South Dakota Department of Public Safety (DPS), Driver Licensing Program
South Dakota CDL practice tests
How South Dakota 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 South Dakota 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 South Dakota
South Dakota in particular
South Dakota does not run the CDL skills test at any of its own exam stations at all, routing every driving test to third-party sites statewide, and state law bars any renewal of the one-year commercial learner's permit.
The written exams themselves are federal
South Dakota 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
State law caps a commercial learner's permit at one year with no renewal option, and a holder must drive on the permit for 14 days before taking the CDL skills test.
South Dakota Codified Laws, 32-12A-12, checked Aug 28, 2026Fees
A South Dakota commercial license costs $33, matching the $33 renewal fee, or $48 with a hazardous materials endorsement.
South Dakota DPS, Driver's License Fees, checked Aug 28, 2026Where you test
South Dakota driver licensing offices do not give the CDL skills test themselves; it is administered only at third-party test sites around the state after the knowledge test is passed.
South Dakota DPS, CDL Third-Party Testers, checked Aug 28, 2026South Dakota CDL written exams, in the federal format.
145 cited questions, free, with nothing to sign up for. The permit rules above are South Dakota's. The knowledge is 49 CFR Part 383.