Toughest (and easiest) Australian states for learner drivers

For many young Australians, getting a driver’s licence is a major milestone and a first taste of independence. However, the path to getting behind the wheel is not the same across the country.

To find out where learner drivers face the toughest and easiest journeys to getting off their Ls, car insurance comparison service iSelect analysed a range of factors that influence the process. These included driving test pass rates, required learner hours, minimum licensing periods, and the costs of driving lessons, tests and licences. Using these measures, each state and territory was assessed and scored to reveal which parts of Australia are making it the hardest (and easiest) for learner drivers to earn their provisional licence, aka “P-plates”.

Learner drivers winners and losers

Western Australia (WA) recorded the lowest average driving test pass rate of any state in the analysis, with just 53.78% of learner drivers successfully passing their test. In contrast, Victoria (VIC) achieved the highest average pass rate at 72.60%. The result may be influenced by differences in the number of learning hours required, with WA learners required to complete just 50 supervised driving hours, compared to 120 hours in both Victoria and New South Wales (NSW). As a result, learner drivers in WA often have significantly less on-road experience before sitting their practical test.

10 centres with the lowest recorded pass rate

Most of the driving test centres with the lowest pass rates are concentrated in WA. The Midland test centre, located east of Perth, recorded the lowest pass rate in the dataset, with just 28.3% of learners successfully passing their test. A host of other WA centres dominate the rankings, including Mirrabooka (31.3%), the City of West Perth (34.1%) and Bunbury (36.4%).

Auburn, New South Wales, is the only non-Western Australian centre to feature in the bottom 10, recording a pass rate of 47.0%. These results suggest that learner drivers in some parts of Western Australia may face a significantly tougher path to receiving their licence compared to other test locations across the country.

10 centres with the highest recorded pass rate

While WA is home to several of the lowest-performing driving test centres in the dataset, the state is also home to Australia’s highest recorded pass rate. Success, WA, tops the rankings, with 85.4% of learner drivers passing their driving test. It is closely followed by Inverell, NSW (85.2%), Exmouth, WA (79.3%), Dromana, VIC (79%) and Hay, NSW (78.1%). While NSW dominates the top 10, Queensland claims only one spot, with the Cleveland driving centre recording a pass rate of 76%.

Learner hours required

Victoria and NSW have the strictest requirements in Australia for learner drivers. Drivers under 21 years in Victoria and 25 years in NSW need to complete 120 supervised driving hours, including 20 hours of night driving. Drivers under 25 years in Queensland and the Australian Capital Territory (ACT) require 100 hours total, including 10 nighttime hours. In Tasmania (for drivers under 25 years) and South Australia, drivers have lower minimum requirements of 80 and 75 hours respectively.

Western Australia has the lowest requirement at 50 supervised hours, including five at night, while the Northern Territory does not have a mandatory learner hour requirement. This means learner drivers in some states may spend more than twice as long behind the wheel before becoming eligible for a licence test.

Learner periods

The time it takes to progress from a learner licence to a full licence is longest in Victoria, with drivers required to spend at least 12 months on a learner licence and a further 48 months on provisional licences. Combined, it takes a minimum of five years to obtain a full licence in Victoria. In comparison, New South Wales, Queensland, South Australia, Tasmania and the ACT all require a minimum of four years. Western Australia and the Northern Territory have the shortest minimum learner periods, allowing drivers to receive their full licence in as little as two and a half years.

Most expensive licence costs

South Australia has the highest provisional licence costs, with drivers paying $185 for their P1 and P2 licences. The cost in South Australia is narrowly ahead of NSW ($184) and the ACT ($160.30). Meanwhile, Queensland is the most expensive state for a one-year full licence, with drivers in the state charged $91.55, compared to $75 in South Australia and $72 in NSW.

At the other end of the spectrum, Victoria has the lowest one-year full licence fee at just $31.33, while the Northern Territory charges $39.

Most expensive driving lessons

Adelaide is home to the most expensive driving lessons, with the average lesson costing $113.58 per hour, well ahead of the next highest regions, Newcastle ($88.01) and Shoalhaven ($87.76). By comparison, major capital cities such as Sydney ($77.55) and Melbourne ($75.52) offer cheaper lesson costs. The findings suggest learner drivers in some parts of Australia could end up paying substantially more to complete the supervised driving hours required before obtaining a licence.