Driving Lessons in Victoria: Prices, How Many You Need and the Drive Test

How much do driving lessons cost in Victoria?

Our prices are the same at every hour of every day, with no surcharge for weekends, public holidays, early mornings or after-hours driving lessons. The more driving lessons you book together, the lower the rate per hour:

• 3 x 60-minute driving lessons: $225, which is $75 an hour
• 5 x 60-minute driving lessons: $360, which is $72 an hour
• 10 x 60-minute driving lessons: $680, which is $68 an hour and our lowest rate
• 1 x 90-minute driving lesson: $120, which is $80 an hour
• 1 driving lesson and the VicRoads drive test: $224 for a 45-minute lesson, $240 for 60 minutes or $280 for 90 minutes, with the driving instructor’s car included
• 10 driving lessons and the VicRoads drive test: $840

Two things are worth checking before you compare any price: how long the driving lesson actually is, and whether the rate goes up at weekends. A price that looks lower for 45 minutes can work out dearer by the hour, and a weekend surcharge changes the sum for anyone who can only drive on a Saturday.

Two budgeting questions come up often. Ten hours of driving lessons is $680 in the 10 driving lesson package. If you also want the driving instructor’s car and support on test day, the 10 driving lessons and VicRoads drive test package is $840. Every package is on the prices and packages page.

What does VicRoads charge on top of driving lessons?

Driving lesson prices never include VicRoads fees. Those are paid to VicRoads directly, and VicRoads publishes them on its Ls and Ps fees page:

• Learner permit and P1 probationary licence: free, as the issue fee is waived
• Car Learner Permit Test: free online on the first attempt, $28.70 for further online attempts, or $50.80 in person including the appointment fee
• Hazard Perception Test: free online on the first attempt, $22.10 for further online attempts, or $44.00 in person including the appointment fee
• Car practical driving test: $75.30, made up of a $53.20 test fee and a $22.10 appointment fee

Moving a drive test costs a little more. If you change your appointment you pay the $22.10 appointment fee again when you rebook, and if you cancel it you pay the appointment fee and a new test fee. VicRoads reviews its fees, so check that page on the day you book rather than relying on any figure you have seen elsewhere, this one included.

How many driving lessons do you need in Victoria?

Victoria sets no minimum number of driving lessons with a driving instructor. What we recommend depends on where you are starting from, and every figure below is a recommended range, not a fixed minimum.

New learner drivers: 5 to 10 driving lessons

The first driving lessons cover the car’s controls, observation and quiet streets, then busier roads, intersections and lane changes. Once those are in place, supervised practice with a parent or another fully licensed driver builds up the 120 hours. If nobody at home is comfortable supervising yet, doing more of the early driving with an instructor makes sense, and that is where the 10 driving lesson package is the cheaper way to do it. One person can also sit in on a driving lesson, which lets a parent see how the instructor teaches before taking over the practice at home. The whole journey is set out on Get Your Ps.

Learners near their 120 hours: 3 to 5 driving lessons

These driving lessons are focused on the VicRoads drive test: parking, three-point turns, observation checks and the testing routes around the office you are booked at. Three suits a learner who drives well everywhere. Closer to five suits a learner with lane changes, roundabouts or parking still to tidy up. How Many Driving Lessons Do You Need Before the VicRoads Test? goes through how to choose.

Overseas licence holders: 2 to 10 driving lessons, by experience

Whether you need a drive test at all depends on where your licence was issued, so check that with VicRoads first. If you do sit one, we recommend:

• 2 to 3 driving lessons if you are an experienced driver already driving regularly in Melbourne
• 3 to 5 driving lessons if you have good experience but drive here only occasionally, which is most overseas drivers
• 5 to 10 or more if you are still adjusting to Melbourne conditions and Victorian road rules

More detail is on our overseas licence conversion page.

The 120 hour rule and the permit holding period

If you are under 21, you must complete and declare 120 hours of supervised driving, including 20 hours at night, before the drive test. You also need to have held your learner permit for 12 months if you are under 21, 6 months if you are 21 to under 25, or 3 months if you are 25 or older. Driving lessons are logged hour for hour like any other supervised driving, because Victoria does not give bonus hours for time with a driving instructor. Learners 21 and over have no minimum hours to log, but they sit exactly the same test.

Can you get a free driving lesson in Victoria?

Yes, if you are eligible. Transport Victoria’s myLearners free lesson gives a learner and their supervising driver one free coaching lesson together.

“The myLearners free lesson initiative offers Victorian learners and their supervising driver a free 60-minute coaching lesson with an accredited driving instructor.”

Transport Victoria

To be eligible you must hold a Victorian learner permit, be 16 to 21 years old, have completed 10 to 50 hours of driving practice, and bring the fully licensed supervisor who will do most of your supervising. You register on the myLearners free lesson website for a free lesson ID, find an accredited instructor by suburb, and book with them directly.

Alex Driving School does not deliver the myLearners free lesson, so book it through the program’s own website. It is one lesson, and the rest of your driving lessons are with whichever driving school you choose.

How does the VicRoads drive test work?

The drive test has two parts: a pre-drive check of the car, then the on-road drive, which is split into two stages.

“You must pass stage one in order to progress to stage two.”

Transport Victoria

• Pre-drive check. Before you move, the testing officer asks you to find and operate the car’s controls, such as the indicators, headlights, wipers, horn and hazard lights.
• Stage one. About ten minutes in less challenging conditions, including a low speed parking manoeuvre.
• Stage two. About twenty minutes in busier traffic, with lane changes and merging with other traffic.

