Connecticut Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV)
Connecticut CDL practice tests
How Connecticut handles the commercial learner permit, the fees and the skills test.
- General Knowledge24 questions, required of every applicant
- Air Brakes20 questions, skip it and an L restriction applies
- Combination Vehicles18 questions, needed for Class A
- Hazardous Materials20 questions, endorsement H
- Tank Vehicles16 questions, endorsement N
Every knowledge area
The 145 questions are the same in every state. Start with general knowledge, then sit the areas Connecticut will write onto the permit.
General Knowledge
Required of every applicant: inspection, control, space and speed management, hazard perception, emergencies and hours of service.
Air Brakes
Air brake knowledge and vehicle checks for applicants who may drive vehicles with air brakes.
Combination Vehicles
Coupling, the fifth wheel, off tracking and trailer swing. Needed for Class A.
Hazardous Materials
Placards, shipping papers, segregation and the security threat assessment.
Tank Vehicles
Liquid surge, baffles, outage and why a tanker rolls over so readily.
Doubles and Triples
Rearward amplification, converter dollies and coupling a second or third trailer.
Passenger Transport
Bus inspection, standee lines, passenger supervision and railroad crossings.
School Bus
Danger zones, loading and unloading, student crossing and evacuation.
What is different in Connecticut
Connecticut in particular
Connecticut waives both the knowledge test fee and the skills test fee for school bus drivers who present a letter of employment from their school bus company, a carve out on the state's own fee schedule that applies to no other class of CDL applicant.
The written exams themselves are federal
Connecticut decides the permit rules, the fees and who runs the skills test, but the knowledge you are tested on comes from 49 CFR Part 383 and is the same in every state, which is why the 145 questions here work wherever you apply.
What changes in this state
Commercial learner permit
A Connecticut commercial learner's permit is valid for one year from its issue date, and before the skills test the holder must complete Entry Level Driver Training and pass the required knowledge tests; if a CDL is not obtained within that year the applicant must retake and pass all required tests for a new permit.
Connecticut DMV, checked Aug 28, 2026Fees
$20 for the commercial driver's license learner's permit, plus a separate $16 knowledge test fee and $30 skills test fee
Connecticut DMV, checked Aug 28, 2026Where you test
Both the knowledge test and the skills test are scheduled and administered directly by the DMV, with skills test appointments booked by emailing a request form to the DMV's own testing unit rather than through a private tester.
Connecticut DMV, checked Aug 28, 2026Connecticut CDL written exams, in the federal format.
145 cited questions, free, with nothing to sign up for. The permit rules above are Connecticut's. The knowledge is 49 CFR Part 383.