A series of de novo symmetric heterocyclic azomethine dyads and triads consisting uniquely of furans, thiophenes, pyrroles and methyl‐pyrroles were prepared. These were prepared to investigate the effect of various heterocycles and the degree of conjugation on the spectroscopic and electrochemical properties. The crystallographic structures of the symmetric azomethines were also compared with their unsymmetric and heterocyclic and homoaryl counterparts. It was found that for a similar series, bathochromic absorbance and fluorescence shifts occurred when progressing in the order of furan < thiophene < pyrrole ≈ methyl‐pyrrole. The spectroscopic properties of the heterocyclic azomethines were also bathochromically shifted relative to their homoaryl analogues as a result of increased degree of conjugation and electronic effects. The former was in part confirmed by crystallographic studies showing the heterocycles adopted co‐planar and antiparallel arrangements. Although all the compounds studied showed weak fluorescence at room temperature, their fluorescence could be restored at low temperatures, implying deactivation of the singlet excited manifold by bond rotation. Meanwhile, irreversible oxidation was observed for all the azomethines studied and their oxidation potentials were contingent on the heterocycle and number of azomethines, ranging between 0.8 and 1.4 V versus Ag+. The irreversible oxidation was due to radical cation cross‐coupling resulting in products with higher degrees of conjugation. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.