---
product_id: 1170701
title: "SainSmart 16-Channel Relay Module"
brand: "sainsmart"
price: "B/.74"
currency: PAB
in_stock: null
reviews_count: 8
category: "Sain Smart"
url: https://www.desertcart.com.pa/products/1170701-sainsmart-16-channel-relay-module
store_origin: PA
region: Panama
---

# 12V coil voltage LED status indicators 16 independent relay channels SainSmart 16-Channel Relay Module

**Brand:** sainsmart
**Price:** B/.74
**Availability:** ❌ Out of Stock

## Summary

> 🚀 Command Your Smart World with 16 Channels of Power!

## Quick Answers

- **What is this?** SainSmart 16-Channel Relay Module by sainsmart
- **How much does it cost?** B/.74 with free shipping
- **Is it available?** Currently out of stock
- **Where can I buy it?** [www.desertcart.com.pa](https://www.desertcart.com.pa/products/1170701-sainsmart-16-channel-relay-module)

## Best For

- sainsmart enthusiasts

## Why This Product

- Trusted sainsmart brand quality
- Free international shipping included
- Worldwide delivery with tracking
- 15-day hassle-free returns

## Key Features

- • **Expand Your Control Horizon:** 16 channels let you orchestrate complex setups from model trains to home automation hubs.
- • **Robust Isolation for Safety:** Opto-isolated inputs protect your microcontroller from voltage spikes and interference.
- • **Visual Feedback at a Glance:** Built-in LED indicators keep you instantly informed of relay status and operation.
- • **Power Your Projects with Precision:** Supports high-current loads up to AC250V 10A / DC30V 12A for versatile appliance control.
- • **Seamless Microcontroller Integration:** Compatible with Arduino, ARM, PIC, and more for effortless smart automation.

## Overview

The SainSmart 16-Channel Relay Module is a 12V interface board designed for professional-grade control of high-current devices. Featuring 16 independent relays rated up to 10A AC and 12A DC, it integrates seamlessly with popular microcontrollers like Arduino and ARM. With opto-isolated inputs and LED status indicators, it ensures safe, reliable operation and real-time feedback, making it the ultimate control hub for complex automation projects.

## Description

This is a 12V 16-Channel Relay interface board. It is able to control various appliances, and other equipments with large current. It can be controlled directly by Micro-controller (Arduino , 8051, AVR, PIC, DSP, ARM, ARM, MSP430, TTL logic).Features:12V 16-Channel Relay interface board, and each one needs 15-20mA Driver Current;Equipped with high-current relay, AC250V 10A ; DC30V 10A;Standard interface that can be controlled directly by microcontroller (Arduino , 8051, AVR, PIC, DSP, ARM, ARM, MSP430, TTL logic);Indication LED's for Relay output status.

Review: High quality. Wish it came with ANY documentation - Ok, I admit it, it took me way too long to figure out how to hook this thing up. In case anyone else is looking at this and wondering how it works, here's how it gets hooked up: 1) The header pins on the bottom of the main picture get wired directly to the Arduino board. Connect one of the 5v pins to a 5v header on your Arduino and connect one of the Gnd pins to a ground header on the Arduino. Each one of the relays has a corrosponding header down there, too, which get connected to a digital output on your Arduino. You can run each wire individually or run over a ribbon cable to a project board and break it out from there. Either way, getting the header pins hooked up allows the logic to fire, and makes the lights work so you can at least diagnose/debug your program. 2) Next, the relay board needs a 12v dc input wired up to the blue terminals on the bottom. These are wired to the relays, which make the relays actually fire. The voltage magnetically pulls a piece of metal away from one pole to the other. This action makes a noticeable clicking noise, which is a little annoying, but also lets you know it's working. 3) Each relay has 3 terminals located along the sides. One side is normally opened, the other is normally closed. Use this to either make or break the circuit that you have wired up for your lights, motors, or whatever else is involved in your project that draws more than 5v or needs to be kept isolated from the Arduino board. So yeah, keep in mind that you'll need a 12v power source to actually make the relays fire. All in all, it's a very well put together board, and would make a great control hub for something like say... a model train set or robot.
Review: Sainsweet 16 channel Relay Module concepts - The Sainsmart 16 Relay board is an inexpensive bargain. The primary purpose is to isolate the computer from the outputs. RFI or spikes can travel down a wire into a computer and mess up the logic causing any output to go on randomly. This board provides isolation in the relays, the standard usually being 1500 volts and opto isolation on the inputs using an optoisolator diode and optical transistor driving an amplifier. The board is wired when the ground is connected between the computer and the relay board. This is the only power connection needed along with the 16 discreet inputs which operate the relay with a ground input to one of the 16 pins on the header of the board. The 5volt pins 19 and 20 are sufficient to provide power for the computer but the real purpose is to provide input power to run the opto-isolators. Apparently this board has been provided with either 5volt or 12 volt relays. You should check the relay marking before connecting power on the power input pins. The Relays are SPST non-connected contact types, so you may wire virtually any load, but beware that the PC board and the associated connectors will probably not really handle much more than an amp at up to 120vac or 36vdc even though the relay is rated at a higher loads for its contacts. A good input source is Elegoo Mega pins 22 to 55 or a string of 74HC595 serial shift registers. If you connect two relay boards, you will probably need to breakout the wires to prevent connecting a solid 5vdc source to an input pin on the Mega. Note that the Mega has a female socket and the relay board has a male socket. Twenty wire Multicolor flat cable with connectors is a good choice for wiring. Also note that the inputs support open collector inputs which permit wired "OR" wiring. Personally, I would not use the 5vdc pins for anything other than the relay board. For safety operation I would provide +12Vdc at about 0.8Amps or more. I use this board to power 16 slow motion Tortoise switch machines on my Model Railroad using a +12vdc and a +24vdc power source. You really don't need a schematic since the relay board is so redundant in its wiring. The 5 volt converter is a LM2576 12v to 5v 3 amp converter.

