PLC Simulator
PLC simulator for Chromebook

PLC Simulator That Runs on a Chromebook

Practice ladder logic and structured text on a school-issued Chromebook. No Dev Mode, no Linux subsystem, no Play Store install. Just open Chrome.

Start freeTry the traffic light →

Join 1300+ learners practicing PLC programming

The problem

Why Chromebooks struggle with PLC software

ChromeOS is sandboxed by design. You cannot download an .exe and install TIA Portal, Studio 5000, Codesys, or LogixPro. The Play Store does not ship any of the major vendor PLC tools. On a school-issued Chromebook, district IT usually blocks Linux-subsystem unlock, Play Store installs of unknown apps, and Dev Mode flipping — all of which are warranty-voiding anyway.

For a high-school robotics student, a mechatronics programme at a community college, or an apprentice who was handed a school Chromebook and told to learn PLCs, the existing vendor software is simply not reachable. That leaves either buying a personal laptop (expensive) or finding a tool that runs in the ChromeOS browser as-is (much shorter list).

A PLC simulator running in a Chrome tab on a Chromebook — ladder logic editor, scan-cycle runtime and I/O strip — with no Dev Mode, no Linux subsystem, no Crostini and no Play Store install on ChromeOSA web browser window running a PLC ladder logic simulator with an input/output strip, requiring no installation or download.plcsimulator.app/playno installINPUTSOUTPUTS
The whole PLC simulator lives in a Chrome tab on ChromeOS — no Dev Mode unlock, no Crostini, no Play Store.

Workarounds and why they fail

What students try — and how each one falls apart

Dev Mode unlock

Voids the warranty on a school-issued Chromebook. District MDM usually reverts it the next time the laptop connects to the school wifi. You also lose locally stored homework.

Crostini / Linux subsystem

Promising on paper — ChromeOS does support a Linux container. In practice, districts disable it on managed devices. Even when allowed, TIA Portal and Studio 5000 still need Windows under the Linux install.

Play Store PLC apps

The few that install are rudimentary ladder toys. None support real dialects, none offer scored scenarios, most have not been updated in years.

Remote desktop to a home PC

RDP is commonly blocked outbound by school networks. Even where allowed, latency and keyboard issues make writing ladder miserable.

Borrowed Windows laptop at home

Works — until you want to study between classes on the Chromebook you actually carry.

Buy your own laptop

The real solution, and the most expensive one. Not an option for many students.

ChromeOS-native in the browser

What this tool does on a Chromebook

Runs in plain Chrome

No Linux subsystem, no Crostini, no Play Store. The website is the app. Opens from the address bar.

Installable as a PWA

Chrome shows an Install prompt — one click and it sits in your Launcher with its own icon, its own window, and offline caching for scenarios you have already opened.

Works with touch + trackpad

On a 2-in-1 Chromebook, tap rungs directly; on a clamshell, use the trackpad and keyboard. Stylus input is supported if you have one.

A PLC digital input pushbutton wired to an input card and an output card driving a lamp, the input and output model Chromebook students learn before touching real field wiringA digital input pushbutton wired to a PLC input card, and a PLC output card driving a lamp, with a sinking versus sourcing hint.I/O CARDINPUTOUTPUTPushbuttonI:0/0LampO:0/0sinking (NPN) vs sourcing (PNP)
Tap a contact, watch the output light — the digital input/output model that underpins every scenario.

What actually runs on ChromeOS

Real PLC concepts, inside one Chrome tab

This is not a single-rung Play Store toy. On a Chromebook you write real IEC 61131-3 ladder logic and structured text, a genuine scan-cycle runtime executes it, and hidden test cases grade every rung — the same foundation taught in community-college PLC programmes. Here is what you actually practise on ChromeOS.

