Garage 61 vs Lovely Dashboard
Quick summary
Verified pricing differs — Garage 61: Free (alpha) · Lovely Dashboard: Free.
Verdict
Which one should you pick?
Choose Garage 61 when you want free iRacing reference laps — it has a verified free tier.
Worth knowing: iRacing-only, and top drivers can set their data private, shrinking the reference-lap pool; official site states paid tiers are coming (FAQ: 'Will it stay free? Not all of it')
Choose Lovely Dashboard when you want polished SimHub dash designs — it has a verified free tier.
Worth knowing: Not standalone software — the site marks the Lovely Plugin as 'Required' and it all runs on top of SimHub, and the store page does not document which sims are supported
No universal winner — both entries are human-verified (dates in the Verification row below); weigh the limitations against your own setup.
Field by field
The verified fields
What it is
Garage 61
Lovely Dashboard
Pricing
Garage 61
Free (alpha)
- Everything free during alpha (official docs: 'Is it free? Yes, all of it')
- Optional Pro supporter plan via Patreon (price not shown on site) — unlocks extras like Pro lap-search filters and custom display units
Lovely Dashboard
Free
- Free downloads
- Membership unlocks additional features
Free access
Garage 61
Lovely Dashboard
Platforms
Garage 61
Lovely Dashboard
Standout feature
Garage 61
Compare against community-shared telemetry/reference laps from other drivers across most car/track combos, all free right now
Lovely Dashboard
16+ purpose-built dashboard variants (Curved, Round, Rallye, TK Edition, Companion, stream overlay) managed through its own Lovely Plugin
Limitations
Garage 61
iRacing-only, and top drivers can set their data private, shrinking the reference-lap pool; official site states paid tiers are coming (FAQ: 'Will it stay free? Not all of it')
Lovely Dashboard
Not standalone software — the site marks the Lovely Plugin as 'Required' and it all runs on top of SimHub, and the store page does not document which sims are supported
Verification
Garage 61
Lovely Dashboard
“—” means the official site does not state it — we leave it blank instead of guessing.
Straight answers
Common questions
Do Garage 61 or Lovely Dashboard have a free tier?
Garage 61 does, and Lovely Dashboard does. A free tier can mean the whole product or a heavily capped version, so check the pricing detail on each card rather than the yes or no alone.
How much does Garage 61 cost?
Garage 61 has a free tier, and its paid pricing starts at Free (alpha) as listed on its own pricing page. Tiers change — the card above shows every tier we verified, with the date we checked.
How much does Lovely Dashboard cost?
Lovely Dashboard has a free tier, and its paid pricing starts at Free as listed on its own pricing page. Tiers change — the card above shows every tier we verified, with the date we checked.
What does Garage 61 support?
Garage 61's own site lists iRacing. We only record platforms a site names explicitly — a generic "100+ games" claim is not counted as support for any particular title.
What does Lovely Dashboard support?
Lovely Dashboard's own site lists Windows (runs inside SimHub). We only record platforms a site names explicitly — a generic "100+ games" claim is not counted as support for any particular title.
What are the drawbacks of Garage 61 and Lovely Dashboard?
Garage 61 — iRacing-only, and top drivers can set their data private, shrinking the reference-lap pool; official site states paid tiers are coming (FAQ: 'Will it stay free? Not all of it'). Lovely Dashboard — Not standalone software — the site marks the Lovely Plugin as 'Required' and it all runs on top of SimHub, and the store page does not document which sims are supported. These are the limitations each product's own materials made plain, not a verdict on quality.
Is Garage 61 or Lovely Dashboard better?
Neither is better in the abstract, and this page does not name a winner. They differ on the verified fields above — price, free tier, platform support and stated limitations — and which of those matters is a question about your setup, not about the products.
