  "inputs": {
	    "vout": 3.3,
	    "iload": 500,
	    "vdropout": 300,
	    "rds_on": 0,
	    "vin": 5
	  }
	}`)
	req, err := http.NewRequest("POST", "https://rftools.io/api/py/v1/calculate", bytes.NewReader(body))
	if err != nil {
		panic(err)
	}
	req.Header.Set("X-API-Key", os.Getenv("RFTOOLS_API_KEY"))
	req.Header.Set("Content-Type", "application/json")
	res, err := http.DefaultClient.Do(req)
	if err != nil {
		panic(err)
	}
	defer res.Body.Close()
	out, _ := io.ReadAll(res.Body)
	fmt.Println(res.Status, string(out))
}

application/json

{
  "slug": "voltage-regulator-dropout",
  "values": {
    "vinMin": 3.5999999999999996,
    "vinRec": 3.96,
    "powerDiss": 850.0000000000001,
    "efficiency": 65.99999999999999
  },
  "warnings": [],
  "errors": [],
  "provenance": {
    "method": "calculator:voltage-regulator-dropout",
    "version": "api@3f2c1a9b04de",
    "formulaRef": null,
    "assumptions": [],
    "validRange": {
      "status": "inside",
      "bounds": {
        "vout": {
          "min": 0.1,
          "max": 36,
          "unit": "V"
        },
        "iload": {
          "min": 0.1,
          "max": 10000,
          "unit": "mA"
        },
        "vdropout": {
          "min": 1,
          "max": 5000,
          "unit": "mV"
        },
        "rds_on": {
          "min": 0,
          "max": 10000,
          "unit": "mΩ"
        },
        "vin": {
          "min": 0.1,
          "max": 60,
          "unit": "V"
        }
      },
      "outside": [],
      "model": null
    },
    "computedAt": "2026-09-24T14:05:11.003Z",
    "inputs": {
      "vout": 3.3,
      "iload": 500,
      "vdropout": 300,
      "rds_on": 0,
      "vin": 5
    },
    "seed": null,
    "elapsedSeconds": 0.003
  }
}

{
  "detail": [
    {
      "type": "float_parsing",
      "loc": [
        "body",
        "inputs",
        "vout"
      ],
      "msg": "Input should be a valid number, unable to parse string as a number",
      "input": "abc"
    }
  ]
}

An input sent as text. Nothing was counted.

{
  "detail": "More than 120 requests in 60 seconds from this address.",
  "errorKind": "rate_limited",
  "limit": 120,
  "windowSeconds": 60,
  "upgradeUrl": "https://rftools.io/pricing/"
}

Too many requests in a minute, with Retry-After.

Same inputs on the calculator pageLDO Dropout Voltage Calculator, at these values