Road44 vs Student Driving Logger
Student Driving Logger by Akash Pulinthanathu is a free permit hours log with GPS route maps. See how it compares with Road44 on price, ads and exports.
Disclosure: Road44 is our app. We’ve tried to be fair, and that means saying where Akash Pulinthanathu’s Student Driving Logger is the better fit. Ratings and pricing are from the US App Store as of September 2026.
Quick answer
Student Driving Logger by Akash Pulinthanathu (not Student Driving Log by Sam Wolf, a different app) is a permit practice log that records each drive’s route, duration and weather while it runs, with manual entry for drives you forgot to track. It has been on the App Store for iPhone since 2020 and is also on Android. The catch is the ads on iPhone. Paying $3.99 removes them.
Road44 (listed as Driving Hours Tracker & Logger) is a driving log for iPhone, iPad and Android. You time drives live or add past ones and log the supervisor, vehicle, road types, weather, skills and night hours toward a goal. It’s free to download and needs no account. Pro costs $29.99 a year or $2.99 a week after a 7-day free trial.
If you want GPS route maps and automatic night detection with nothing to pay beyond an optional $3.99, pick Student Driving Logger. If you want no ads, more detail on each drive and CSV or image exports, pick Road44.
Side-by-side
| Feature | Road44 | Student Driving Logger |
|---|---|---|
| Platforms | iOS + Android (iPhone and iPad) | iOS + Android (iPhone only, no iPad) |
| US App Store rating | 5.0 (10 ratings) | 4.7 (6,000 ratings) |
| Last updated | August 2026 | July 2026 |
| Free-tier limits | Not stated | None listed; the only purchase removes ads |
| Paid plans | Pro: $29.99/year or $2.99/week, 7-day free trial | Remove Ads: $3.99; no subscription |
| Live drive recording | Yes, one-tap full-screen timer; hold to start and hold to stop | Yes, records route, duration and weather while a drive runs |
| Keeps recording in the background | Yes, drive mode survives app restarts and backgrounding | Yes, with location access set to Always; otherwise the app stays open |
| GPS route map | Not stated | Yes, with a heat map of your most frequented routes |
| Add past drives | Yes, on an all-optional form | Yes, add and edit drives by hand |
| Night hours | Yes, a day or night flag on each drive | Yes, detected automatically since May 2026 |
| Multiple learners | Not stated | Not stated |
| Goals | All-time goal, night-hours sub-goal, weekly and monthly targets; tier not stated | Night-hours goal with a progress ring since March 2026; an overall goal is not named in the listing |
| Supervisor and vehicle | Yes, names with recent-value suggestions | Not stated |
| Road types and skills practiced | Yes, five road types and seven skills, from parallel parking to three-point turns | Not stated |
| Weather | Yes, clear, rain, snow, fog, ice or wind | Yes, recorded with the drive and shown in the PDF |
| Distance | Yes, odometer readings or a manual trip distance | Yes, miles in the US and kilometers elsewhere; odometer entry not stated |
| Earnings, expenses and fuel | Yes, with tips and trip purpose | Not stated |
| DMV settings | Not stated | Listing says you can tailor it to your DMV’s guidelines; the settings are not listed |
| Move drives between devices | Not stated | Yes, file import and export since June 2025; file format not stated |
| Export | Text, CSV, PDF or image; table or card layout; no watermark | PDF, multi-page, with running totals, page numbers, weather and optional notes |
| Languages | 1 (English) | 1 (English) |
| Ads | No | Yes on iPhone, removable for $3.99; the Play listing does not flag ads |
| Account required | No | Not stated; reviewers say there is no sign-up |
| Data stays on device | Yes, with no account | Not stated |
| Privacy label | No data used to track you; Purchases, Identifiers, Usage Data and Diagnostics not linked to you | Identifiers and Usage Data used to track you and linked to you; Location, Usage Data and Diagnostics not linked to you |
Where Student Driving Logger wins
GPS routes and a heat map. Student Driving Logger records the route, duration and weather while a drive is running, and it builds a heat map of the routes you drive most. Reviewers say they like the maps. With location access set to Always it keeps recording in the background; without it, the app has to stay open. Road44’s listing doesn’t mention GPS. Its distance comes from odometer readings or a trip distance you type in.
Night drives sorted for you. Since version 3.2.1 in May 2026, Student Driving Logger detects night drives on its own. A March 2026 update added a night-hours goal with a progress ring on the home screen. Road44 has a night-hours sub-goal too, but its listing describes a day or night flag on each drive and doesn’t mention automatic detection.
Free, with one small purchase. The listing puts no feature behind a paywall. Drive tracking, manual logging, stats, the heat map, PDF export and file import and export are all part of the free app. The only purchase is Remove Ads at $3.99, and there is no subscription. Reviewers say they like that it’s free. Road44 sells a Pro subscription, and its listing doesn’t say which features need it.
A long track record, and a log that can move phones. Student Driving Logger has been on the App Store since 2020 and holds 4.7 stars from about 6,000 US ratings, plus 4.6 stars from 141 reviews on Google Play. Reviewers say it’s easy to use and better than RoadReady. Since June 2025 you can export your drives to a file and import them on another device. Road44 arrived in 2026 with 10 ratings, and its listing doesn’t mention backup or moving drives.
