Free permit practice test for your state
Pick your state: questions on signs, rules and safe driving, each answer explained at once, scored against the pass mark your state uses. No account, nothing to unlock.
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| Pass mark: 37 of 46 (80 %) |
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Practice questions written from the state handbook and federal rules. Not the official test.
The learner permit knowledge test has between 18 questions in Pennsylvania and 50 in Florida, among the 21 states that publish the number on an official page, and the pass mark runs from 70 % to 85 %, with 80 % the most common. Every question comes from the state's driver handbook: road signs, signals and pavement markings, right of way, following distances and speeds, alcohol, and the rules of the teen license. This practice test holds 80 general questions we wrote from those handbooks and the federal sign manual, plus questions specific to each state generated from its verified rules, 18 CDL questions and 12 motorcycle questions. Every answer is explained the moment you pick it, and the score panel compares your result with your state's own pass mark. Nothing is locked behind a paid plan.
Last updated , state rules checked on the official pages · Radif Partners · How the questions are written · About this site
This site gives every question free with the answer explained, scores each attempt against the pass mark your own state uses, and works out from a date of birth the day of the permit, the provisional license and the full license.
How the knowledge test works
The permit test, called the knowledge test or written test, is a multiple-choice exam taken at an office of the state motor vehicle agency, usually on a touch screen and sometimes online under supervision. It goes with the vision screening and the permit fee. Passing it gets you the learner permit, which lets you drive with a licensed adult beside you. Each state sets the number of questions and the pass mark; few publish both on the same page, and some only in the handbook. The table below gathers what each agency says.
Most states that publish a percentage set the bar at 80 %: on a 25-question test that means 20 correct, so five mistakes allowed. The pass marks published in our data are 70 %, 75 %, 76 %, 80 %, 83.3 %, 85 %. Some states stop the test as soon as you reach the mark, or as soon as you can no longer reach it; others split the test into a signs part and a rules part, each with its own minimum.
| State | Questions | Correct needed | Pass mark | Retake after | Spanish |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | – | – | – | – | Yes |
| Alaska | – | – | – | 1 day | – |
| Arizona | – | – | – | – | – |
| Arkansas | – | – | – | – | – |
| California | 46 | 37 | 80 % | 7 days | Yes |
| Colorado | – | – | – | – | – |
| Connecticut | 25 | 20 | 80 % | 7 days | Yes |
| Delaware | – | – | – | – | – |
| District of Columbia | – | – | – | – | Yes |
| Florida | 50 | 40 | 80 % | – | – |
| Georgia | 40 | 30 | 75 % | 1 day | Yes |
| Hawaii | 30 | – | – | – | – |
| Idaho | 40 | 34 | 85 % | 3 days | Yes |
| Illinois | – | – | – | – | – |
| Indiana | – | – | 80 % | 1 business day | Yes |
| Iowa | – | – | – | – | – |
| Kansas | – | – | – | – | – |
| Kentucky | – | – | – | – | Yes |
| Louisiana | 40 | 32 | 80 % | – | – |
| Maine | 30 | 24 | 80 % | – | Yes |
| Maryland | – | – | – | – | – |
| Massachusetts | – | – | – | – | – |
| Michigan | – | – | – | – | – |
| Minnesota | – | – | – | – | – |
| Mississippi | – | – | – | – | – |
| Missouri | – | – | – | – | – |
| Montana | – | – | – | – | – |
| Nebraska | – | – | – | 1 day | – |
| Nevada | 25 | 20 | 80 % | 1 day | Yes |
| New Hampshire | 40 | 32 | 80 % | 10 days | Yes |
| New Jersey | 50 | 40 | 80 % | – | Yes |
| New Mexico | – | – | 70 % | – | Yes |
| New York | 20 | 14 | 70 % | – | Yes |
| North Carolina | – | – | – | 7 days | Yes |
| North Dakota | – | – | – | 1 day | Yes |
| Ohio | 40 | 30 | 75 % | 1 day | Yes |
| Oklahoma | 20 | 15 | 75 % | same day | No |
| Oregon | 35 | 28 | 80 % | same day | – |
| Pennsylvania | 18 | 15 | 83 % | 1 business day | Yes |
| Rhode Island | – | – | – | – | – |
| South Carolina | – | – | – | – | – |
| South Dakota | – | – | – | – | – |
| Tennessee | – | – | – | – | – |
| Texas | – | – | 70 % | – | Yes |
| Utah | – | – | – | – | – |
| Vermont | 20 | 16 | 80 % | 1 day | – |
| Virginia | 40 | 34 | 80 % | 15 days | Yes |
| Washington | 40 | 32 | 80 % | – | Yes |
| West Virginia | 25 | 19 | 76 % | – | – |
| Wisconsin | 50 | 40 | 80 % | – | – |
| Wyoming | – | – | – | 3 days | No |
What the test asks
All state handbooks cover the same broad topics, because signs, signals and pavement markings follow one federal manual, the MUTCD, and traffic rules differ little from state to state. The practice test spreads its 80 general questions over seven topics:
- Road signs. Shape and color give half the answer: a red octagon for stop, a downward triangle for yield, a yellow diamond for warnings, a pentagon for school zones, a round yellow sign for a railroad crossing ahead.
- Signals and officers. Green arrows, flashing red, flashing yellow, a signal that is dark.
- Pavement markings. Yellow lines between opposite directions, white lines between lanes going the same way, shared center turn lanes.
- Right of way. Uncontrolled intersections, roundabouts, emergency vehicles, pedestrians, stopped school buses.
