Local driving instructors near you: compare prices and availability, book online

Enter your postcode in the search box at the top of this page to see local driving instructors near you who cover your address. Each listing shows the hourly price, the total with Orbit's booking fee, manual or automatic, and the next free lesson time. Choose a slot, pay by card, and the lesson is booked.

Local driving instructors near me: how the postcode search works

  1. Enter your postcode

    The search returns instructors within 15 miles whose own coverage area includes your postcode, nearest first.

  2. Filter and sort

    Narrow the list to manual or automatic, a female or male instructor, or a price range. Sort by distance, soonest free slot, price or pass rate.

  3. Read the profile

    Open a listing for the instructor's bio, years teaching, hourly price, how far away they're based, and reviews and pass rate where the instructor has them.

  4. Book, or join the waiting list

    Instructors who take card payments show a Book button with their next free time (or See times). Those who don't yet take online bookings offer a waiting list instead.

Two things to know about the numbers on a listing. Star ratings come from the instructor's own pupils, through a review link the instructor sends, and only a pupil with a completed lesson in that instructor's Orbit diary can leave one. Pass rates are worked out from the test results the instructor records in Orbit, and only appear once at least five tests are recorded. Orbit does not check those results against DVSA records.

Nobody covering your postcode yet? The results page asks for your details so we can get in touch when an instructor in your area joins. Or send a match request with your postcode and the times you're free.

Browse driving instructors by region and town

Orbit has a page for 993 towns, cities and London areas across England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. Each one opens the same search already set to that place, so you can find a driving instructor without knowing the exact postcode. A shortlist of cities is below, and every place is listed by county or region further down. Our locations directory also covers ADI training areas, if you're thinking of teaching rather than learning.

Driving instructors in LondonDriving instructors in BirminghamDriving instructors in ManchesterDriving instructors in LeedsDriving instructors in LiverpoolDriving instructors in SheffieldDriving instructors in BristolDriving instructors in NewcastleDriving instructors in NottinghamDriving instructors in LeicesterDriving instructors in CoventryDriving instructors in CardiffDriving instructors in EdinburghDriving instructors in GlasgowDriving instructors in ReadingDriving instructors in SouthamptonDriving instructors in PortsmouthDriving instructors in OxfordDriving instructors in CambridgeDriving instructors in BrightonDriving instructors in PlymouthDriving instructors in ExeterDriving instructors in YorkDriving instructors in BathDriving instructors in NorwichDriving instructors in Milton KeynesDriving instructors in AberdeenDriving instructors in Belfast

Automatic and female driving instructors

Both filters have their own pages, and each works for every town on this page.

Automatic driving instructors

Instructors who teach in an automatic car, including those who teach both manual and automatic.

Female driving instructors

Instructors who list themselves as female on their Orbit profile.

Automatic comes with a licence catch: pass in an automatic and you can only drive automatic cars (category B auto on GOV.UK's licence categories), until you pass a test in a manual car. Our manual vs automatic lessons guide weighs that up, and if local automatic slots look full, read why automatic lessons are hard to find and finding a female automatic instructor.

What driving lessons cost near you

There is no set price. GOV.UK says instructors set their own prices, with no minimum or maximum, so compare a few local instructors before you book.

Every listing shows the instructor's hourly price and, where they take online bookings, the total you pay with the booking fee. Some also show an introductory offer on their listing. For typical prices by region and what pushes the hourly rate up, see how much driving lessons cost in the UK. Before you pay for 10 hours upfront, read what to check before block booking driving lessons.

The number of hours you need moves the total more than a few pounds on the hourly rate. GOV.UK sets no minimum number of lessons, and our guide to how many driving lessons you need covers the averages.

How booking and paying online works

You can book driving lessons online with any instructor whose listing shows a Book or See times button. New to lessons altogether? Our step-by-step guide to how driving lessons work starts before the first booking.

  1. Pick a lesson type and a free time on the instructor's booking page.
  2. Check the total. Checkout shows the lesson price, the Orbit booking fee and the total before you pay.
  3. Pay by card. Stripe processes the payment and the booking is confirmed.
  4. Pay for later lessons by card in your pupil portal, or directly to your instructor however you agree between you.

The booking fee

Learners pay Orbit a booking fee of £2.99 or 4% of the amount, whichever is higher. It goes to Orbit, not your instructor, and doesn't change the price the instructor sets. The minimum applies up to £74.75; above that, 4% is the larger figure.

Booking fee on example lesson prices
Example lessonPrice4% of priceBooking feeYou pay
1-hour lesson£30.00£1.20£2.99£32.99
1-hour lesson£35.00£1.40£2.99£37.99
1-hour lesson£45.00£1.80£2.99£47.99
2-hour lesson£80.00£3.20£3.20£83.20

Prices in the table are examples to show the rule, not average prices.

The fee applies to card payments made through Orbit: a lesson booked online, or a balance paid in your pupil portal. There is no Orbit fee on cash or bank transfer you pay your instructor directly, or when you use lesson credit you have already paid for.

