Indiana Bureau of Motor Vehicles
Indiana CDL practice tests
How Indiana 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 Indiana 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 Indiana
Indiana in particular
Indiana's BMV runs no CDL skills testing of its own. Every road and pre-trip exam happens at a private, BMV authorized site, and the state publishes a capped fee scale for those private sites, dropping from $200 on a first try to $100 on later retakes.
The written exams themselves are federal
Indiana 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
Indiana requires an applicant to hold the commercial learner permit for 14 days before attempting the CDL skills exam, and both the permit and a passed knowledge test stay valid for one year.
Indiana BMV, Obtaining a Commercial Driver's License, checked Aug 28, 2026Fees
A commercial learner permit costs $17 and a commercial driver's license costs $35, while third party skills test sites can charge up to $200 for a first attempt, $150 for a second attempt, and $100 for each attempt after that.
Indiana BMV, CDL Third-Party Skills Test Sites, checked Aug 28, 2026Where you test
The knowledge exam is given at BMV branch offices, but the BMV does not administer CDL skills tests itself, so every skills exam is taken at a BMV authorized third party test site around the state.
Indiana BMV, Obtaining a Commercial Driver's License, checked Aug 28, 2026Indiana CDL written exams, in the federal format.
145 cited questions, free, with nothing to sign up for. The permit rules above are Indiana's. The knowledge is 49 CFR Part 383.