Switching from Total Drive.
What happens to your diary when you move: what to export, what gets imported for you, and how to compare both platforms on your own learners before deciding anything.
Why instructors are reviewing it now
In March 2025, Total Drive Software Limited was acquired by Software Circle plc, a listed group that buys and holds software businesses, in a deal announced at up to £7.5m. The product keeps trading and keeps its strengths, but a change of ownership is a natural time to review pricing, support and direction. It comes on top of the reasons instructors were already giving:
- Online booking sits at the £23 tier rather than being included from the entry price.
- The tooling is instructor-first, so a school adding its third or fourth instructor can outgrow the shape of it.
- There is no published API or webhooks.
If you are still weighing options rather than planning a move, start with the alternatives page, which covers the whole market.
What moves across
Passdesk's importers cover the records a working diary contains. You export, and the import is done for you at no charge.
| In your export | Where it lands in Passdesk |
|---|---|
| Learners and contact details | Students, with guardian details where you hold them |
| Diary and lesson history | Schedule — past lessons land as completed history |
| Packages and payment records | Purchases, with remaining balances carried over |
| Progress and reflective logs | Progress records against the DVSA-aligned rubric |
| Test outcomes | Test attempts, so pass history stays on the learner |
The move, step by step
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Export everything while your subscription is live
Learners and their contact details, lesson history, payment records, progress logs. Access usually ends when a subscription does, so export first and cancel later.
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Start a Passdesk trial
Thirty days, full product, and no card needed. When you are ready, subscribe from Billing and the days left on your trial carry over.
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Send the export over
Passdesk imports it for you, at no charge — learners, lesson history, packages and payments, progress and test results. If your file looks unusual, send it anyway; the importers handle a fair range of formats.
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Run both side by side
Keep Total Drive running for a week or two and compare your own diary in both. That’s why the import happens before you decide.
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Move your learners, then cancel
Invite your learners, whose history is already imported, and cancel the old subscription at your renewal date once you are sure.
Worth knowing before you commit
Passdesk is newer to the market, with a smaller installed base. What you get in return: recorded practice routes tied to real test centres, a waitlist that refills cancelled slots on its own, card payments and Direct Debit instalment plans, and one platform that still fits if you grow from a solo diary into a multi-instructor school. The full side-by-side, with figures read from both vendors' pages on 29 September 2026, is on the comparison page.
Common questions
What does it cost to switch from Total Drive to Passdesk?
The import itself costs nothing — send the export and it is set up for you. On subscription, Passdesk starts at £19/mo, plus 2.5% + 20p per card payment. Total Drive's published pricing: Basic £18, Ultimate £23, Pro £24 and Elite £26 a month for one instructor. Online booking arrives with Ultimate. A school picks its size and every instructor pays that band’s rate: £12 (Basic) to £20 (Elite) each for 2 to 9 instructors, and £11 to £19 for 10 to 15, where the size picker stops. The pricing page says “Incl. VAT”, but its subscriber terms say fees exclude VAT. Card payments run on Adyen with a platform fee, and the account holder chooses whether they or their learners pay it. Free for PDIs until they pass Part 3, for up to 12 months. Both read from the vendors' own pages on 29 September 2026.
Do my learners have to do anything?
Very little. Their lesson history, progress and any remaining package balance are imported before they sign in. They accept the invite, and booking carries on.
What happens if I am mid-month on Total Drive?
Run both in parallel. The Passdesk trial is 30 days, so you can import, compare and move learners across within a month, then cancel Total Drive at your renewal date rather than losing paid-for time.
Was Total Drive really acquired?
Yes — Total Drive Software Limited was acquired by Software Circle plc, a listed software group, in March 2025, in a deal the buyer announced at up to £7.5m. The product keeps trading, and its strengths are set out on this page. An ownership change is the moment many instructors choose to review what they run.
Can I leave Passdesk just as easily?
Yes. Your data exports from Passdesk too — learners, lessons, payments and progress.
Try it with your own diary
Thirty days, with the import done before you decide. If it’s not for you, you can export your data again.