## Features

- 12V 16-Channel Relay interface board, and each one needs 15-20mA Driver Current
- Equipped with high-current relay, AC250V 10A ; DC30V 12A
- Standard interface that can be controlled directly by microcontroller (Arduino , 8051, AVR, PIC, DSP, ARM, ARM, MSP433, TTL logic)
- Indication LED's for Relay output status

## Technical Specifications

| Specification | Value |
|---------------|-------|
| ASIN | B0057OC66U |
| Best Sellers Rank | #2,094 in Single Board Computers (Computers & Accessories) |
| Brand | SainSmart |
| Coil Voltage | 12 Volts |
| Connector Type | Through Hole |
| Contact Current Rating | 12 Amps |
| Contact Material | Silver |
| Contact Type | Normally Open |
| Current Rating | 10 Amps |
| Customer Reviews | 4.4 4.4 out of 5 stars (619) |
| Is Discontinued By Manufacturer | No |
| Item Weight | 8.4 ounces |
| Item model number | 101-70-103 |
| Manufacturer | SainStore Inc. |
| Manufacturer recommended age | 1 - 1 months |
| Maximum Switching Current | 12 Amps |
| Maximum Switching Voltage | 250 Volts |
| Minimum Switching Voltage | 12 Volts |
| Mounting Type | PCB Mount |
| Operation Mode | Automatic |
| Product Dimensions | 8 x 5.7 x 1.19 inches |
| Release date | May 6, 2018 |
| UPC | 796793392285 |
| Wattage | 144 watts |

## Product Details

- **Connector Type:** Through Hole
- **Contact Material:** Silver
- **Contact Type:** Normally Open
- **Current Rating:** 10 Amps
- **Mounting Type:** PCB Mount

## Images

![SainSmart 16-Channel Relay Module - Image 1](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/71iAO6BUk9L.jpg)
![SainSmart 16-Channel Relay Module - Image 2](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/71Bf43WpjtL.jpg)
![SainSmart 16-Channel Relay Module - Image 3](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/81BrOnyuD0L.jpg)
![SainSmart 16-Channel Relay Module - Image 4](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/81HrnxvqwSL.jpg)
![SainSmart 16-Channel Relay Module - Image 5](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/71uYyS4Tz9L.jpg)

## Available Options

This product comes in different **Pattern** options.

## Questions & Answers

**Q: Does anyone know if this is compatible with raspberry pi model b?**
A: I bought this board specifically to work with the Raspberry PI. I've futzed with it for hours and the complete lack of documentation makes it very hard to get it up and running. Through trial and error though I've found the following setup works:1) Hook up the pair of screw terminals (in blue plastic) to an external 12v power supply2) Hook up the 3.3v out on the RPi (pin 1) to the 5v pin on the relay board (I know, this doesn't make sense)3) Hook up any GPIO pin to any of the 16 input pins on the board4) Toggle the GPIO pin using your favorite method5) The relay will toggle nowWhat threw me was using the 3.3v on the RPi instead of the marked 5v. That is very confusing labeling. It's also unfortunate that this board requires a 12v supply which can't come from the RPi but must be applied externally. My project, happened to have one so I was lucky. I hope this information helps. It would be so easy for SainSmart to offer this on their website and help out alot of folks having trouble.

