Comparison

Orbit vs Lesson Diary

Lesson Diary is a popular diary app for ADIs. Orbit does everything it does - plus Making Tax Digital records, pay-at-booking, AI lesson debriefs, and a pupil marketplace. Here's the full breakdown across 45 features.

At a glance

Making Tax Digital built in

Orbit totals your lesson income and expenses into your quarterly Making Tax Digital updates, built on HMRC's MTD for Income Tax API. Live submissions open once HMRC approves Orbit.

Pay-at-booking

Pupils pay when they book - no chasing, no "I forgot my wallet". Lesson Diary processes payments separately after the lesson.

AI lesson debriefs

Record a 30-second voice note, AI generates a structured debrief for your pupil. Lesson Diary has no AI features.

Embeddable booking widget

Drop a one-line embed on your WordPress, Wix, or Squarespace site. Pupils book and pay without leaving your website. Not available on Lesson Diary.

Cancellation fee automation

Late cancellations are automatically charged to the pupil's saved card. No awkward conversations. Lesson Diary doesn't enforce cancellation fees.

Business health dashboard

Monthly health reports, pass rate monitoring, revenue trends. Know exactly how your business is performing. Not available on Lesson Diary.

45 features compared, side by side

Based on publicly available information as of March 2026.

Feature
Orbit
Lesson Diary
Scheduling & Booking
Lesson diary
Online pupil booking portal
Automated SMS lesson remindersFull SMS on higher Lesson Diary plans only. Orbit sends email and push reminders; SMS isn't live yet
Basic tier limited
Availability windows & working hours
Embeddable booking widgetOne-line embed for WordPress, Wix, Squarespace, or any website
Waiting list managementPupils join when fully booked, notified when slots open
Block-out dates for holidays
Payments
Card payments
Pay-at-booking (prepaid lessons)Pupils pay when they book - eliminates unpaid lessons
Automatic cancellation fee chargingCharged to saved card - no awkward conversations
Your own Stripe merchant accountEach instructor holds their own account — payouts go directly to your bank
Per-pupil payment balance tracking
Manual payment logging (cash, bank transfer)
Next-business-day payouts
Tax & Compliance
HMRC Making Tax Digital filingBuilt on HMRC's MTD for Income Tax API; live submissions open once HMRC approves Orbit
Awaiting HMRC approval
Quarterly return submission to HMRCDirect to HMRC's API, not via a third-party package, once HMRC approves Orbit
Awaiting HMRC approval
Year-end final declaration
Awaiting HMRC approval
Income & expense trackingLesson Diary tracks income but doesn't file to HMRC
HMRC expense categories (fuel, insurance, etc.)
Mileage tracking (simplified or actual cost)
Financial audit trail (immutable event log)Every payment, refund, and fee recorded in an immutable log
Profit & loss summaries
Data export for accountants
Pupil Management
Pupil profiles & contact details
DVSA syllabus trackerTrack every pupil against official DVSA driver's record topics
Competency scoring
Pupil self-service portalOrbit portal is token-based - no password needed
AI lesson debriefs30-second voice note → structured debrief sent to pupil
Test readiness indicatorData-driven readiness score based on syllabus, grades, consistency
Theory & practical test date tracking
CSV pupil import (from other apps)Import from Lesson Diary, Total Drive, or spreadsheets
Teaching Tools
Teaching aids diagram libraryManoeuvres, roundabouts, dual carriageways, crossings, and more
30+ diagrams
DVSA Standards Check preparationTrack all 17 DVSA competencies with scoring trends
PDI training logTrack Part 2 & Part 3 training hours with progress bars
Business Growth
Instructor marketplace directoryLearners search by postcode and book you directly. One-time intro fee per new pupil
Lead selling & buyingSell excess enquiries to nearby ADIs, or buy verified leads
Business health dashboardMonthly health reports with traffic-light scoring
Pass rate monitoringFirst-time pass rate, average faults, monthly trends
Branding & Customisation
Custom logo & branding on pupil portalCustom logo, colour, and app name for your booking page
Branded booking page URLOrbit: orbitdriving.com/book/your-name
Platform & Schools
Android appOrbit is on Google Play and also installs from the browser on any phone
iPhone app
Coming soon
Multi-instructor school management
Enterprise portal with licence keysCentralised billing, school-wide reporting, API access
GDPR data export & account deletion

Information sourced from public websites. We update this page regularly but cannot guarantee third-party accuracy.

Pricing at a glance

Orbit

Freefor instructors

Free for instructors. Schools from £8/seat.

  • Free for instructors, no card needed
  • Pay-at-booking & cancellation fees
  • Making Tax Digital records (HMRC approval in progress)
  • AI lesson debriefs
  • Marketplace & lead selling
  • Business health dashboard
  • Standards Check prep & PDI log
  • Your own Stripe merchant account

Lesson Diary

From £10/mo

Higher tiers required for SMS and advanced features.

  • Free tier available (limited)
  • Native iOS & Android apps
  • Lesson scheduling & diary
  • Income tracking (no HMRC filing)
  • No AI features
  • No marketplace or leads
  • No cancellation fee enforcement
  • Limited SMS on basic plan

Which should you choose?

Choose Orbit if

  • You want pupils to pay when they book - no more chasing
  • You want Making Tax Digital records built in, not a separate tool
  • You want AI to handle lesson debriefs in 30 seconds
  • You want a marketplace that brings pupils to you
  • You want automatic cancellation fee enforcement
  • You want business health reports and pass rate tracking
  • You want automatic email reminders included
  • You're preparing for Standards Check or still a PDI

Choose Lesson Diary if

  • You want an iPhone app today (Orbit's is coming soon)
  • You only need a basic lesson diary without extras
  • You're already using it and happy with the feature set

Try Orbit free

Free for instructors. Set up in 3 minutes. See why ADIs are switching to pay-at-booking.

Create your free account

Based on publicly available information as of March 2026. Already using Lesson Diary? We can help you migrate your pupil data.