Where Road44 wins
No ads, and no data used to track you. Ads are a top complaint in Student Driving Logger’s reviews. Reviewers say an ad plays after saving or editing a drive, and one says it is usually a long ad you can’t skip. Its iPhone age rating lists Contains Advertising, and its privacy label declares Identifiers and Usage Data used to track you. Road44 shows no ads, needs no account and keeps your drives on the device. Its label declares no data used to track you.
Supervisor, vehicle, road types and skills on every drive. Student Driving Logger’s listing doesn’t mention a supervisor field, a vehicle field, road types or skills practiced, and one reviewer asks for a vehicle field. Road44 logs supervisor and vehicle names with recent-value suggestions, five road types, six weather conditions and seven skills, parallel parking and three-point turns among them. It also tracks earnings, tips, expenses and fuel, so the same log works for gig or delivery driving.
More ways to export. Student Driving Logger’s listing names one export format, PDF, and one reviewer asks for CSV. Road44 exports Text, CSV, PDF or image files in a table or card layout. You choose which fields appear and print any date range with a live preview. No export carries a watermark.
An iPad app, and a timer built to keep your drive. Student Driving Logger is iPhone-only on iOS. Reviewers say drives were lost or recording stopped mid-drive, though most of those reviews predate version 3.0 in June 2025. One reviewer on the current version says a drive is lost unless you tap finish, yes and save. Road44’s drive mode survives app restarts and backgrounding. You hold to start and hold to stop, which keeps a drive from being lost by accident. It runs on iPhone and iPad.
Pricing
- Road44 is free to download. Pro costs $29.99 a year or $2.99 a week after a 7-day free trial. The store listing doesn’t spell out which features Pro adds.
- Student Driving Logger by Akash Pulinthanathu is free, and its listing puts no feature behind a purchase. Its one in-app purchase, Remove Ads, is $3.99 as of September 2026. The listing doesn’t say whether that purchase is one-time. There is no subscription.
Over a year of logging practice hours, Student Driving Logger costs nothing if you keep the ads on iPhone, or $3.99 for Remove Ads, which is not listed as a subscription. A year of Road44 Pro costs $29.99 on the annual plan or $155.48 if you pay weekly.
Which one should you pick?
Pick Student Driving Logger if you want GPS route maps and automatic night detection, you’d rather pay nothing or $3.99 than subscribe, you need to move your log to another phone, or you want an app with 6,000 US ratings behind it.
Pick Road44 if you want no ads, you want to log a supervisor, vehicle, road types and skills on each drive, you need CSV or image exports, you use an iPad, or you also drive for gig work and want earnings and fuel in the same log.
Our best driving hours tracker apps comparison puts more driving logs side by side. If Road44 fits, you can download it for iPhone, iPad or Android.
Frequently asked questions
Is Student Driving Logger free?
Yes. Student Driving Logger by Akash Pulinthanathu is free, and its App Store listing puts no feature behind a purchase. Its only in-app purchase is Remove Ads at $3.99 on the US App Store as of September 2026, and there is no subscription. On iPhone the age rating lists Contains Advertising. Road44 is free to download, with Pro at $29.99 a year or $2.99 a week after a 7-day free trial. Road44's listing does not say which features need Pro.
Is Student Driving Logger the same app as Student Driving Log?
No. Student Driving Logger is made by Akash Pulinthanathu and has been on the App Store since 2020. Student Driving Log by Sam Wolf is a different app with a near-identical name. On Google Play, GoTime: Student Driving Logger is another separate app. Road44 is listed on both stores as Driving Hours Tracker & Logger.
Does Student Driving Logger track drives with GPS?
Yes. Student Driving Logger records the route, duration and weather while a drive is running, and it shows a heat map of your most frequented routes. To keep recording in the background it needs location access set to Always; otherwise the app has to stay open during the drive. Road44's listing does not mention GPS. Its distance comes from odometer readings or a manual trip distance.
Does Student Driving Logger track night driving hours?
Yes. Student Driving Logger has detected night drives automatically since version 3.2.1 in May 2026, and a March 2026 update added a night-hours goal with a progress ring on the home screen. Road44 records a day or night flag on each drive and has a night-hours sub-goal for supervised practice.
Can Student Driving Logger export a log for the DMV?
Student Driving Logger exports a PDF, multi-page since April 2024, with running totals and page numbers since March 2026 and weather and optional notes since June 2026. Its listing says the PDF can help you comply with DMV requirements, but it claims no state certification, and one reviewer says the Nevada DMV would not accept it. Road44 exports Text, CSV, PDF or image files. Neither listing claims DMV or state approval, so check your state's rules before relying on either app.
Do I need an account for Student Driving Logger or Road44?
Road44 needs no account and keeps your drives on the device. Student Driving Logger's listing does not mention an account, and reviewers say there is no sign-up. It moves drives between phones with a file import and export added in June 2025; the store does not name the file format.