**Q: What there are two power inputs? (Low level inputs (5V) and blue port (12V)). Do I need to connect both?**
A: The board takes 12V input to operate.   I use a at least 1-2 amp power supply and that connects to the 12V inputs.   There is a 5V OUTPUT on the board which is convenient and can be used to power something like an Arduino.  Which is what I do.

**Q: I have an application where the output voltage to switch the contacts is 12 volts, will the inputs tolerate this or will I need to add resistors?**
A: Yes, it will.  I have this hooked up to some led work lights in a store display.  40 of them.  Power the board with 12v at the 2 screw terminals, and use your switched outputs directly to the low level inputs and it will switch on the relays.  Pretty simple.,

**Q: Are there diodes across the relay coils?**
A: Yes, they light up when the relay is on

## Customer Reviews

### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ High quality. Wish it came with ANY documentation
*by J***I on November 9, 2012*

Ok, I admit it, it took me way too long to figure out how to hook this thing up. In case anyone else is looking at this and wondering how it works, here's how it gets hooked up: 1) The header pins on the bottom of the main picture get wired directly to the Arduino board. Connect one of the 5v pins to a 5v header on your Arduino and connect one of the Gnd pins to a ground header on the Arduino. Each one of the relays has a corrosponding header down there, too, which get connected to a digital output on your Arduino. You can run each wire individually or run over a ribbon cable to a project board and break it out from there. Either way, getting the header pins hooked up allows the logic to fire, and makes the lights work so you can at least diagnose/debug your program. 2) Next, the relay board needs a 12v dc input wired up to the blue terminals on the bottom. These are wired to the relays, which make the relays actually fire. The voltage magnetically pulls a piece of metal away from one pole to the other. This action makes a noticeable clicking noise, which is a little annoying, but also lets you know it's working. 3) Each relay has 3 terminals located along the sides. One side is normally opened, the other is normally closed. Use this to either make or break the circuit that you have wired up for your lights, motors, or whatever else is involved in your project that draws more than 5v or needs to be kept isolated from the Arduino board. So yeah, keep in mind that you'll need a 12v power source to actually make the relays fire. All in all, it's a very well put together board, and would make a great control hub for something like say... a model train set or robot.

### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Sainsweet 16 channel Relay Module concepts
*by R***S on February 13, 2017*

The Sainsmart 16 Relay board is an inexpensive bargain. The primary purpose is to isolate the computer from the outputs. RFI or spikes can travel down a wire into a computer and mess up the logic causing any output to go on randomly. This board provides isolation in the relays, the standard usually being 1500 volts and opto isolation on the inputs using an optoisolator diode and optical transistor driving an amplifier. The board is wired when the ground is connected between the computer and the relay board. This is the only power connection needed along with the 16 discreet inputs which operate the relay with a ground input to one of the 16 pins on the header of the board. The 5volt pins 19 and 20 are sufficient to provide power for the computer but the real purpose is to provide input power to run the opto-isolators. Apparently this board has been provided with either 5volt or 12 volt relays. You should check the relay marking before connecting power on the power input pins. The Relays are SPST non-connected contact types, so you may wire virtually any load, but beware that the PC board and the associated connectors will probably not really handle much more than an amp at up to 120vac or 36vdc even though the relay is rated at a higher loads for its contacts. A good input source is Elegoo Mega pins 22 to 55 or a string of 74HC595 serial shift registers. If you connect two relay boards, you will probably need to breakout the wires to prevent connecting a solid 5vdc source to an input pin on the Mega. Note that the Mega has a female socket and the relay board has a male socket. Twenty wire Multicolor flat cable with connectors is a good choice for wiring. Also note that the inputs support open collector inputs which permit wired "OR" wiring. Personally, I would not use the 5vdc pins for anything other than the relay board. For safety operation I would provide +12Vdc at about 0.8Amps or more. I use this board to power 16 slow motion Tortoise switch machines on my Model Railroad using a +12vdc and a +24vdc power source. You really don't need a schematic since the relay board is so redundant in its wiring. The 5 volt converter is a LM2576 12v to 5v 3 amp converter.