How to check an instructor's DVSA badge

Orbit does not check instructors' qualifications. Instructors create their own listing and add their own ADI details, so the check is yours to make.

  • Look at the windscreen. Anyone you pay to teach you must be a qualified approved driving instructor (ADI) or a trainee, and must display a DVSA badge: green for a qualified instructor, pink for a trainee.
  • Search DVSA's list. The find driving instructors service shows approved instructors near you and their grade, if they declare it. Instructors choose whether to appear, so a missing name proves nothing on its own.
  • Ask DVSA. For an instructor who isn't listed, contact DVSA with their name and ADI number: 0300 200 1122, Monday to Friday, 8am to 5pm, or customerservices@dvsa.gov.uk.
  • In Northern Ireland, instructors register with the DVA instead. nidirect explains how to confirm an instructor is registered.

If someone charges for lessons without a badge, you can report them to DVSA. Unhappy with a qualified instructor's service or behaviour? Complain to DVSA. Our guide to checking your driving instructor is DVSA approved goes step by step, and 10 red flags your driving instructor is ripping you off covers the warning signs a badge won't show.

Search instructors by postcode

Every town and city we cover

Grouped by county and region. If your town isn't listed, pick the nearest one or search your postcode.

Grampian

Aberdeen

Greater London

Abbey WoodActonBalhamBarking and DagenhamBarnetBatterseaBeckenhamBecktonBethnal GreenBexleyBlackheathBowBrentBrixtonBromleyCamdenCanning TownCarshaltonCatfordCharltonCheamChelseaChingfordChislehurstChiswickClaphamCrouch EndCroydonCrystal PalaceDagenhamDalstonDeptfordDulwichEalingEast HamEast LondonEdgwareEdmontonElthamEnfieldErithFelthamFinchleyForest GateFulhamGolders GreenGreenfordGreenwichHackneyHammersmithHampsteadHamptonHanwellHaringeyHarrowHaveringHayesHendonHighgateHillingdonHornchurchHounslowIlfordIsleworthIslingtonKensingtonKentish TownKingston upon ThamesLambethLeeLewishamLeytonLeytonstoneLondonManor ParkMertonMile EndMill HillMitchamMordenMuswell HillNew MaldenNewhamNorburyNorth LondonNortholtNotting HillOrpingtonPalmers GreenPeckhamPinnerPlaistowPlumsteadPutneyRainhamRedbridgeRichmondRomfordRuislipShepherd's BushSidcupSouth LondonSouthgateSouthwarkStanmoreStoke NewingtonStratfordStreathamSurbitonSuttonSydenhamTeddingtonThamesmeadThornton HeathTootingTottenhamTower HamletsTwickenhamUpminsterUxbridgeWallingtonWalthamstowWandsworthWellingWembleyWest LondonWestminsterWimbledonWood GreenWoolwich

Lothian

Edinburgh

South Glamorgan

Cardiff

Strathclyde

Glasgow

West Glamorgan

Swansea

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Questions about finding a driving instructor

Enter your postcode in the search at the top of this page. Orbit lists instructors within 15 miles whose own coverage area includes your postcode, nearest first, with their hourly price and next free lesson time. You can filter by manual or automatic, instructor gender and price, or browse by town.

No. Instructors create their own listings and add their own ADI details, and Orbit does not verify them. In England, Scotland and Wales, anyone you pay for driving lessons must be a DVSA approved driving instructor (green windscreen badge) or a trainee (pink badge). Check the badge at your first lesson, or contact DVSA with the instructor's name and ADI number to confirm. In Northern Ireland, instructors register with the DVA.

Orbit doesn't record whether an instructor works for themselves or teaches under a driving school or franchise. Instructors list themselves, and where one gives a business name it appears on their listing, so you can see who you are booking with.

£2.99 or 4% of the amount you pay by card, whichever is higher. On a £35 lesson that is £2.99; on an £80 two-hour lesson it is £3.20. The fee goes to Orbit, not your instructor, and appears as its own line before you pay. There is no fee on cash or bank transfer you pay your instructor directly.

Instructors set their own prices, and GOV.UK says there is no minimum or maximum. Each listing shows the hourly price, plus the total with the booking fee where the instructor takes online bookings. Our driving lesson cost guide breaks prices down by region.

There's no minimum number of lessons or hours of practice, according to GOV.UK. It depends on how quickly you learn and how much you practise between lessons. The government's Ready to Pass site (readytopass.campaign.gov.uk) sets out the signs you're ready for your test.

Manual lessons are in a car with a clutch and gear stick; automatic lessons are in a car that changes gear for you. Pass in an automatic and you can only drive automatic cars (category B auto). A manual pass gives full category B, which covers both.

Yes. Nothing ties you to one instructor. Before you switch, check whether you have prepaid lessons left and what your current instructor's terms say about refunds.

Try a nearby postcode or town first. If there are still no results, the search page asks for your details so we can get in touch when an instructor covering your area joins. You can also send a match request with your postcode and the days and times you're free.