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Roadworthy vs Total Drive vs Pedal
We're the new one. Total Drive has been the default for years and Pedal launched recently with a slick app and an AI assistant. So here is the comparison written the way we'd want to read it if we were choosing: the prices, the features, and an honest list of what they do that we don't.
The short answer
Yes — all three do the same core job: diary, pupil progress, payments, a free app for your pupils. If you already run Total Drive or Pedal and you're happy, none of this is worth switching for on its own.
The difference is what each one optimises. Total Drive is the deepest and most established — teaching aids, enquiry manager, tiers up to £26/month. Pedal is the polished newcomer, one price, everything in. Roadworthy is the only one of the three built around the driving between lessons — your day ordered by pickup, a warning when two lessons are too far apart to make in time, and every free slot ranked by how little driving it adds before you accept the booking. It's also the cheapest, and the only one that runs on CarPlay.
The honest catch: we're iPhone-only today, we're the youngest of the three, and our free trial is 30 days against their 30.
What each one costs
Per instructor, as published on 3 September 2026.
Roadworthy
£13.99/month
or £139.99/year · 30-day free trial
One price, every feature. No tiers to climb for online booking. We take no cut of your lesson payments — the card fee is added to the pupil's checkout, so you receive the full lesson price.
Total Drive
£18–£26/month
inc. VAT · four tiers · 30-day free trial
The most established system in the UK, and the deepest: four tiers from £18 to £26 a month, a pupil app in your own branding, an enquiry manager and 36 animated teaching scenarios.
Pedal
£14.99/month
or £119.99/year · one tier · 30-day free trial
A well-made newcomer launched in 2026, like us: one price with everything in it, an AI assistant, in-app chat with pupils, pass rates by test centre and a website builder.
All three are a business expense you can put against tax. At these prices the gap between the cheapest and the dearest is roughly one lesson a year — so price probably shouldn't decide this for you.
Feature by feature
“Not advertised” means exactly that — we could not find it stated on their own site or App Store listing on 3 September 2026. It is not a claim that the feature is missing. If we've got something wrong, tell us and we'll correct it.
| Feature | Roadworthy | Total Drive | Pedal |
|---|---|---|---|
| Running the day | |||
| Diary with recurring lessons, availability and time off | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Filling a cancelled slot | Yes Ranked pupil list + one-tap offer | Yes “Lesson Gaps”, plus “Gaps Plus” on higher tiers | Yes “Gaps Tool” |
| Day ordered by pickup location, on a map | Yes | No Not advertised | No Not advertised |
| Warning when two lessons are too far apart to make in time | Yes | No Not advertised | No Not advertised |
| Free slots ranked by how little driving they add | Yes “+4 min · best value” at the moment of booking | No Not advertised | No Not advertised |
| Lesson route planning (your own training routes) | Yes Saved routes with map builder and skill tags | Yes Draw on satellite roads | Yes Listed as route planning |
| CarPlay | Yes Next pickup, countdown, tight-leg warning, one-tap navigation | No Not advertised | No Not advertised |
| Calendar sync | Partly Apple Calendar — writes lessons out, reads your commitments in for clash warnings | Yes Google Calendar and Apple iCal | No Not advertised |
| Pupils and money | |||
| Free app for pupils | Yes Roadworthy Student — separate free app | Yes Branded with your school name, logo and colours | Yes Progress, messaging and paying online |
| Online booking page for new pupils | Yes Included at the one price | Yes On the £23 Ultimate tier and above | No Not advertised |
| Take card payments | Yes Straight to your own Stripe account | Yes Listed as a feature | Yes “Get paid online” |
| Who pays the card fee | The pupil — you receive the full lesson price | Not published | Not published |
| DVSA syllabus progress and test readiness | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Pupil-written reflective logs | No | Yes | Yes Reflective notes |
| Prepaid blocks of hours, drawn down automatically | Yes | Partly Payments and balances tracked; block drawdown not advertised | Partly Not advertised |
| Lesson and payment reminders | Partly Free through your own Messages or Mail; automated SMS costs credits | Yes Advertised as free | Yes Automatic reminders |
| Two-way chat with pupils inside the app | No You message from your own phone instead | Partly Not advertised as chat | Yes In-app messaging and broadcasts |
| Running the business | |||
| Income, expenses and what you actually netted | Yes Weekly and monthly, with CSV export | Yes Income, expenses and bookkeeping | Yes Finance insights and late payments |
| Mileage log for tax | Yes | Yes Business and personal, MTD-ready | Partly Not advertised |
| Multi-instructor school view | Yes Per instructor or the whole school | Yes Multi-car schools | Yes Schools supported |
| Enquiry manager for new leads | No | Yes | Partly Not advertised |
| Teaching aids (3D or animated scenarios) | No | Yes 36 scenarios, on Pro and Elite | Yes Teaching aids listed |
| Test centre pass-rate statistics | No | Partly Not advertised | Yes |
| Website builder for your school | No We list you in our directory instead | Partly Not advertised | Yes Custom website |
| AI assistant | Partly Voice notes: dictate a lesson and it writes it up and ticks the DVSA skills | No Not advertised | Yes “Pedal Intelligence” |
| Practicalities | |||
| iPhone | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Android | No In closed testing — not on Google Play yet | Yes | Yes |
| Free trial | 30 days | 30 days | 30 days |
| How long it has been around | Launched 2026 — the newest of the three | Years; the most established in the UK | Launched 2026 |
What they do that we don't
Every comparison page on the internet is written by the winner. Here's ours the other way round — the honest reasons you might pick one of the other two.