### ⭐⭐⭐⭐ Great product - here are some missing (measured) specifications
*by D***R on January 24, 2013*

I have had a hard time getting accurate (correct) specifications from SainSmart, so I wired it up and took measurements. So here are some specifications that we can all use: Overview: 1. The 12VDC input requires > 500mA. 2. The drive to each control input pin must "sink" 3mA when low (low = relay ON). By the way, this is a great product - awesome bang for the buck! Note the price has gone up (was $23.69) ... less "awesome" but still "Good" bang for the buck. ***** Input Power (12 VDC input)***** - About 8 mA is required with all relays off. - Each relay requires about 30 mA when on. - So max supply current is 8 mA + (16 x 30 mA) = 488 mA (actual measured was 500 mA) - Because one may use the board's +5 VDC output (2 pins) to power an Arduino/PIC circuit, use a 12V power supply that can provide MORE than 500mA (depending on your circuit's requirements). - Note that the switching regulator on the Relay Board should somewhat efficiently (say 70%?) convert the board's 5V power usage to 12 V power input requirements. For example: 200mA at +5VDC (1 Watt) does NOT mean the +12V supply needs to supply an additional 200 mA also. This is because 1 W of power from the +12V supply only requires about 83 mA ( 12 V x 83 mA = 1 W ); however at say 70% efficiency of the 5 V regulator, this goes up to about 120 mA (83 mA / 0.7) but NOT the full 200 mA. NOTE: The best way to discover what 12 V supply is needed (its max current rating) is to ACTUALLY MEASURE the 12 V input current while using a "test supply" that can more than handle worst case (with all relays ON) then buy the supply that meets your needs. Always use a modern "switching" supply (wall wart) because they are smaller, way more efficient, generate little heat, and normally use much less "vampire power". - The baord's LM2576 (+5V) voltage regulator is rated at 3 Amps; however, one should not push it this hard. The circuits powered by the 5 V supply on the Relay Board appear to only be the LED side of the opto-isolators. Driving an input control line low turns on an opto-isolator LED ... turning on its relay. Each opto-isolator LED seems to require about 3 mA (for a total of 3 mA x 16 = 48 mA). This should leave you with at least many hundreds of mA available to power your circuits off of the relay board's 5V output pins (two of them on the connector). ***** Input control pins ***** - Grounding an input control pin (logic low) turns on the associated relay. - The circuit driving the input control pin must be able to "sink" (drive logic low) about 3 mA of current (easy for most PIC/Arduino output pins). *** CAUTION *** When a pin is NOT driven low, it "floats" to nearly the +5 V that drives the opto-isolators. This means that the driving circuit (Arduino/PIC) must either be also powered by +5V, or if powered by the now common 3.3V (or less!), its output pins must be "5 Volt Tolerant" (see your micro-controller pin specs). Another option is use of a "5V tolerant serial port expander" chip like an MCP23018 (I2C interface) or MCP23S18 (SPI interface) ... where just a few micro-controller pins give you 16 I/O pins. These can be powered by 3.3 V or 5 V. They are a bit complex, but a simple "software bit banged" I2C or SPI interface can be used to control them. Finally, one could use little signal transistors (2N3904) for this isolation from the 5 V (MCU pin -to- a say 2.7K resistor -to- transistor base, emitter to ground, collector to relay board input control pin). Darrell Thayer

## Frequently Bought Together

- SainSmart 16-Channel 12V Relay Module Board for Arduino DSP AVR PIC ARM
- ELEGOO 120pcs Multicolored Dupont Wire 40pin Male to Female, 40pin Male to Male, 40pin Female to Female Breadboard Jumper Ribbon Cables Kit Compatible with Arduino Projects
- ELEGOO MEGA R3 Board ATmega 2560 + USB Cable Compatible with Arduino IDE Projects RoHS Compliant

---

## Why Shop on Desertcart?

- 🛒 **Trusted by 1.3+ Million Shoppers** — Serving international shoppers since 2016
- 🌍 **Shop Globally** — Access 737+ million products across 21 categories
- 💰 **No Hidden Fees** — All customs, duties, and taxes included in the price
- 🔄 **15-Day Free Returns** — Hassle-free returns (30 days for PRO members)
- 🔒 **Secure Payments** — Trusted payment options with buyer protection
- ⭐ **TrustPilot Rated 4.5/5** — Based on 8,000+ happy customer reviews

**Shop now:** [https://www.desertcart.com.pa/products/1170701-sainsmart-16-channel-relay-module](https://www.desertcart.com.pa/products/1170701-sainsmart-16-channel-relay-module)

---

*Product available on Desertcart Panama*
*Store origin: PA*
*Last updated: 2026-02-19*