Kansas CDL practice tests
Kansas skips third party CDL examiners altogether and instead staffs a small dedicated network of state run skills testing offices in towns like Colby, Phillipsburg, and Seneca, a footprint built around covering rural counties rather than metro centers.
The written exams themselves are federal. Kansas 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
Kansas requires an applicant to hold the commercial learner permit for at least 14 days before the skills exam, and state rule allows a CLP to stay valid for up to one year from the date it was first issued.
Kansas Department of Revenue, Division of Vehicles, Commercial Driver's License, checked 2026-08-28
Fees
A commercial learner permit costs $13 including the photo fee, and the CDL skills exam itself costs $15, with a $1.50 fee for a retest.
Kansas Department of Revenue, Division of Vehicles, checked 2026-08-28
Where you test
Kansas runs its own network of dedicated CDL skills testing offices in cities such as Chanute, Colby, Dodge City, Garden City, Hays, Phillipsburg, Salina, Seneca, Topeka, and Wichita, and testing is by appointment only.
Kansas Department of Revenue, Division of Vehicles, Commercial Driver's License Skills Testing Offices, checked 2026-08-28
Every knowledge area
General Knowledge
Required of every applicant: inspection, control, space and speed management, hazard perception, emergencies and hours of service.
Air Brakes
Fail this and an L restriction bars you from any vehicle with air brakes, which is most of them.
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.