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PCBs are made by sandwiching layers of insulation between layers of metal. Metal is etched away to form traces. Holes are drilled between layers and filled with metal to form conductive vias between traces on different layers. Boards may be made from a single layer of metal to several 10s of layers of metal (e.g. a 10-layer board). Insulation layers are typically made with a fiberglass/epoxy mix (typically FR4), though more advanced boards may use special materials to enhance inter-layer capacitance or improve transmission-line characteristics. The stackup of metal layers is often made so that signal layers are next to power or return layers, for example signal-power-ground-signal or signal-power-signal-signal-ground-signal.

Many modern component are soldered to the surface of the board and are called surface-mount components. Parts may also use pins that are stuck through the board. The most common of these are called DIP parts. Parts may be placed on only one side or both sides of the board.