How Many Questions Are on the DMV Test?
DMV written tests range from 20 questions in a few smaller states to 50 in places like New York and Massachusetts. The federal CDL knowledge test is uniformly 30 questions per FMCSA standards, but state-issued passenger and motorcycle tests vary widely. Here is the breakdown for the standard car/Class C test in every state.
| State | Agency | Questions | Pass |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | AL DPS | 30 | 80% |
| Alaska | AK DMV | 20 | 80% |
| Arizona | AZ MVD | 30 | 80% |
| Arkansas | AR DFA | 25 | 80% |
| California | CA DMV | 36 | 83% |
| Colorado | CO DMV | 25 | 80% |
| Connecticut | CT DMV | 25 | 80% |
| Delaware | DE DMV | 30 | 80% |
| District of Columbia | DC DMV | 25 | 80% |
| Florida | FL DHSMV | 50 | 80% |
| Georgia | GA DDS | 40 | 75% |
| Hawaii | HI DOT | 30 | 80% |
| Idaho | ID ITD | 40 | 75% |
| Illinois | IL SOS | 35 | 75% |
| Indiana | IN BMV | 50 | 84% |
| Iowa | IA DOT | 35 | 80% |
| Kansas | KS DOR | 25 | 80% |
| Kentucky | KY DOT | 40 | 80% |
| Louisiana | LA OMV | 40 | 80% |
| Maine | ME BMV | 30 | 70% |
| Maryland | MD MVA | 25 | 85% |
| Massachusetts | MA RMV | 25 | 72% |
| Michigan | MI SOS | 50 | 80% |
| Minnesota | MN DPS | 40 | 80% |
| Mississippi | MS DPS | 30 | 80% |
| Missouri | MO DOR | 25 | 80% |
| Montana | MT DOJ | 33 | 80% |
| Nebraska | NE DMV | 25 | 80% |
| Nevada | NV DMV | 50 | 80% |
| New Hampshire | NH DMV | 40 | 80% |
| New Jersey | NJ MVC | 50 | 80% |
| New Mexico | NM MVD | 25 | 75% |
| New York | NY DMV | 20 | 70% |
| North Carolina | NC DMV | 25 | 80% |
| North Dakota | ND DOT | 25 | 80% |
| Ohio | OH BMV | 40 | 75% |
| Oklahoma | OK DPS | 50 | 75% |
| Oregon | OR DMV | 35 | 80% |
| Pennsylvania | PA DOT | 18 | 75% |
| Rhode Island | RI DMV | 25 | 80% |
| South Carolina | SC DMV | 30 | 80% |
| South Dakota | SD DPS | 25 | 80% |
| Tennessee | TN DOS | 30 | 70% |
| Texas | TX DPS | 30 | 80% |
| Utah | UT DPS | 25 | 80% |
| Vermont | VT DMV | 20 | 80% |
| Virginia | VA DMV | 25 | 80% |
| Washington | WA DOL | 25 | 80% |
| West Virginia | WV DMV | 25 | 75% |
| Wisconsin | WI DOT | 50 | 80% |
| Wyoming | WY DOT | 25 | 80% |
The range: 18 to 50 questions
The shortest standard car test in the country is Pennsylvania's at 18 questions; the longest is Wisconsin's at 50. The national average sits around 32 questions. Counter-intuitively, a shorter test is usually harder per question: with only 18 questions and a 75% bar, Pennsylvania lets you miss just 4, while Wisconsin's longer format absorbs 10 misses. When you check your state in the table, look at the spread between "Questions" and "Pass" — that gap is your real safety cushion.
Why do states differ at all?
Knowledge testing is one of the few parts of driver licensing left almost entirely to the states. Each agency designs its own question bank from its own handbook, chooses its own sampling size, and balances test length against office throughput — a 50-question test simply takes longer per applicant than a 20-question one, which matters at high-volume urban offices. Only commercial licensing is standardized: the federal FMCSA requires every state's CDL general-knowledge exam to draw from the same federal model and enforce the same 80% bar, which is why CDL applicants can use the same study material nationwide while car-test takers can't.
Time limits
Most states give you unlimited time on the written test, which surprises first-timers — there is no countdown clock at the testing station. A few states impose a soft 20-45 minute limit, and at busy offices you may be asked to finish before closing time. As a practical benchmark, most prepared test-takers finish a 25-question test in 10-15 minutes. Rushing is the enemy: the most common self-reported reason for a surprise fail is misreading a question stem ("Which of the following is NOT…"), not lack of knowledge.
Test format
All states use multiple-choice questions with 3 or 4 answer options. Most have moved to computer-based touchscreen testing; a handful of rural offices still use paper. Two format details worth knowing before you sit down:
- One question at a time, often no going back. Many computer systems lock each answer as you submit it. Treat every question as final — there's no "review my flagged answers" phase like a school exam.
- Early termination. Several testing systems stop the exam as soon as your result is mathematically decided — pass or fail. Ending after 16 questions isn't a glitch; it means you cleared the bar (or missed too many) before seeing the full set.
Topic distribution
Regardless of length, nearly every state's test draws from the same four buckets in roughly the same proportions: about 40-50% road signs and signals, 30-40% rules of the road (right-of-way, speed, passing, parking), 10-15% safe-driving technique and emergency handling, and 5-10% alcohol, drug, and license-law questions. Because signs are the largest bucket and the most memorization-friendly, they're the highest-return study topic — a test-taker who is solid on all standard signs walks in with nearly half the exam already banked. Our road-sign library covers every standard MUTCD sign, and our practice tests mirror the real category mix.
Motorcycle and CDL tests are counted separately
The table above covers the standard car (Class C/D) knowledge test. Adding a motorcycle endorsement means a separate Class M knowledge test — typically 20-25 questions on motorcycle-specific skills like lane positioning, counter-steering, and gear. CDL applicants take the federally standardized 50-question general-knowledge exam plus a separate 20-30 question test per endorsement (air brakes, tankers, doubles/triples, hazmat, passenger, school bus). If you're pursuing either, start from our motorcycle or CDL hubs — the question pools are completely different from the car test.
How to use this table
Click your state to see its full test page: number of questions, passing score, time limits, retake rules, required documents, and free practice tests built from your state's handbook. If you're moving between states, remember the question count follows the issuing state — transfer your license within your new state's grace window and most DMVs will waive the knowledge test entirely.