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IoT Protocol Matrix
A searchable comparison of common embedded and IoT protocols — range, speed, power profile, topology, and best use case.
| Protocol | Range | Max Speed | Power Profile | Topology | Best Use Case |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| I2C | < 1 m (on-board) | 100 kbps – 3.4 Mbps | Very low | Multi-drop bus (2-wire, addressed) | Sensors, EEPROM, RTC on a single PCB |
| SPI | < 0.3 m (on-board) | Up to 60+ Mbps | Low (faster = more) | Master/slave, per-device chip-select | Displays, SD cards, ADCs, fast peripherals |
| UART | ~15 m (RS-232) / 1 km+ (RS-485) | Up to ~3 Mbps | Low | Point-to-point (full-duplex) | Debug consoles, GPS, modems, MCU-to-MCU |
| BLE | 10 – 100 m | 125 kbps – 2 Mbps | Ultra-low (coin-cell friendly) | Star / mesh (central & peripherals) | Wearables, beacons, battery sensor nodes |
| MQTT | Internet (over TCP/IP) | Network-limited | Depends on radio (Wi-Fi/cellular) | Publish/subscribe via broker | Cloud telemetry, fleet messaging, dashboards |