Training Logbook Software: Free Plan or Free Trial?
“Free” can mean two things for training logbook software and apps: a plan that stays free as long as you stay within its limits, or a time-limited trial after which a subscription starts. For a tool your apprentices use for two to three years, that is a big difference.
Companies whose apprentices use the IHK’s digital Berichtsheft have to choose now: it ends on 31 December 2026, according to several IHKs (what that means). The company pays for the new solution, not the apprentice (§ 14 (1) no. 3 BBiG).
Free Plan, Trial, Subscription: What Is the Difference?
Logbook software comes with three pricing models. A provider can also combine two of them.
| Model | What it means | Ask |
|---|---|---|
| Free plan | No trial period, but fixed limits, for example on apprentices, trainers or features | Where are the limits, and what happens when we go over them? |
| Trial | Usable for a limited time, paid afterwards | What happens to the entries if we do not subscribe afterwards? |
| Subscription | Ongoing price, for example per apprentice, per trainer or a flat rate per company | Which term, which notice period, and how are users counted? |
What a Trial Shows and What It Does Not
A trial is useful for trying out how the software works. Some points only show up over the course of the apprenticeship, though. So clarify them with the provider beforehand:
- Trial
- Training logbook: complete across the whole apprenticeship
- Exam registration: complete record required (§ 43 BBiG)
An apprenticeship usually lasts two to three years (§ 5 BBiG). Each provider sets the length of its own trial.
- The record must be complete. Without it there is no admission to the final examination (§ 43 (1) no. 2 BBiG). If you do not subscribe after the trial, the part written so far still has to be kept.
- Switching takes work. Exporting, making a clean cut, presenting two parts for the exam. That is exactly what companies whose apprentices use the IHK tool are facing right now.
- Costs grow. Calculate the price for the number of apprentices you will be training at the same time in three years, not for today.
9 Questions to Ask Every Provider
Ask every provider the same questions. The most important come first: export and data protection.
Checklist: Comparing Training Logbook Software
Data
- Can we get all records as a PDF at any time, also after cancelling or changing plans?
- Is there a data processing agreement, also on the free plan?
- Where is the data hosted: Germany, the EU or elsewhere?
Costs
- What happens with the next apprentice if we go over a limit?
- What does the free plan include, and what applies only during the trial?
- How is billing done, and with which term and notice period?
Practice
- Does the entry form cover the minimum requirements of the BIBB recommendation, such as company activities, instruction and vocational school topics?
- Does the trainer’s approval appear in the record with name and date?
- Are there reminders for missing entries?
Clarify first: which form of record does your chamber accept? IHK Hannover, for example, accepts other providers’ products if they meet the BIBB recommendation (IHK Hannover). What the record must contain is covered in our post Digital Training Logbook.
How LearnSlice Answers the Questions
So you can see what concrete answers can look like, here are ours:
| Question | LearnSlice training logbook |
|---|---|
| Export | Single entries or whole periods as a PDF. After cancelling Premium, all records stay readable and can be exported. With more than 3 apprentices, the 3 registered longest keep writing |
| Data protection | Hosting in Germany, data processing agreement concluded at sign-up |
| Free | 1 trainer and up to 3 apprentices, no minimum term, no payment details, no AI |
| With the next apprentice | LearnSlice Premium, billed per apprentice, trainers free |
| Practice | One-click approval with name and date. Reminders by email |
When Is a Subscription Worth It?
For a few apprentices, a free route is often enough, including the BIBB samples on paper or in Word. A subscription pays off more when you train many apprentices or need more than the record, such as exam preparation. Then ask whether the logbook stays usable on its own.
Disclosure: This post is by LearnSlice, and LearnSlice offers a training logbook itself. That is why we do not name other providers, do not rate other offerings and do not rank anyone. The questions above fit every solution, including ours.
Note: This post gives a general overview and is not legal advice. Your chamber gives binding information about your training relationship. LearnSlice is not an offering of the German chambers of commerce (IHKs) and is not affiliated with them. LearnSlice information as of 12 November 2026.
Sources
- Gesetze im Internet: § 5 BBiG, checked 12 November 2026
- Gesetze im Internet: § 14 BBiG, checked 12 November 2026
- Gesetze im Internet: § 43 BBiG, checked 12 November 2026
- BIBB Board: Recommendation on keeping training records of 1 September 2020 (BAnz AT 02.10.2020 S1), checked 2 November 2026
- IHK Hannover: Digitales Berichtsheft, checked 2 November 2026
- Regulation (EU) 2016/679 (GDPR), Art. 28: Processor, checked 12 November 2026
Written by
LearnSlice Team