At the end you return to the VicRoads office for your result. Test day is covered step by step on our VicRoads driving test information page, and the driving lesson that runs straight into the test is explained in What Is a Mock Driving Test?

Why do people fail the VicRoads drive test?

Transport Victoria names two kinds of serious error, and knowing them is a large part of the preparation.

An immediate termination error ends the test on the spot. Examples include a collision, mounting the kerb while driving, going 5km/h or more over the limit at any point, driving through a stop sign or a red light, or being given help by your driving instructor or the testing officer. A critical error is something potentially unsafe that is not an immediate danger, such as stalling, driving too slowly for the conditions, or rolling through a stop sign without endangering anyone.

There is nothing mysterious about any of that, and consistent practice makes it automatic: keeping to the limit wherever it changes, stopping fully at every stop sign, and completing every mirror and head check. Driving lessons on the testing routes help because the places where the limit drops and the stop signs you will meet are driven before test day, so none of it is unfamiliar.

Can you use your own car for the drive test?

Yes, if it meets the VicRoads criteria, but VicRoads does not supply a car, and one common feature of newer cars rules many of them out.

“A vehicle fitted with an electronic or foot operated park brake cannot be used for solo tests.”

Transport Victoria

That is one reason many learners sit the test in the driving instructor’s car. In a lesson and test package it is a dual-control car you have already driven, the driving lesson runs straight into the test, and your driving instructor sits in the front passenger seat while the VicRoads testing officer assesses from the rear seat.

Which VicRoads offices run drive tests?

Thirteen VicRoads offices in and around Melbourne and Geelong conduct drive tests:

• Bundoora VicRoads, Graduate Road
• Carlton VicRoads, Lygon Street
• Coolaroo VicRoads, Pascoe Vale Road
• Deer Park VicRoads, Mt Derrimut Road
• Dromana VicRoads, Collins Road
• Frankston VicRoads, Hartnett Drive, Seaford
• Geelong VicRoads, Fyans Street, South Geelong
• Heatherton VicRoads, Corporate Drive
• Melton VicRoads, High Street
• Mitcham VicRoads, Heatherdale Road, Ringwood
• Pakenham East VicRoads, Treloar Lane, until 16 November 2026, when testing moves to the new Pakenham VicRoads at 33 Exchange Drive
• Sunbury VicRoads, Macedon Street
• Werribee VicRoads, Watton Street

Not every VicRoads office conducts drive tests, which matters most if you are new to the area or new to the country. Broadmeadows, Burwood East, Essendon Fields, Hoppers Crossing, Ringwood, Sunshine and VicRoads Exhibition Street are all open for other business, but none of them runs drive tests. Ringwood VicRoads is a different office from Mitcham VicRoads on Heatherdale Road in Ringwood, which does.

No office is easier than another. Choose the one that is practical for you, because that is also where your drive test preparation happens. Driving lessons normally start from home, work or your local train station, but once the test is the goal we suggest meeting at the VicRoads office, so the whole driving lesson goes on the testing routes rather than on getting there. Our driving instructors know the current testing routes at every office. To find yours, see driving lessons by suburb.

How do you choose a driving school in Victoria?

Six things are worth checking before you pay for a package:

• the rate per hour once packaged, not the price of a single driving lesson
• whether weekends, public holidays or early mornings cost more
• whether driving lessons are one-to-one in a dual-control car
• whether the driving instructors sit tests at your VicRoads office and know its testing routes
• the cancellation terms, and how long a package stays valid
• Google reviews you can read for yourself

Be wary of anyone who guarantees a pass, because no driving school can. What a good driving instructor does is check your current skill level, gauge your progress between driving lessons and give you good advice.

Last checked 15 September 2026 against VicRoads and Transport Victoria. Fees and licensing rules change, so confirm anything time-critical with VicRoads on 13 11 71.

Common questions

How much does it cost to get your licence in Victoria?

The VicRoads side is modest. The learner permit, the P1 licence and the first online attempts at the Learner Permit Test and the Hazard Perception Test are free, and the car drive test is $75.30 including the appointment fee. The larger cost is driving lessons, which depends on how many you need. At Alex Driving School a 60-minute driving lesson costs $68 to $75 in a package, and a lesson and drive test package with the driving instructor’s car starts at $224 for 45 minutes or $240 for 60 minutes.

Is 20 lessons enough to pass?

For most learners 20 driving lessons is more than the recommended ranges: 5 to 10 at the start, supervised practice in between, and 3 to 5 before the VicRoads drive test. They are recommended ranges, not fixed minimums, and no number of driving lessons can guarantee a pass.

Can a parent sit in on a driving lesson?

Yes. At Alex Driving School one person can sit in on a driving lesson, in the back seat. It works best for a parent or the supervising driver, who sees how the driving instructor teaches and can carry the same approach into the practice hours at home.

What do I bring to my first driving lesson?

Your learner permit, as a card or on your phone, and any glasses or contact lenses you need for driving. Have your logbook or logbook app ready too, so the hour can be recorded.

Do professional lessons count towards the 120 hours?

Yes, hour for hour, like any other supervised driving. Victoria does not award bonus hours for driving lessons with a driving instructor the way some other states do.

Can I use my interstate learner permit in Victoria?

You can drive on it, but you need a Victorian learner permit before you can sit the VicRoads drive test, and VicRoads asks you to convert within six months of residing in Victoria. Can You Use an Interstate Learner Permit in Victoria? covers the detail.

How much notice do I need to cancel a driving lesson?

At Alex Driving School, at least 24 hours for a driving lesson, and at least 48 hours for a VicRoads drive test booking or for a driving lesson longer than 90 minutes. Without that notice the session is forfeited. The full terms are on our terms and conditions page.