These options don't really compete with each other — they are built for problems of different sizes. With one car and ten trips a month, GPS telematics gives you nothing but an invoice; with thirty vehicles, no Excel sheet will save you. The choice comes down to how many trips you generate and how many people drive.
The comparison at a glance
| Option | Pricing model | Setup | Strength as evidence | Who it suits |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Paper notebook | A couple of euros | Instant | Weak | One car, a couple of trips a month |
| Excel sheet | Free | An hour to build the sheet | Medium | One user, low volume |
| GPS telematics | Device + monthly fee per car, quote-based | Installation in every car | Strong | Fleets from ~5 vehicles up |
| Accounting-software module | Included in the software plan | Already there if you use the software | Medium | Your accountant makes the entries anyway |
| Logbook app (DrivLog) | A few euros a month — DrivLog €3 | Minutes | Strong | Sole traders and small firms, 1–10 cars |
Prices and plan contents change. This table shows the pricing model, not today's price — check the provider's own page before deciding.
Paper logbook
A notebook in the glovebox is still the most common starting point. It's legal and needs nothing but a pen. The weaknesses are just as familiar: handwriting nobody else can read, manual arithmetic at the end of the month, and the fact that the only copy lives in the car. Lose the notebook and you lose the evidence the reimbursement was paid on.
Excel sheet
The most common «digital» option, and free. A sheet is flexible, but the file keeps no history — an October figure can be changed in November and nobody can tell. That is what makes Excel weaker as evidence than it first appears. How to build the sheet properly, and exactly where the limit is, is covered in the Excel logbook article.
GPS telematics and fleet management
In Estonia this category includes Fleet Complete (Powerfleet), Navirec, Mapon, CarCops and Ecofleet. A device is installed in the car and records every trip automatically: start, end, route and time. The driver enters nothing and the data is objective — as evidence, this is the strongest option that exists.
Two things are worth knowing first. The logbook is a by-product in these systems, not the main product — the main product is fleet management: live location, fuel consumption, working hours. You pay for the whole platform and use one report from it. And it is billed per vehicle, device plus a monthly fee, usually by quote rather than from a price list. The device also tracks the car outside working hours, which in a one- or two-car company where the car doubles as the family car creates more friction than value.
Accounting-software module
Estonian accounting packages — SimplBooks and Merit Aktiva, for example — carry the logbook as one report among many. If your bookkeeping already lives there, it is the logical place and costs nothing extra.
The downside is the workflow, not the software. Entries are usually made by the accountant at the end of the month rather than by the driver right after the trip — and a route reconstructed from memory weeks later is exactly where a logbook turns inaccurate. That is what an audit looks at.
Dedicated logbook app
This is DrivLog locally, plus international apps like Driversnote and MileIQ. The scope is narrow and therefore cheap: log a trip, the software computes the kilometres and the reimbursement and generates an exportable PDF or Excel file. Nothing to install in the car, setup takes minutes, and the fee is a few euros a month.
With international apps, check one thing: they are built around US and UK tax rules. Estonia's €0.50 per kilometre, the €550 monthly cap and the INF 14 declarationare not their defaults — in Estonian tools they are. DrivLog's own features and price are on the features page and in the pricing.
How to choose — three questions
- How many cars and drivers? One car, one driver — an app, or even a sheet, is enough. Five or more vehicles with rotating drivers — look at telematics.
- Who records the trip?The driver, right away — an app covers it. Somebody else at month's end — consider a solution where the record appears automatically, because a trip reconstructed from memory is weak evidence.
- What is the actual goal? If it is only paying out the tax-free reimbursement correctly, a fleet platform is oversized. If you also need working hours, fuel and live location, a standalone logbook is undersized.
When DrivLog is the wrong choice
Honestly: if you run thirty trucks and need tachograph data, working-time records and live location, the right answer is a telematics provider, not us. If you make two business trips a year, a sheet is enough and our monthly fee won't pay for itself.
DrivLog is built for the case in between, which is the most common one in Estonia: a sole trader or a small companywith regular trips, one to ten cars, where the problem isn't managing a fleet — it is getting the logbook to add up correctly at month's end and be ready for the MTA.
Frequently asked questions
Which logbook is safest for an MTA audit?
The Estonian Tax and Customs Board prescribes content, not a format, so paper, Excel and apps are all allowed. The strongest evidence comes from a record created during or right after the trip, where later corrections leave a trace. That is why an automatic or digital logbook holds up better in an audit than a sheet assembled after the fact.
Is a GPS device required to keep a logbook?
No. GPS-based logbooks are accepted in Estonia, but they are not mandatory. A manually entered logbook is exactly as legal, as long as every required field is filled in.
Is there a free mileage logbook?
Yes. An Excel sheet costs nothing, and some apps offer a free tier, usually for a single car. Starting free is sensible — the limit shows up once trips pile up or several people drive the same car.
Do I pay separately for each car?
It depends on the model. Telematics is generally billed per vehicle because each car needs its own device. Logbook apps usually price per plan or per user, with several cars included in the same fee.