Guide
Personal licence course cost: what UK providers publish
Updated
A personal licence course costs a median of £130 across the ten UK providers that print a price on their own page, from £99.99 to £155, read on 28 October 2026. The licence itself then costs a £37 council fee in England and Wales, or £50 in Scotland, plus a basic criminal record check.
The published course prices
Every row is the provider's own page, read through our fetch box. The full table, with the 24 providers that publish no price at all, is on the price index.
What moves the price
- Online or in a classroom
- The three online courses in the index have a median of £125; the six classroom or one-day courses a median of £132.50.
- Whether the exam is included
- Some online providers sell the learning and the exam separately: Get Licensed prints an exam fee of £99 on its free training page.
- VAT
- Several providers quote excluding VAT, so John Gaunt's £135 + VAT costs £162 to a buyer who cannot reclaim it.
- The council application
- Some providers bundle the application: John Gaunt's course, exam and personal licence application package is £345.33 + VAT.
Source: Personal Licence Course Price Index: every row, with its source
The cost of the licence itself
| Item | Fee | Source | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Personal licence application, England and Wales | £37 | Licensing Act 2003 (Fees) Regulations 2005 | The Licensing Act 2003 (Fees) Regulations 2005 |
| Personal licence application, Scotland | £50 | Licensing (Fees) (Scotland) Regulations 2007, per the Scottish Government's guidance | Personal Licence - Licensing information and application forms | Scottish Borders Council |
| Basic DBS check (England and Wales) | £20 | GOV.UK | Request a basic DBS check - GOV.UK |
Sources: the Fees Regulations 2005, the Scottish Government's guidance to Licensing Boards and GOV.UK's basic DBS check page. Every fee is in the fees dataset.
What to ask before you book
- Is the exam included in the price, and can it be sat online?
- Is the price per person, and does it include VAT?
- Does the provider help with the council application, and is that extra?
- Is the qualification an accredited one the council will accept?
Published figures are what each provider advertises on its own page, read on the date shown. A 'from' price is the provider's floor, not the price of your booking.