Grove is a modular system from Seeed Studio: modules with sensors, buttons or displays connect to the controller board with a four-wire cable and a snap-in connector – no soldering and no breadboard. The same connector is also used by M5Stack and by Seeed XIAO boards with an expansion board.
The connector always has the same layout – the yellow and white wires carry signals, red is power and black is ground. Depending on the module, the signals are digital, analog, UART or I2C.
Key specs
- 4 pins, 2.0 mm pitch, plastic receptacle with latch (vertical or horizontal)
- pin 1 yellow (signal), 2 white (signal), 3 red (VCC), 4 black (GND)
- four interface types: digital, analog, UART and I2C
- 3.3 or 5 V power depending on the controller board
- receptacle 10.0 × 5.1 mm, height 8.1 mm (vertical)
Grove Connector Pinout
The receptacle is drawn looking into the opening with the latch at the top – pin 1 (yellow wire) is on the right. This applies to both vertical and horizontal receptacles. Hover over a pin or a table row.
| Pin | I2C | Digital | Analog | UART | Wire color | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | SCL | Dn | An | RX | yellow | Main module signal; for UART, the controller board's receive line (connect the module's TX here) |
| 2 | SDA | Dn+1 | An+1 | TX | white | Second signal; simple digital and analog modules don't use it (NC) |
| 3 | VCC | VCC | VCC | VCC | red | Power 3.3 or 5 V – depends on the controller board (the Base Shield has a switch) |
| 4 | GND | GND | GND | GND | black | Ground |
Four Interface Types
All Grove modules have power and ground in the same place; only the meaning of the signals on pins 1 and 2 differs:
| Interface | Pin 1 (yellow) | Pin 2 (white) | Pin 3 (red) | Pin 4 (black) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| digital | Dn – primary signal | Dn+1 – secondary signal | VCC | GND |
| analog | An – primary input | An+1 – secondary input | VCC | GND |
| UART | controller board RX | controller board TX | VCC | GND |
| I2C | SCL | SDA | VCC | GND |
A digital connector labeled D2 on the shield carries signals D2 and D3, an analog one labeled A0 carries A0 and A1. Simple modules (button, LED) use only pin 1 and leave the second signal unconnected (NC). UART is named from the controller board’s point of view – so the module’s transmit pin (TX) goes to pin 1.
Grove, Qwiic, STEMMA and M5Stack
Grove uses the same signal order as the smaller Qwiic, STEMMA QT and μŠup connectors (GND, VCC, SDA, SCL); Seeed just numbers the pins from the opposite end. The connector is larger, though, so connecting them requires an adapter cable. Details are on the Qwiic, STEMMA QT and μŠup pinout page.
- Qwiic, STEMMA QT, μŠup – JST SH 1 mm, same order, connect with an adapter. Note that Qwiic and μŠup tolerate only 3.3 V.
- STEMMA (Adafruit, 4 pins) – JST PH 2 mm, same order but a different connector shape.
- M5Stack – same connector and order, but power is always 5 V and the I2C wire colors are swapped (yellow SDA, white SCL).
- DFRobot Gravity – different connector (JST PH) and pin order; don’t connect without an adapter.
What to watch out for
- VCC is 3.3 or 5 V depending on the controller board – on the Base Shield, it’s set by the switch. Check what the module can handle.
- The cable only goes in one way, and the latch must click in. Press it when unplugging; don’t pull on the wires.
- The connector’s interface must match the module – an I2C module won’t work in an analog port.
- Pin numbering varies between guides: Seeed has pin 1 on the yellow wire, some websites number from GND. Go by the colors.
More pinouts
See all pinouts on the Pinouts page.