SimpleGPS vs the Excel spreadsheet

Excel and a notebook are free but eat hours and rely on manual entry. SimpleGPS records trips automatically from GPS and writes the waybills for you.

Our biggest "competitor" is not another GPS company - it is the Excel sheet, the mileage notebook and the "where are you now?" phone call. It is free, it is familiar... and it eats hours every week, with data only as accurate as the driver filling it in.

SimpleGPS does the same automatically: every departure and stop records itself, kilometres come from GPS, waybills generate in one click, and you see where the car is on a map - not over the phone.

Side by side

SimpleGPS Excel / тетрадка
Transparent public pricing (€) Yes Free
Modern app-style UI Yes No
Device included / sold with the service Yes No
Hosted - no own server needed Yes No
Fits private individuals Yes Yes
Real-time tracking Yes No
No long-term contract Yes Yes
Self-serve online signup Yes Yes
Bulgarian support Yes No

SimpleGPS keeps full route playback for 31 days, and routes, stops and statistics for 365. We state both numbers because we have them.

The differences in detail

Manual entry vs automation

In Excel every kilometre and every departure is typed in by hand - and the data is only as accurate as the driver filling it. SimpleGPS records every departure and stop automatically from GPS.

"Where are you?" vs a live map

A notebook does not tell you where the car is right now - for that you call. SimpleGPS shows the position in real time on the map, no calls.

Waybills in one click

Manual trip logs eat hours a month. With SimpleGPS the kilometres come from GPS and the report generates in one click - ready for the accountant.

When is Excel / тетрадка the better choice?

If you have one car and you are the only driver, a notebook does the job. But the moment you track a second driver, report mileage to your accountant, or simply get tired of asking "where are you" - automation pays for itself in the first month.

Bottom line

Excel is free, but your time is not. SimpleGPS writes the trip logs for you

Frequently asked questions

The program itself is free, but the time spent filling it in and the "where are you" calls pile up every week. For more than one car, automation usually pays for itself in the first month.
Only as accurate as the driver filling it in. SimpleGPS GPS records the real kilometres and times, with no human error or rounding.
Then a notebook may do the job. The difference shows the moment you add a second driver or have to report mileage to an accountant.
Yes - it generates them automatically from the real trips, so you write nothing by hand.
Try SimpleGPS Plans from $9.99/month, device from our shop, online signup in two minutes.