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Moda vs RoadReady: Which Driving Log App Is Better?
The Short Version
RoadReady is free and backed by AAA. Moda costs $4.99 once. Both track driving hours for teen permits. But they’re not the same product. Moda does a lot more, and that $5 difference matters when you’re trying to get through 50+ hours of supervised driving without losing your mind.
What Is RoadReady?
RoadReady has been around for a while. AAA supports it, which gives it credibility. It’s a basic driving log: start a timer, stop a timer, see your total hours. That’s about it.
It works. Nobody’s going to tell you it doesn’t work. If all you need is a glorified stopwatch with a running total, RoadReady gets the job done.
But here’s what it doesn’t do:
- No automatic night driving detection
- No shared progress syncing (though it supports logging on multiple devices)
- No DMV-ready form exports
- No Live Activity on your lock screen
RoadReady does track weather and road conditions, which is worth noting. But it stops there.
The app feels dated. The website feels dated. It’s the kind of product that was good enough in 2018 and hasn’t changed much since.
What Is Moda?
Moda is built specifically for teen permit practice logging. One-time $4.99 purchase. No subscriptions, no ads, no upsells.
It tracks the same basics as RoadReady (start, stop, total hours) but adds the stuff that actually matters during those long months of permit practice:
Night driving auto-detection. Most states require 10-15 hours of night driving. Moda uses sunset/sunrise data to automatically tag night hours. You don’t have to remember to toggle anything.
Weather tracking. Some states require driving in different weather conditions. Moda logs this automatically.
Family linking. Both parents can log sessions from their own phones. Hours sync between them. No more “wait, did we count that drive to grandma’s?”
DMV-ready exports. Moda generates the actual forms your state DMV wants. Not a generic PDF. The real forms for Indiana, North Carolina, New Jersey, Nevada, New York, Ohio, and Pennsylvania. More states coming.
Live Activity. While you’re driving, the session shows up on your iPhone lock screen. You can see the timer without opening the app.
Feature Comparison
| Feature | Moda | RoadReady |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $4.99 one-time | Free |
| Night auto-detection | Yes | No |
| Weather tracking | Yes | Yes |
| Shared progress syncing | Yes | No (multi-device logging only) |
| DMV form exports | Yes (7 states) | No |
| Live Activity (lock screen) | Yes | No |
| Backup/sync | Yes | Limited |
| AAA branding | No | Yes |
Where RoadReady Wins
Price. It’s free. If you’re looking for a zero-cost option and you don’t care about the extra features, RoadReady is right there. AAA’s name also carries trust, especially with parents who already have AAA memberships.
Credit where it’s due: RoadReady’s basic timer works fine. It’s stable. It does what it says.
Where Moda Wins
Pretty much everything else.
The night detection alone is worth $5. Manually tracking which sessions happened after dark is annoying, and getting it wrong means you might show up to the DMV short on night hours. Moda handles it automatically.
Shared progress syncing solves a real problem. If both parents take turns riding along, you need hours from both phones to add up correctly. RoadReady supports logging on multiple devices, but hours don’t sync between parents automatically. You’d have to manually combine logs or have one parent always be the “logger,” which is clunky.
And the DMV exports are the biggest time saver. When you hit your required hours and need to bring proof to the DMV, Moda generates the exact form your state wants. With RoadReady, you’re printing out a generic log and hoping the clerk accepts it.
The Verdict
RoadReady is a fine free timer. If you genuinely just want to tap start and stop, and you’ll handle everything else yourself, it works.
But for $4.99, Moda removes the friction that makes permit tracking annoying. Night hours tracked automatically. Both parents on the same page with synced progress. Real DMV forms ready when you need them.
Five dollars. That’s less than a Starbucks drink. For an app you’ll use almost daily for 6-12 months.
Moda wins this one.