Compare
Lesson Diary vs Total Drive
Total Drive is best known for teaching aids, offline working and accounting sync. Here is how it lines up against Lesson Diary, feature by feature — checked 27 August 2026.
- Lesson Diary
- £9.99/mo
- Comes with a 14-day free trial, but you can start free with limited access instead — no card, no commitment
- Lesson money: £0 — we never handle pupil payments
- Total Drive
- £18–£26/mo (4 tiers)
- 30-day free trial
- Lesson money: Card fee set at sign-up, not published
| Lesson Diary | Total Drive | |
|---|---|---|
| Price & terms | ||
| Monthly price | £9.99/mo | £18–£26/mo (4 tiers) |
| Free trial | Comes with a 14-day free trial, but you can start free with limited access instead — no card, no commitment | 30-day free trial |
| Cut of your lesson money | £0 — we never handle pupil payments | Card fee set at sign-up, not published |
| Everything on one plan | Yes | No |
| Cancel yourself, anytime | Yes | Web form, ends at period end |
| Diary & scheduling | ||
| Route / GPS recording | Yes — GPS route map on every lesson | Coming soon — launching soon per their site |
| Works on the web | Yes | Yes |
| iPhone & iPad app | Yes | Yes |
| Android app | Yes | Yes |
| Recurring lessons | Yes | Yes |
| Working hours & time off | Yes | Yes |
| Double-booking flagged | Yes | Not advertised |
| Phone calendar sync | Yes | Yes |
| Gap alerts between lessons | Yes | Enhanced tools on higher tiers |
| Works with no signal | Yes | Yes |
| Booking & getting pupils | ||
| Pupils book online themselves | Yes | Ultimate (£23) and up |
| Booking link & QR code | Yes | Partly |
| Booking widget for your site | Yes | Not advertised |
| Draw your coverage area on a map | Yes | No |
| Approve, defer or decline requests | Yes | Yes |
| Pupils & progress | ||
| Pupil records & lesson history | Yes | Yes |
| Progress notes | Yes | Yes |
| DVSA syllabus tracking | Yes | Yes |
| Mock tests, marked DVSA-style | DL25-style, live pass/fail | Yes |
| Per-pupil pricing & packages | Yes | Yes |
| Pupil portal | Web, no download | Branded native app |
| Waiting list | Yes | School feature |
| Theory & practical test dates | Yes | Yes |
| Money & admin | ||
| Who has paid, who owes you | Yes | Yes |
| Sell a block of lessons upfront | Yes | Yes |
| Payment records & financials | Yes | Yes |
| Income, expenses & profit by MTD quarter | Yes — MTD quarters built in | Syncs to QuickBooks/Xero |
| Export pupils, lessons & payments | Yes | Yes |
| Automatic lesson reminders | Yes | Yes |
| Multi-instructor / school mode | Focused on solo — no bloat | Yes |
A note on fairness. We build Lesson Diary, and it is one of the tools on this page — so read the comparison with that in mind. Every rival figure was checked on 27 August 2026 against each company’s own website. Prices and plans change; if you spot something out of date, tell us and we’ll fix it.
Sources: Total Drive
Where Total Drive is stronger
- Running since 2018 with a large instructor base
- Teaching aids — 3D hazard clips, a drawable doodlepad and a theory add-on
- Offline-first diary that keeps working with no signal
- Direct sync to QuickBooks and Xero
Why instructors move to Lesson Diary
- We never touch your lesson money — no percentage, no platform fee, ever
- One plan: online booking, the coverage-area map, mock tests and the pupil portal are all in it
- Native iPhone and Android apps, not just a mobile website
- Works with no signal — add a lesson, pupil or payment offline and it syncs the moment you reconnect
- DL25-style mock tests marked the way the DVSA marks them — live pass or fail
- Sell a block of lessons upfront and we track the balance for you as pupils book
- Income, expenses and profit sorted by tax year and MTD quarter — no spreadsheet
- Export your pupils, lessons and payments whenever you want — the data stays yours
Four tiers to weigh up, and pupils can only book online from the £23 Ultimate plan up. The card-payment fee is only shown to you at sign-up.
Common questions
Can I switch from Total Drive to Lesson Diary?
Yes. Create a free account, no card required, and add your pupils. Subscribe whenever you're ready to unlock online booking and share your booking link. You can run both side by side while you decide — there is no contract to end.
Does Lesson Diary take a percentage of my lesson fees?
No. Lesson Diary never handles pupil payments, so there is no percentage and no platform fee. You record who has paid — cash, card or bank transfer — and keep every penny.
Can pupils pay in-app?
Not through Lesson Diary — and that's deliberate. Most solo instructors already collect fees by bank transfer, which is free, so we default new payment records to bank transfer rather than push you toward in-app card processing and the 1.5–1.9% fee that usually comes with it.
What does Total Drive do that Lesson Diary does not?
Mainly: running since 2018 with a large instructor base. The table above shows the full picture on both sides.
Still weighing it up? See all Total Drive alternatives →
One plan, one price — no tiers to decode
Everything Total Drive splits across four tiers — online booking, the coverage map, mock tests, the pupil portal — is in Lesson Diary's single £9.99 plan. No credit card required to try it, and a 14-day free trial when you're ready to subscribe.
