UK driving test appointment availability and actual waits: August 2026

Executive summary

• Learners actually waited 12.8 weeks on average across centre medians. This is an unweighted average of 311 centre-level medians for people who took a test in August 2026.
• 108 centres recorded a median actual wait below 10 weeks. That is 35% of centres with a published median.
• Only 56 of 317 centres recorded at least half of completed tests taking place within seven weeks of booking. That is 18% of centres with a published value.
• Current appointment availability fell by 0.2 weeks on average. Across comparable centres, the unweighted average moved from 20.2 weeks in July 2026 to 20.0 weeks in August 2026.
• The biggest changes were local rather than uniform. Melton Mowbray rose by 13.8 weeks, while Castle Douglas fell by 10.4 weeks.

Two measures—not one waiting time

At 267 of 311 centres (86%), current appointment availability was higher than the median time learners had actually waited. Across those centres, the average difference between the two figures was 7.1 weeks.

How long learners actually waited is the median time between booking and taking a test for people who completed one during the month. Current appointment availability shows how far ahead DVSA had to look before at least 10% of weekly appointments remained available. It is not the time every learner will wait or a live appointment search.

What this means: a centre showing 24 weeks of current appointment availability does not necessarily mean that a typical learner waited 24 weeks. Cancellations and newly released appointments can produce a much shorter actual wait.

Only 56 centres recorded at least half of completed tests within seven weeks

Across the 317 centres with a published value, the centre-level median was 38.1%. 56 centres (18%) recorded 50% or more of completed tests within seven weeks of booking, while 69 centres (22%) recorded fewer than one in four within that period.

This is a historical measure of completed tests. DVSA counts the time from the original booking date to the eventual test date, including where the appointment was rescheduled.

These are counts of centres and an unweighted centre-level median—not a national percentage of learners. Table DRT122F does not publish the monthly completed-test count alongside this percentage, so unusually high or low centre percentages should not be treated as volume-weighted national evidence.

What this means: this percentage adds useful context to the median actual wait by showing how widely completed-test experiences were distributed, but it still cannot show whether an appointment is available today.

Where learners actually waited the shortest and longest times

The rankings below use the August 2026 median actual wait. Current appointment availability is shown beside it so the two official measures can be compared without treating them as interchangeable.

Current appointment availability fell at more centres than it rose

The direction of change was favourable across much of the dataset. A lower figure was recorded at 99 centres, compared with 83 centres where the measure rose. However, 129 centres did not move, so the improvement was not universal.

What this means: the overall measure eased, but learners should still check their practical nearby options because centre-level changes varied widely.

The largest appointment-availability movements were highly local

Melton Mowbray and Castle Douglas sat at opposite ends of the monthly comparison. The ranked bars use the same scale and show the eight largest increases and decreases. Exact July 2026 and August 2026 values are included beneath each centre.

What this means: a national average is useful context, but it cannot replace checking the centre that is realistic for your lessons and travel.

Find how appointment availability changed

Search all 311 comparable centres. Filter by region or direction, then sort the results to find the largest local movements. These are changes in the published 10% appointment-availability measure, not changes in how long learners actually waited or live appointments.

South East recorded the largest regional fall

South East had the biggest drop in its unweighted regional appointment-availability average, at 0.9 weeks. 7 regions moved in the other direction. Regional averages give context but can hide large centre-level differences.

How learners can use the report

1. Start with centres you can reach and practise around. Use the linked centre pages to compare published figures without choosing an impractical journey solely for one statistic.
2. Check the official service when you are ready to book. These statistics cannot show whether an appointment is available now.
3. Recheck after the next DVSA release. A large one-month movement may not persist, so treat the report as a snapshot rather than a forecast.

What the next release should tell us

The next useful question is whether the broad fall continues and whether the sharpest local changes persist. This dataset records the published measure but does not explain what caused an individual centre to rise or fall.