The PLC scan cycle — read inputs, execute the ladder program, update outputs, then repeat — running in a Chrome tab on a Chromebook with no PLC runtime installed on ChromeOSThe repeating PLC scan cycle: read inputs, execute the ladder logic, update outputs, then housekeeping, looping continuously.1Read Inputs2Execute Logic3Update Outputs4HousekeepingSCANCYCLE
The scan cycle runs in Chrome on your Chromebook — read inputs, solve logic, write outputs, repeat.
A ladder logic rung with a normally-open contact driving an output coil, the first program a Chromebook PLC student writes in the ChromeOS browserA basic ladder logic rung between two power rails: an examine-if-closed contact (XIC) in series driving an output coil (OTE).L1L2] [StartXIC I:0/0LampOTE O:0/0
Your first rung — a contact driving a coil — graded live in the Chrome tab.
Common ladder logic symbols — normally-open and normally-closed contacts, output coils, set and reset coils — learned on a Chromebook browser PLC simulatorThe core ladder logic symbols side by side: XIC examine-if-closed, XIO examine-if-open, OTE output energize, OTL output latch and OTU output unlatch.XICIfXIOIfOTEEnergizeLOTLLatchUOTUUnlatch
The ladder symbol set — contacts, coils, set/reset — identical to the vendor tooling you will use on the job.
An IEC TON on-delay timer timing chart, a core instruction Chromebook students drill in the browser simulator for the traffic-light scenarioA TON on-delay timer: the accumulated time bar ramps up toward the preset value, and the done (DN) bit turns on when the accumulator reaches preset.TONPRE 5000ACCACC ramps to PREPREDNdone bit
TON / TOF timers tick on the scan clock — the engine behind the traffic-light scenario.
The five IEC 61131-3 languages — Ladder, Function Block, Structured Text, SFC and Instruction List — practised on a Chromebook in the browser without any vendor IDE installThe five IEC 61131-3 PLC programming languages as chips: Ladder Diagram, Function Block Diagram, Structured Text, Instruction List and Sequential Function Chart.IEC 61131-3 — five languagesLDLadder DiagramFBDFunction BlockSTStructured TextILInstruction ListSFCSequential Func. Chart
IEC 61131-3 — the same international standard the real industrial tools implement, learned on a Chromebook.
PLC architecture — CPU, input modules, output modules and field devices — taught on a Chromebook browser simulator for high-school robotics and mechatronics studentsA modular PLC rack on a backplane: power supply, CPU processor, input module, output module and a communications module side by side.PLC RACKbackplane busPSUPowerCPUProcessorDIInputDOOutputNETComms
The CPU / input / output / field-device model — the mental map you carry from FRC robotics to a real PLC.

Getting started

Three steps on a Chromebook

  1. 1. Open Chrome. Your school Chromebook probably has nothing else, which is fine — Chrome is all we need.
  2. 2. Sign up free. Email and password. No district-admin approval needed; no software install; no admin unlock.
  3. 3. Pick a scenario. traffic light is the classic first run — four-way sequencing with timers.

If your school IT blocks the site, show them this page. We are a normal HTTPS web app with no plugins and no Play Store footprint.

Performance

Performance expectations on a Chromebook

Fine

  • Any Chromebook from 2020 onwards.
  • Chromebook Plus tier — smooth on all 40 scenarios.
  • Lenovo, HP, ASUS, Acer, and Samsung models tested.

Usable but slower

  • Pre-2019 entry Chromebooks — the editor works, the animation can stutter.
  • 11" screens — functional, but a 13"+ external monitor helps the editor feel less cramped.
  • Very slow wifi — initial load is bigger, but once cached it runs offline.

Student-friendly scenarios

A starter path for a Chromebook student

Traffic Light

Four-way sequence — the classic PLC first scenario.

View scenario →

Motor Start / Stop

Three-wire control — a robotics-to-PLC bridge.

View scenario →

Conveyor Sort

Sensors, diverter, counting — industrial but intuitive.

View scenario →

Garage Door

Open / close with obstruction reverse.

View scenario →

Elevator

State machine with floor requests and direction.

View scenario →

PID Temperature

A realistic PID tuning introduction.

View scenario →

If you are a student, see the student PLC simulator page for a path that maps scenarios to typical coursework, follow the free 18-lesson curriculum, or read what a browser PLC simulator actually does.

Questions

Chromebook PLC simulator FAQ

Unlikely. It is a normal HTTPS site with no plugins, no unusual ports, and no native binaries. The most common blocker is a blanket "unknown SaaS" rule — if your district uses one, ask your teacher or IT admin to whitelist plcsimulationsoftware.com. We have deliberately avoided anything that looks suspicious to a content filter.

Your Chromebook can run a PLC simulator.

No unlock, no installs, no district drama. Free tier.

Create free account →