DMV permit test by state 2026: pass marks, fees, formats and rule changes
Compiled by the DMV Ready team from official state sources. Last verified September 15, 2026. DMV Ready is not affiliated with any state DMV.
4 of the 51 US licensing jurisdictions changed a permit test or learner license rule in 2026, and 10 more did so during 2025. That headline count includes only changes that take effect during 2026. The change column also lists announced changes with later effective dates, such as Colorado’s driver education requirement from January 1, 2027 and Mississippi’s from July 1, 2027, which appear in the table but are not counted above. The highest passing score in the country is 88% in Maryland; the lowest is 70% in New Mexico, New York and Texas, and 36 jurisdictions sit at the familiar 80%. The median learner permit or knowledge test fee across the 46 jurisdictions that publish one is $17.50, from $2 in South Carolina to $65 in Maryland. At least 29 of the 51 jurisdictions (57%) offer the knowledge test in Spanish according to their own agency pages. 24 jurisdictions (47%) let at least some first-time applicants take the knowledge test online, through a state portal or an approved vendor. The table below gives every jurisdiction’s pass mark, miss budget, fee, format and 2026 change on one row, and each row links to the official page we pulled it from. State names link to free practice tests; row anchors (for example #california) let you cite a single state.
| Key figure | Value | Detail |
|---|---|---|
| Jurisdictions with a 2026 rule change | 4 of 51 | Connecticut, Maine, Indiana and Washington |
| Jurisdictions with an announced change effective after 2026 | 2 of 51 | Colorado (January 1, 2027) and Mississippi (July 1, 2027), listed in the table but not counted above |
| Jurisdictions with a 2025 rule change | 10 of 51 | effective dates in the table |
| Highest passing score | 88% | Maryland |
| Lowest passing score | 70% | New Mexico, New York and Texas |
| Median permit or test fee | $17.50 | 46 jurisdictions publish a fee |
| Knowledge test offered in Spanish | at least 29 of 51 (57%) | per agency language lists |
| Online testing available | 24 of 51 (47%) | for at least some applicants |
| Most common format | 25 questions | 15 of 51 jurisdictions |
How to read the table
Pass mark is correct answers required out of total questions, with the agency’s published percentage. Miss budget is how many you can get wrong and still pass. Fee is the published knowledge test or learner permit charge (hover for what it covers). Format gives question count, time limit where published, online availability and language availability as the agency states them. 2026 rule change is the most significant permit rule change with a 2025 or 2026 effective date on official pages. Cells marked verify show our last-known figure from the state’s DMV Ready page because the agency website does not publish that number or could not be reached during the September 15, 2026 check.
Permit test requirements by state, 2026
| State | Pass mark | Miss budget | Fee | Format | 2026 rule change (and announced changes effective later) | Official source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | 24 of 30 (80%) (verify) | 6 (verify) | $5 | 30 questions, Spanish offered | None found | alea.gov |
| Alaska | 16 of 20 (80%) (verify) | 4 (verify) | $15 | 20 questions, online option | None found | dmv.alaska.gov |
| Arizona | 24 of 30 (80%) | 6 | $7 | 30 questions, online option, Spanish offered | None found | azdot.gov |
| Arkansas | 20 of 25 (80%) (verify) | 5 (verify) | $5 | 25 questions | None found | dfa.arkansas.gov |
| California | 80% DMV no longer publishes a count; last-known 46 questions (minors), 36 (adults) (verify) | n/a | $46 | 46 questions, online option (verify) | None found | dmv.ca.gov |
| Colorado | 20 of 25 (80%) (verify) | 5 (verify) | $6.50 | 25 questions, 60 minutes, online option, Spanish offered | Colorado HB24-1021 requires driver education before an instruction permit issued on or after January 1, 2027: ages 15 to 17 must complete a 30-hour course, in person or online, and ages 18 to 21 may take either the 30-hour course or a 4-hour driver awareness program. The Colorado DMV adds that a completed course is valid for six months. (effective January 1, 2027) (verified September 29, 2026) | dmv.colorado.gov |
