Label Connects More Than One Wire

Diagnostic signature

Label connects more than one wire

This KiCad Electrical Rules Checker (ERC) violation occurs when a net label is placed precisely at the intersection of two crossing, unconnected wires, making it ambiguous which net the label should name.

What it means

In KiCad schematics, a net label attaches to a wire via its anchor point to assign it a specific net name. When two wires cross visually on the schematic canvas but do not have a junction dot, they represent two distinct, unconnected electrical nets. If a label's anchor point is placed exactly at this intersection, KiCad detects that the label is simultaneously touching two independent wires. This creates a logical conflict because a single label cannot assign its name to two separate nets at once.

Why it happens

The schematic editor emits this non-configurable error during ERC when it finds a label's coordinates matching the intersection of two crossing line segments that lack a junction. Because the wires are not electrically joined, the netlist generator cannot unambiguously determine which of the two crossing wires the label is intended to identify.

Minimal reproduction

(kicad_sch (version 20231120) (generator eeschema)
  (wire (pts (xy 50 50) (xy 100 50)))
  (wire (pts (xy 75 25) (xy 75 75)))
  (label "TEST_NET" (at 75 50 0))
)

How to fix it

Resolve the ambiguity by either adding a junction to merge the crossing wires into a single net, or by moving the label away from the intersection to attach it to a single wire.

```KiCad Schematic
(kicad_sch (version 20231120) (generator eeschema)
  (wire (pts (xy 50 50) (xy 100 50)))
  (wire (pts (xy 75 25) (xy 75 75)))
  (junction (at 75 50))
  (label "TEST_NET" (at 75 50 0))
)
```

Step 1

• Identify the crossing wires and the label flagged by the ERC violation.

Step 2

• Determine the design intent: should these two wires be electrically connected?

Step 3

• If the wires are meant to be the same net, select the Junction tool and click the intersection point. The label will now cleanly apply to the unified net.

Step 4

• If the wires are meant to remain isolated, move the label's anchor point to a segment of the specific wire it is intended to name, away from the intersection.

Upstream references

KiCad Schematic Editor Documentation: List of ERC Checks

KiCad Source: erc_item.cpp (label_multiple_wires)