Over the last few weeks, I’ve been revising for my theory test, so Marmalade have tasked me with reviewing some popular apps and resources to prepare for your theory test. I decided to try the following:

• Official DVSA Theory Test Kit
• DVSA Highway Code App
• Driving Test Success - Driving Theory Test 4 in 1 Kit
• Theory Test Pro
• Theory Test Mock Papers

They all had their pros and cons and I can see them all being helpful in some way, but I wanted to share with you what I thought about each one and how they’ve helped me prepare for my theory test!

Disclaimer: All thoughts are my own and do not reflect Marmalade Insurance in any way

Official DVSA Theory Test Kit (£4.99)

Pros

• I like how it is set up so you can do the questions from as little or as many topics as you would like, and there is also an option to do only the questions you have got wrong.
• It tracks your progress both studying and practising the topics through percentages and number of topics which I found helpful. There is also an option to put in the date of your theory test and get reminders, a section for hazard perception, and a how-to-use on the app in the extras section.
• Everything is fairly easy to find once you look at the bar at the bottom of the app, but you have to click either study or practise when you open the app to be able to see them.

Cons

There is one part I found very confusing. There is a study and practise section on road signs, however, nowhere in the studying part could I find these road signs that I was then tested on. After looking around the app a little more I found a PDF version of the highway code linked, which has all the road signs and other information in it, but this was a little hard to read.

Overall, this app was very easy to use and seemed to have everything, so I personally enjoy using it.

DVSA Highway Code App (Free)

Pros

This App is all about The Highway Code, which I found very helpful to have as the PDF versions of The Highway Code on the DVSA Theory Test Kit App were harder for me to read and access, and seemed overwhelming. This one has all the sections split by section number and title, making it easier to access a specific part if you need to go over or learn it - for example road signs.

Cons

Due to the fact it only contains the Highway Code, this app is good for learning the Highway Code, but doesn’t allow you to test yourself so it is most helpful when paired with others.

Driving Theory Test 4 in 1 Kit (£4.99)

One I have heard a lot about is the Driving Test Success 4 in 1 app from my mum and a few of my friends who have started studying for their theory tests too. This one has 4 sections: Theory Test, Hazard Perception, Highway Code and Road Signs.

Pros

• It is mostly well set out, with the theory test part having a very similar setup to the DVSA app I talked about first. It also has a really handy added section for videos which is very good addition as you could see the situations in a real life context rather than just as a question.
• Something I do like, that was throughout the app, was the search and save functions, where you can either search for a part that you want to be tested on, or save a question to come back to again. This is also the same for the road signs - which I found really useful!
• The look and feel of the app overall are also nice and makes it enjoyable and not overwhelming when learning.
• There is a section that can help with your practical test too, and some specific sections for things like stopping distances, etc.

Cons

Whilst the app is great for practising sections, the areas that contain information to study weren’t as intuitive as I expected. For example the format of the Highway Code, was in sections with very small text that was difficult to read and, on the road sign section of the app, which I spent the most time on, there seemed to be very limited information about them until I realised there were longer descriptions when I scrolled down.

All in all I thought this app was a good one to have everything conveniently in one place.

Theory Test Pro (Free/£4.99)

The last app, ‘Theory Test Pro’ is an app you technically have to pay to get its full capabilities, which I did, but also has a certain amount you can get for free.

Pros

• There are many multiple choice questions you can run through, the amount you can do for free ranges anywhere between 4 and 28 questions, or if you pay you can access them all.
• Not only do you have questions to practice, it includes mock tests too and allows you to time yourself etc like a real test.
• It has a hazard perception test that you can access without paying. I really liked this part of the app as it lets you go back to the video even if you got it all correct and runs through why with you.

Cons

Something that confused me a bit was sign up and login process, I couldn’t find a place to sign up even after purchasing the full content.
Another thing was that, from what I could see, it only appears to have questions, rather than information for you to learn from, so I don’t see how it could be used as your only studying method.

Theory Test Mock Papers

Pros

• Along with all these apps, I also have a kit of practice papers where I can answer questions similar to those in the theory test to see how well I would do.
• Not only does this give a good idea of all the questions from different sections together, but it also shows an indicator of progress.
• It is set out a bit differently, like there are 5 scenario type questions on each paper in this pack but only 1 in the real theory test. I found it really good to be able to see which sections I may need to go over and how close I am to being able to pass.
  This is a very good one to practice with alongside other things to help learn, much like the Highway Code app.

Cons

Much like the highway code app, my main con with this was that it couldn’t be used alone. It is definitely more for checking progress and final stages of revision. It is also less portable than the other resources due to it not being an app but rather a large physical booklet.

Overall, I will most likely end up using a mix of the DVSA app and Highway Code one as they seemed the easiest and most helpful for me. I also think I’ll be using the practice paper’s kit as a tell of my progress. I really enjoyed using all of the apps, but these were my personal favourites. I hope this helps you when it comes to revising for your Theory Test!