| Connecticut | 20 of 25 (80%) (verify) | 5 | $40 | 25 questions, in person only, Spanish offered | Effective January 1, 2026, every learner's permit applicant must complete the free online Connecticut… (effective January 1, 2026) | portal.ct.gov |
| Delaware | 26 of 32 (76%) DMV sample-test page says 32 questions, 26 correct; DMV FAQ says 30 and 24 (verify) | 6 | $23 (verify) | 32 questions | None found | dmv.de.gov |
| District of Columbia | 19 of 25 (75%) (verify) | 6 (verify) | $10 | 25 questions, 75 minutes, online option, Spanish offered | Beginning December 15, 2025, DC DMV offers the knowledge test in nine additional languages, bringing the… (effective December 15, 2025) | dmv.dc.gov |
| Florida | 40 of 50 (80%) | 10 | $48 | 50 questions, online option, English only | As of August 1, 2025, first-time applicants under 18 must complete a 6-hour Driver Education Traffic… (effective August 1, 2025) | flhsmv.gov |
| Georgia | 30 of 40 (75%) | 10 | $10 | 40 questions, Spanish offered | None found | dds.georgia.gov |
| Hawaii | 24 of 30 (80%) HDOT online-test page says 25; county pages say 30, max 6 wrong (verify) | 6 | $12 | 30 questions, 1 hour (online test), online option, Spanish offered | None found | hidot.hawaii.gov |
| Idaho | 34 of 40 (85%) (verify) | 6 (verify) | not published | 40 questions, Spanish offered | None found | itd.idaho.gov |
| Illinois | 28 of 35 (80%) (verify) | 7 (verify) | $20 (verify) | 35 questions | None found | ilsos.gov |
| Indiana | 42 of 50 (80%) (verify) | 8 (verify) | $9.00 | 50 questions, Spanish offered | Indiana HEA 1200 lowers the minimum driver's license age to 16 flat instead of 16 years and 90 days… (effective July 1, 2026) | in.gov |
| Iowa | 28 of 35 (80%) (verify) | 7 (verify) | $6 | 35 questions, online option | None found | iowadot.gov |
| Kansas | 20 of 25 (80%) | 5 | $3.00 | 25 questions, online option | None found | ksrevenue.gov |
| Kentucky | 32 of 40 (80%) (verify) | 8 (verify) | not published | 40 questions, Spanish offered | Kentucky House Bill 15 lowered the instruction permit age from 16 to 15 and made permits valid four… (effective March 25, 2025) | drive.ky.gov |
| Louisiana | 32 of 40 (80%) | 8 | $32.25 | 40 questions | None found | expresslane.la.gov |
| Maine | 24 of 30 (80%) | 6 | $35 | 30 questions, Spanish offered | Effective February 1, 2026, Maine BMV provides free professional interpreter services to applicants… (effective February 1, 2026) | maine.gov |
| Maryland | 22 of 25 (88%) | 3 | $65 | 25 questions, 20 minutes, in person only, Spanish offered | None found | mva.maryland.gov |
| Massachusetts | 18 of 25 (72%) | 7 | $30 | 25 questions, 25 minutes, online option, Spanish offered | None found | mass.gov |
| Michigan | 40 of 50 (80%) (verify) | 10 (verify) | $25 | 50 questions, online option, 32 languages (verify) | Since July 2, 2025 Michigan adults 18 and older may take the written knowledge test online for a $6.50… (effective July 2, 2025) | michigan.gov |
| Minnesota | 32 of 40 (80%) (verify) | 8 (verify) | $29.50 | 40 questions, no time limit, in person only, Spanish offered | None found | dps.mn.gov |
| Mississippi | 24 of 30 (80%) (verify) | 6 (verify) | $7 | 30 questions, in person only | Beginning July 1, 2027 every original Mississippi license applicant must show proof of completing a… (effective July 1, 2027) | driverservicebureau.dps.ms.gov |
| Missouri | 20 of 25 (80%) | 5 | $10 | 25 questions, in person only | None found | dor.mo.gov |
| Montana | 27 of 33 (82%) (verify) | 6 (verify) | not published | 33 questions | None found | dojmt.gov |
| Nebraska | 20 of 25 (80%) (verify) | 5 (verify) | $13 | 25 questions | None found | dmv.nebraska.gov |
| Nevada | 20 of 25 (80%) | 5 | $25 | 25 questions, 60 minutes online; no time…, online option, Spanish offered | None found | dmv.nv.gov |
| New Hampshire | 32 of 40 (80%) (verify) | 8 (verify) | not published | 40 questions, in person only, Spanish offered | None found | dmv.nh.gov |
| New Jersey | 40 of 50 (80%) (verify) | 10 (verify) | $10 (verify) | 50 questions, Spanish offered | Permit holders under 21 issued a permit on or after February 1, 2025 must log 50 supervised practice… (effective February 1, 2025) | nj.gov |
| New Mexico | 35 of 50 (70%) (verify) | 15 (verify) | $10 | 50 questions, Spanish offered | None found | mvd.newmexico.gov |
| New York | 14 of 20 (70%) at least 14 of 20 correct including 2 of the 4 sign questions | 6 | $64.25-$92.50 (verify) | 20 questions, online option, Spanish offered | None found | dmv.ny.gov |