Pick Total Drive if…
- Your branding in front of pupils. Their pupil app carries your school name, logo and colours. Ours is called Roadworthy Student and looks like ours, not yours.
- Google Calendar. They sync both Google and Apple. We only talk to Apple Calendar.
- Teaching aids. 36 animated scenarios plus on-screen road diagrams you can draw on. We have nothing like it.
- Reminders sent for you, free. Theirs are advertised as free. Ours are free when they go from your own phone, but automated SMS runs on credits.
- An enquiry manager. For new leads coming in. We do not have one.
- The safe choice. They have been at this for years and are the most used system in the industry. That is a real reason and we are not going to pretend otherwise.
Pick Pedal if…
- They are on Android today. Our Android app is built and in closed testing, but it is not on Google Play. If you teach on an Android phone, Roadworthy is not ready for you.
- Messaging inside the app. Real two-way chat with pupils, and broadcasts. We deliberately send from your own phone instead, which is free but is not a chat thread.
- Pass rates by test centre. They have them. We do not.
- A website for your school. They will build you one. We list you in our directory and give you a booking link.
- A broader AI assistant. Theirs does more than our voice notes, which write up a lesson and tick the DVSA skills you worked on.
- Cheaper annually. £119.99 a year undercuts our £139.99.
And the two things we'd want you to know before you trust us
- We're iPhone-only right now. The Android app is built and in closed testing, but it isn't on Google Play yet. If your phone is Android, Roadworthy isn't ready for you.
- We're new. Fewer instructors, less road behind us, and a shorter list of things that have already been found and fixed. What you get in exchange is that we answer the emails ourselves and things you ask for tend to appear.
What we do that neither of them advertises
One thing, really — and it's the reason Roadworthy exists. Your constraint isn't teaching hours, it's the dead miles between them.
The day ordered by pickup
Every pupil's pickup on a map, the day ordered for the shortest drive from your base, and the total distance. How it works →
Booking the cheapest slot
Every free time ranked by the extra driving it would add — so the bad detour never gets booked in the first place. How it works →
It's in the car with you
Next pickup, live countdown, the pupil brief and one-tap navigation on the car's own screen. How it works →
Already on one of the others? Send us your export and we'll put your pupils and diary into Roadworthy by hand, so trying it doesn't mean typing 40 pupils in twice.
Frequently asked questions
Is Roadworthy the same as Total Drive or Pedal?
They do the same core job — diary, pupil progress, payments and a free app for pupils. The difference is that Roadworthy is built around the driving between lessons: your day ordered by pickup location, a warning when two lessons are too far apart to make in time, and every free slot ranked by how little driving it adds. Neither Total Drive nor Pedal advertises anything like that. Roadworthy is also the cheapest of the three at £13.99/month with every feature included, and the only one that runs on CarPlay.
Which is cheapest?
Monthly, Roadworthy at £13.99, then Pedal at £14.99, then Total Drive from £18 (inc. VAT) — and Total Drive's online booking sits on the £23 tier. Paid annually Pedal is cheapest at £119.99 against our £139.99. The whole spread is about one lesson a year, so it probably shouldn't be the deciding factor.
Does Roadworthy work on Android?
Not yet. The Android app is built and in closed testing, but it is not on Google Play. Total Drive and Pedal are both on Android today. If you teach on an Android phone, use one of them for now and join our list.
Do you take a cut of my lesson payments?
No. Payments settle to your own Stripe account and you are the merchant of record. The card fee is added to the pupil's checkout as a booking fee, so you receive the full lesson price. Our only charge is the subscription.
Can I move my pupils over without typing them all in again?
Yes. Send us an export from whatever you use now and we will import your pupils and diary by hand. There is a page for it at rwapp.co/import.
How do I know this comparison is fair?
Every claim about Total Drive and Pedal comes from their own public pricing pages, feature pages and App Store listings, checked on 3 September 2026. Where we could not verify something we say "not advertised" rather than "no". If something here is wrong or out of date, email us and we will fix it — including if the fix makes them look better.
Try it on your own diary
Every feature is included in one subscription — £13.99/month after a 30-day free trial. No card commission, no per-booking charges.
Download on the App StoreOn Android? It's coming soon — join the list →