Signed September 25
California Department of Motor Vehicles
California permit test: 46 questions, 36 if 18 or older
Original California questions with the law cited under every answer, scored the way DMV scores it.
Start a testCA
- Exam Simulator46 questions, pass with 38, scored the way DMV scores it
- Practice Test 120 questions, a broad first pass across signs, right of way, rules and safety
- Road Signs Full202 questions, every sign, signal and pavement marking question
- Laws and Limits44 questions drawn from the CVC
All 14 CA tests286 questions, no signup
California
Recent changes in California
Every California test
Work through them in order.
CA Practice Test 1
20 questionsStart
CA Practice Test 2
20 questionsStart
CA Practice Test 3
20 questionsStart
CA Practice Test 4
20 questionsStart
CA Practice Test 5
20 questionsStart
CA Full Marathon
286 questionsStart
CA Road Signs Mini
10 questionsStart
CA Road Signs Full
202 questionsStart
CA Right of Way
28 questionsStart
CA Complex Situations
14 questionsStart
California Laws and Limits
44 questionsStart
CA Alcohol, Phones and Safety
27 questionsStart
CA Rules of the Road
29 questionsStart
California Exam Simulator
46 questionsStart
Every question you miss saves to a review deck on this device. See how the review deck works.
California knowledge test
Know the format before you book.
California runs two different car knowledge tests and your birthday decides which one you sit. Under 18 the DMV exam is 46 questions with 38 correct to pass, so eight wrong answers is the margin. From 18 the same rules are tested across 36 questions with 30 correct, a margin of six. Nothing else changes: the subject matter is the California Vehicle Code either way. The $46 driver license application fee is not a per test charge, it buys three attempts at the knowledge test and the behind the wheel test together, and only when all three are used up do you reapply and pay again. California is also the rare state that publishes hard outcome data on the half of the process people find harder. A public records release of the DMV FO21 drive test report covers 10.16 million tests from 2016 to 2025 at a 67.7% pass rate, with the 2025 fail rate at 33.17% after four consecutive years of increase.
Format verified against California DMV on 2026-08-27. Check the official page before you book, because states do change their rules.
Questions4636 if 18 or older
Correct to pass3838 of 46
Allowed misses8
Source: California DMV, verified 2026-08-27
Getting licensed in California
What the process looks like.
The knowledge test is written from the California Vehicle Code. Our questions teach those same rules and cite the section behind each answer, so what you learn holds up on test day and on the road afterwards.
Applicants under 18 take the 46 question test and need 38 correct. Applicants 18 and older take a 36 question test and need 30 correct.
Teens must hold the provisional permit for at least six months and log 50 hours of supervised practice, 10 of them at night, before the behind the wheel test.
The provisional license carries passenger and night driving limits during the first year.
The $46 driver license application fee covers three attempts at the knowledge test and the behind the wheel test.
If you use all three attempts on one application you must reapply and pay the fee again.
California in numbers
What the records show.
67.7%
Statewide road test pass rate. Across 10.16 million tests from 2016 to 2025, per the DMV FO21 drive test report.
California DMV FO21 report, public records release, verified 2026-08-2733.17%
Road test fail rate in 2025. The fail rate has risen four years in a row.
California DMV FO21 report, public records release, verified 2026-08-2730 to 45 days
Typical appointment wait. Some offices have reached 115 days.
California DMV appointment data, press reporting, verified 2026-08-27Frequently asked
California permit test questions, answered.
How many questions are on the California permit test?
46 questions if you are under 18, and you need 38 correct to pass. If you are 18 or older the test is 36 questions and you need 30 correct. Verified against the California DMV on 27 August 2026.
How much does the California permit test cost?
The $46 driver license application fee covers up to three attempts at the knowledge test plus the behind the wheel test. There is no separate per test fee unless you exhaust all three attempts and must reapply.
What happens if I fail the California permit test?
You must wait at least seven days before retaking it. Your application fee covers three attempts in total.
Is the California permit test multiple choice?
Yes. Every question offers a set of answers and exactly one is correct. Our simulator mirrors that format, the real question count, and the real pass mark.