| North Carolina | 29 of 37 (80%) 25 road rules (80%) plus 12 signs (9 of 12); DMV publishes no count (verify) | 8 (verify) | $25.50 | 37 questions | None found | ncdot.gov |
| North Dakota | 20 of 25 (80%) (verify) | 5 (verify) | $5 | 25 questions, online option, Spanish offered | None found | dot.nd.gov |
| Ohio | 30 of 40 (75%) | 10 | $26.50 | 40 questions, online option, Spanish offered | Since September 30, 2025, Ohioans age 18 to 20 must complete a Class D driver training course and 50… (effective September 30, 2025) | bmv.ohio.gov |
| Oklahoma | 15 of 20 (75%) | 5 | $42.50 | 20 questions, 60 minutes, online option, English only | Service Oklahoma announced online at-home proctored written testing and digital GDL upgrade tools for… (effective December 2025) | oklahoma.gov |
| Oregon | 28 of 35 (80%) | 7 | not published | 35 questions, online option, Spanish offered | None found | oregon.gov |
| Pennsylvania | 15 of 18 (83%) | 3 | $45.50 | 18 questions, online option, Spanish offered | In November 2025 PennDOT launched a Remote Learner's Permit Knowledge Testing Pilot at Northern Tioga… (effective November 2025) | pa.gov |
| Rhode Island | 20 of 25 (80%) (verify) | 5 (verify) | $13.50 / $8.50 | 25 questions, in person only, Spanish offered | None found | dmv.ri.gov |
| South Carolina | 24 of 30 (80%) (verify) | 6 (verify) | $2 | 30 questions, in person only | None found | dmv.sc.gov |
| South Dakota | 20 of 25 (80%) (verify) | 5 (verify) | $38 | 25 questions | None found | dps.sd.gov |
| Tennessee | 24 of 30 (80%) | 6 | $5.50 | 30 questions, 60 minutes, online option, Spanish offered | None found | tn.gov |
| Texas | 21 of 30 (70%) (verify) | 9 (verify) | $16 | 30 questions, online option (verify), 2 languages (verify) | None found | dps.texas.gov |
| Utah | 40 of 50 (80%) | 10 | $19 | 50 questions, no time limit, in person only, Spanish offered | None found | dld.utah.gov |
| Vermont | 16 of 20 (80%) | 4 | $39 | 20 questions, online option | Since May 1, 2025 passing the online learner permit exam no longer issues the permit; applicants must… (effective May 1, 2025) | dmv.vermont.gov |
| Virginia | 34 of 40 (80%) 10 sign questions (all correct) plus 30 general (24 correct) | 6 | $3 | 40 questions, online option, Spanish offered | None found | dmv.virginia.gov |
| Washington | 32 of 40 (80%) | 8 | $35 | 40 questions, in person only, Spanish offered | Starting November 1, 2026 first-time driver license applicants under age 25 must pass a free online work… (effective November 1, 2026) | dol.wa.gov |
| West Virginia | 19 of 25 (76%) (verify) | 6 (verify) | $7.50 | 25 questions, online option | None found | dmv.wv.gov |
| Wisconsin | 40 of 50 (80%) (verify) | 10 (verify) | $35 | 50 questions, online option, Spanish offered | Wisconsin launched a $10 online Class D knowledge test for applicants age 15 to 17 through KnowTo Drive… (effective March 20, 2025) | wisconsindot.gov |
| Wyoming | 19 of 25 (76%) (verify) | 6 (verify) | $45 | 25 questions, in person only, English only | None found | dot.state.wy.us |
Which states changed permit rules in 2026
Rule changes with a 2026 effective date confirmed on official pages, in date order. Each item links to the state’s row and the agency source.
- Connecticut: Effective January 1, 2026, every learner's permit applicant must complete the free online Connecticut Work Zone Safety Course before the knowledge test. (effective 2026-01-01; official source).
- Maine: Effective February 1, 2026, Maine BMV provides free professional interpreter services to applicants taking the written permit exam. (effective 2026-02-01; official source).
- Indiana: Indiana HEA 1200 lowers the minimum driver's license age to 16 flat instead of 16 years and 90 days, effective July 1, 2026. (effective 2026-07-01; official source).
- Washington: Starting November 1, 2026 first-time driver license applicants under age 25 must pass a free online work zone and first responder safety course before licensing. (effective 2026-11-01; official source).
Changes that took effect during 2025: New Jersey (2025-02-01); Wisconsin (2025-03-20); Kentucky (2025-03-25); Vermont (2025-05-01); Michigan (2025-07-02); Florida (2025-08-01); Ohio (2025-09-30); Pennsylvania (2025-11); Oklahoma (2025-12); District of Columbia (2025-12-15). Details and sources are in each state’s row.