- Safe driving. Following distance, speed for conditions, rain, fog, blind spots, parking on a hill.
- Alcohol and drugs. Blood alcohol limits, implied consent, the effects on driving.
- License rules. Seat belts, phones, teen restrictions, what to do after a crash.
On top of these come each state's own questions, generated from its confirmed rules: permit age, holding period, supervised hours, pass mark, the alcohol limit under 21. A California practice test and a Texas one are not the same. To focus on signs, choose "Road signs only" in the test selector; the road signs guide goes through every shape and color.
From permit to full license
The permit is the first stage of graduated licensing, a system NHTSA recommends and every state applies in some form. Alaska issues the permit from 14 years, the youngest in our data; Oregon asks for 100 hours of supervised practice, the most. In California the permit comes at 15 years 6 months, is held 6 months with 50 hours of practice, 10 of them at night, and the provisional license follows at 16 years. The date calculator does the sums from a date of birth.
How to prepare without wasting time
Read your state's handbook once, end to end, without trying to memorize it: most questions answer themselves once the rule makes sense. Then take short practice tests of 20 questions and read the explanation of every mistake. When you score above your state's pass mark every time, switch to the real length: the counter tells you how many mistakes you have left before failing, as on the day. Go back to the topics you miss most with the mistake review. On test day, bring the documents your state lists (identity, residency and, for minors, a parent's or guardian's consent) and check on the agency's page whether you need an appointment.
Motorcycle and commercial license
The test selector also offers a motorcycle test, with questions on protective gear, lane position and group riding written from NHTSA publications, and a CDL general knowledge test written from the federal rules in 49 CFR. The commercial learner's permit must be held 14 days before the skills test and expires after one year; the CDL page explains it.
Where the figures come from
Each state rule was read on the official page of the state's motor vehicle agency or in its driver handbook, whose address is cited on the state's page; the list of agencies is on USA.gov. A figure we could not find on an official page is shown as not confirmed. A script re-reads the pages every month. The method page explains how the questions are written and what is left out.
Guides
Practice tests
- DMV written testFree written test practice with explained answers, plus the format, topics and day-of steps.
- Road signs testSign questions only, with the federal rules of shape and color that make every sign readable.
- CDL practice testCDL general knowledge questions from the federal rules, with the CLP dates and the 80 % pass mark.
- Motorcycle permit testMotorcycle knowledge questions with explanations, plus the permit age and test length by state.
- How many questions?Length of the knowledge test in each state, the correct answers needed and the mistakes allowed.
- Permit test in SpanishWhich states confirm a Spanish knowledge test, with a Spanish practice test and the sign words to learn.
- Failed the permit test?How long to wait before a retake in each state, and how to turn a fail into a pass next time.
Permit rules and dates
- When can I get my permit?Date of birth and state: your permit, provisional and full license dates.
- Permit rules by statePermit age, test length, pass mark, retake wait, hours and fee for every state in one table.
- Supervised driving hoursHours of supervised practice required before the road test in each state, night hours included.
- Teen driving restrictionsNight curfews, passenger limits, phone bans and the under-21 alcohol limit of each state.
- Permit and license feesWhat each state charges for the learner permit and the first license, side by side.
- Driver education requirementsWhich states require a driver education course for teens, and what it changes for the permit and license.
Practice test by state
California · Texas · Florida · New York · Georgia · Ohio · Pennsylvania · North Carolina · New Jersey · Washington · Nevada · Arizona · Indiana · Maryland · Missouri · Wisconsin · Minnesota · South Carolina · Alabama · Louisiana · Kentucky · Oregon · Oklahoma · Connecticut · Utah · Iowa · Kansas · Idaho · Virginia · New Mexico
Questions new drivers ask
How many questions are on the permit test?
It depends on the state. Among the 21 states that publish the figure, it ranges from 18 in Pennsylvania to 50 in Florida. The table on this page gives each state's number and the correct answers needed. Where the agency does not publish a number, we show it as not confirmed rather than copy a figure from another site.
Are these the real DMV questions?
No. No DMV publishes its question bank, and we do not copy leaked questions or questions from other sites. We write each question from a fact in the state's official handbook or the federal rule behind it, so the questions cover the same ground as the real test. If you understand the explanations, you know the rules the test checks.
What happens if I fail the knowledge test?
You can take it again after a wait set by each state: the same day in 2 states of our data and a week or more in 5. Many states charge again or limit the number of attempts per fee. Each state page gives its rule, and the full-length practice test tells you whether you are ready before you go back.
Can I take the permit test in Spanish?
In 21 of the states in our data the agency confirms the knowledge test is offered in Spanish, and many also publish a Spanish handbook. This practice test is complete in Spanish, with the same questions and explanations as in English, so you can study in the language you will test in.
How old do you have to be to take the permit test?
It depends on the state: from 14 years in Alaska, the youngest in our data, up to 16 in the strictest states. In almost every state the test is taken on the day you apply for the permit, once you have reached the age. The date calculator gives the exact day from a date of birth and a state.
Is this practice test really free?
Yes, all of it: every question, every explanation, the mistake review, the motorcycle and CDL tests and the date calculator. There is no account, no email, no premium plan and no question held back for subscribers. Your answers stay in your browser. The site sells no course or app and carries no affiliate link.
Written by Radif Partners
Independent publisher of free permit practice tests and state-by-state learner permit rules for the United States
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Permit rules for 2026 read on each state agency site 2026, last checked on