SparkFun Triple Axis Accelerometer Breakout - MMA8452Q (Qwiic)

This breakout board makes it easy to use the tiny MMA8452Q accelerometer communicate over I2C in your project. The MMA8452Q is a smart low-power, three-axis, capacitive MEMS accelerometer with 12 bits of resolution. This accelerometer is packed with embedded functions with flexible user programmable options, configurable to two interrupt pins. Embedded interrupt functions allow for overall power savings relieving the host processor from continuously polling data. This version of the SparkFun Triple Axis Accelerometer Breakout includes pre-soldered Qwiic connectors for rapid prototyping and better ease of use. With the connectors already soldered on, you can jump right into using this little board without any assembly!

The MMA8452Q has user selectable full scales of ±2g/±4g/±8g with high pass filtered data as well as non filtered data available real-time. The device can be configured to generate inertial wake-up interrupt signals from any combination of the configurable embedded functions allowing the MMA8452Q to monitor events and remain in a low power mode during periods of inactivity.

This board also breaks out the ground, power, I2C and two external interrupt outputs into 0.1" spaced pins.

Note: The I2C address of the MMA8452Q is 0x1D and is jumper selectable to 0x1C. A multiplexer/Mux is required to communicate to multiple MMA8452Q sensors on a single bus. If you need to use more than one MMA8452Q sensor consider using the Qwiic Mux Breakout.


The SparkFun Qwiic Connect System is an ecosystem of I2C sensors, actuators, shields and cables that make prototyping faster and less prone to error. All Qwiic-enabled boards use a common 1mm pitch, 4-pin JST connector. This reduces the amount of required PCB space, and polarized connections mean you can’t hook it up wrong.


  • 1.95 V to 3.6 V supply voltage
  • 1.6 V to 3.6 V interface voltage
  • ±2g/±4g/±8g dynamically selectable full-scale
  • Output Data Rates (ODR) from 1.56 Hz to 800 Hz
  • 12-bit and 8-bit digital output
  • I2C digital output interface (operates to 2.25 MHz with 4.7 kΩ pullup)
  • Two programmable interrupt pins for six interrupt sources
  • Three embedded channels of motion detection
  • Orientation (Portrait/Landscape) detection with set hysteresis
  • High Pass Filter Data available real-time
  • Current Consumption: 6 μA – 165 μA
  • 2x Qwiic Connection Ports

SparkFun Triple Axis Accelerometer Breakout - MMA8452Q (Qwiic) Product Help and Resources

Qwiic Accelerometer (MMA8452Q) Hookup Guide

April 5, 2018

Freescale’s MMA8452Q is a smart, low-power, three-axis, capacitive micro-machined accelerometer with 12-bits of resolution. It’s perfect for any project that needs to sense orientation or motion. We’ve taken that accelerometer and stuck it on a Qwiic-Enabled breakout board to make interfacing with the tiny, QFN package a bit easier.

Qwiic Pro Kit Project Guide

November 7, 2019

The Qwiic Pro Kit was designed to allow users to get started with Arduino without the need for soldering or a breadboard. We've included three inputs (a joystick, accelerometer, and proximity sensor) and one display that can be daisy chained to the RedBoard Turbo (SAMD21) Development Board.

Core Skill: Programming

If a board needs code or communicates somehow, you're going to need to know how to program or interface with it. The programming skill is all about communication and code.

3 Programming

Skill Level: Competent - The toolchain for programming is a bit more complex and will examples may not be explicitly provided for you. You will be required to have a fundamental knowledge of programming and be required to provide your own code. You may need to modify existing libraries or code to work with your specific hardware. Sensor and hardware interfaces will be SPI or I2C.
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Core Skill: Electrical Prototyping

If it requires power, you need to know how much, what all the pins do, and how to hook it up. You may need to reference datasheets, schematics, and know the ins and outs of electronics.

2 Electrical Prototyping

Skill Level: Rookie - You may be required to know a bit more about the component, such as orientation, or how to hook it up, in addition to power requirements. You will need to understand polarized components.
See all skill levels


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  • xsk8rat / about 4 years ago / 1

    Call me a nutter, but the labelling on this could be enhanced. Adding the name of the chip to the silkscreen would be awesome. Maybe that could be part of the design review prior to launch? I have one in the sensor bin and keep meaning to figure which part this is.

    Time to bust out my Sharpie.

Customer Reviews

5 out of 5

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Works great

The only soldering I had to do was the headers on the Shield (a necessary item). The instructions for hookup were a little vague. An excellent piece.