Pass marks, fees and formats: what the numbers say
Passing scores cluster tightly: 36 of 51 jurisdictions require 80%, and the range runs from 70% to 88%. The tightest miss budget is 3 wrong answers in Maryland. Question counts vary far more, from 18 in Pennsylvania to 50 in Florida, Indiana, Michigan, New Jersey, New Mexico, Utah and Wisconsin, so the same 80% rule can mean 4 misses in one state and 10 in another. The median learner permit or knowledge test fee across the 46 jurisdictions that publish one is $17.50, from $2 in South Carolina to $65 in Maryland. 24 jurisdictions offer an online or remote knowledge test for at least some applicants, and at least 29 publish Spanish as a test language. For a ranking of which states have the hardest state-specific material, see our DMV permit test statistics page, built from the DMV Ready question bank rather than from state rules.
Studying for one of these tests? The DMV Ready app runs practice exams in your state’s real format, with the pass mark from this table built in. It is free to start.
Methodology and sources
- Sources. Every figure comes from an official state government page (DMV, BMV, MVD, DPS, RMV, Secretary of State or state police licensing pages, or the state driver handbook) that the DMV Ready team fetched during the full-table check on September 15, 2026, and each row links to it. Where a row has been re-verified since that check, it carries its own verification date. Third-party prep sites are never used as sources.
- What counts as a rule change. A law, fee, format, age, driver education or language policy change affecting learner permit applicants, with an agency-published effective date. A new handbook edition or an administrative convenience is not a rule change. One change per jurisdiction, the most significant.
- Verify cells. 90 cells carry the mark. Several agencies do not publish a question count or time limit online, and a few sites blocked automated fetches; those cells show our last-known figure from the state’s DMV Ready page, compiled from the state handbook, and are re-checked on every pass.
- Summary statistics. Computed from the table: jurisdictions by effective-date year, minimum and maximum published pass marks, the median of published fees (46 jurisdictions, knowledge test fee or the learner permit fee where the test is bundled), and counts of jurisdictions whose agency lists Spanish or an online option (“at least” where a page does not enumerate languages).
- Related data. Our permit test statistics page ranks state-specific question difficulty from the DMV Ready bank; this page covers the rules the states themselves publish.
Cite freely with a link to this page (CC BY 4.0). Corrections: contact@dmv-ready.org.
Frequently asked questions
How many states changed their permit test rules in 2026?
4 of the 51 US licensing jurisdictions (50 states plus Washington, DC) have a permit or learner license rule change that took effect in 2026, based on official state pages we checked during our full-table review on September 15, 2026, with any row re-verified since then carrying its own verification date. Another 10 made changes during 2025. The table above lists each change with its effective date and the official source.
Which state has the highest passing score on the permit test?
Maryland requires the highest published passing score at 88%. Most jurisdictions (36 of 51) set the pass mark at 80%, and the lowest published pass mark is 70% in New Mexico, New York and Texas.
How much does the permit test cost?
It depends on the state. The median learner permit or knowledge test fee across the 46 jurisdictions that publish one is $17.50, from $2 in South Carolina to $65 in Maryland. Some states fold the test into a license application fee, others charge per attempt, and a few charge nothing for the knowledge test itself.
Can you take the permit test online?
In 24 jurisdictions, yes, at least for some applicants. Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, District of Columbia and Florida and others run remote or vendor-proctored knowledge tests, usually with eligibility limits by age or residency. Everywhere else the test is given in person at a licensing office.
Is the DMV permit test offered in Spanish?
In at least 29 of 51 jurisdictions, yes. At least 29 of the 51 jurisdictions (57%) offer the knowledge test in Spanish according to their own agency pages. Language menus change often, so check the official source linked on your state's row before you book.
How many questions are on the permit test?
A 25-question test is the most common format (15 of 51 jurisdictions). The range runs from 18 questions in Pennsylvania to 50 in Florida, Indiana, Michigan, New Jersey, New Mexico, Utah and Wisconsin. Every row in the table gives the question count, the number you must get right, and how many you can miss.
Where do these numbers come from?
Every figure comes from an official state page (DMV, BMV, MVD, DPS, RMV or the state driver handbook) that the DMV Ready team fetched during the full-table check on September 15, 2026, and every row links to that source. Rows re-verified after that check carry their own verification date. Cells marked verify are last-known figures from our state pages, used where the agency website does not publish that number or the official page could not be reached during the check. DMV Ready is not affiliated with any state DMV.
