Free Minnesota permit practice tests
Minnesota buries its two headline exam numbers in two completely different places. The 80 percent pass mark is written into state law at Minnesota Rules 7410.4760, while the 40 question length appears nowhere on the DVS website and had to be pinned down through the Legislative Auditor's evaluation of the state's exam stations. Minnesota also lets approved third party proctors, public libraries included, run the class D test online for up to 10 dollars on a 40 minute clock, and it skips the written test entirely for new residents aged 21 and over who arrive holding a valid out-of-state license.
- Questions
- 40
- Correct to pass
- 32 32 of 40 (80%)
- Questions here
- 263 all free, all cited
Format verified against Minnesota Office of the Legislative Auditor, Driver Examination Stations evaluation report (2021), page 12 on 2026-08-28. Check the official page before you book, because states do change their rules.
Work through them in order.
The essentials
Start here. Five distinct sets drawn from across the whole bank, plus a marathon that keeps going until you have seen everything.
MN Practice Test 1
A broad first pass across signs, right of way, rules and safety.
MN Practice Test 2
A completely different set of questions from test 1.
MN Practice Test 3
More scenarios, no repeats from the first two tests.
MN Practice Test 4
Fresh questions again, weighted toward the tougher end.
MN Practice Test 5
The last of the five distinct sets in the essentials block.
MN Full Marathon
Every question in the bank, and anything you miss comes back later in the same run until you get it right.
Signs, signals and right of way
The two areas that fail the most people. Work through the sign tests until every shape and color is automatic, then handle the intersection scenarios.
MN Road Signs Mini
A ten question warm up on shapes, colors and the signs people mix up.
MN Road Signs Full
Every sign, signal and pavement marking question in the bank.
MN Right of Way
Intersections, four way stops, roundabouts, pedestrians and emergency vehicles.
MN Complex Situations
Only the questions rated hard. Short, unpleasant, and the fastest way to find your gaps.
The rules that get you fined
Speed, alcohol, phones, seat belts and the state specific limits that carry real penalties. These questions cite the statute so you learn the rule, not just the answer.
Minnesota Laws and Limits
Only the questions drawn from this state's own code: its limits, its penalties, its restrictions.
MN Alcohol, Phones and Safety
Impairment, distraction, seat belts, child restraints and sharing the road with trucks and bikes.
MN Rules of the Road
Speed, lane use, passing, parking, headlights and railroad crossings.
The exam simulator
The real thing: your state's exact question count and pass mark, scored the way the licensing agency scores it.
Your missed questions
Every question you get wrong anywhere on this site saves to a review deck on your own device. It comes back after a day, then three days, then a week, and retires once you have answered it correctly three times running. Open any test above and the review button appears as soon as the deck has something in it.
What the process looks like
- The first step is an instruction permit at 15, which is valid for two years and requires 30 hours of classroom instruction as part of an approved driver education course.
- Anyone 18 or younger must hold the permit for at least six months before the road test. At 18 the wait is six months, and from 19 onward it drops to three months.
- The provisional license needs the applicant to be at least 16, to have finished the classroom and behind-the-wheel parts of driver education, to have held the permit six months with no moving or alcohol convictions, and to submit a supervised driving log.
- That log must show 50 hours of supervised driving with 15 at night, or 40 hours with 15 at night if a parent or guardian completes the supplemental parent class.
- For the first six months of the provisional license, driving is barred from midnight to 5 a.m. apart from listed exceptions, and only one passenger under 20 is allowed. The limit rises to three passengers under 20 for the second six months, and immediate family members do not count.
Minnesota Rules 7410.4780 allows any knowledge test to be attempted only once a day, with at least one calendar day between attempts. The Driver's Manual adds that after two failures in a row the third attempt and every one after it carries a 10 dollar fee.
The knowledge test is written from the Minnesota Statutes, Chapter 171 (Drivers' Licenses and Training Schools), with testing rules in Minnesota Rules Chapter 7410. 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.
How the Minnesota written test is scored and what happens at the Minnesota road test.
Minnesota permit test questions, answered
How many questions are on the Minnesota DVS knowledge test?
40. The number does not appear on the DVS licensing pages or in the Driver's Manual, which is why it is so often guessed at. It is stated plainly in a Minnesota state publication instead: the Office of the Legislative Auditor's 2021 evaluation of Driver Examination Stations records that a knowledge test is made up of 40 questions drawn from the Minnesota Driver's Manual, citing the manual itself as its source.
What score do I need to pass the Minnesota permit test?
80 percent, so 32 of the 40 questions. In Minnesota the threshold is not a guideline but a rule. Minnesota Rules 7410.4760 is one sentence long and says a knowledge test is passed with a score of at least 80 percent, and the May 2025 Driver's Manual repeats the same figure.
How long do I get for the Minnesota knowledge test?
40 minutes for the online version. The agreement DVS signs with businesses that run web-based class D testing tells them to make sure every test taker knows about that 40 minute limit before starting. Do not confuse it with the 40 questions, which is a separate number that happens to match.
What happens if I fail the Minnesota written test?
You wait until the next day. Minnesota Rules 7410.4780 limits you to one attempt at any knowledge test per day, with a minimum gap of one calendar day. Money comes into it on the third try: the manual says failing twice in a row means a 10 dollar fee for the third attempt and every attempt after that.
What does the Minnesota knowledge test actually cover?
The subject list is fixed by rule rather than left to the examiner. Minnesota Rules 7410.4200 requires the exam to test highway signs, Minnesota traffic laws, the effects of alcohol and drugs on driving along with the legal and financial penalties, railroad grade crossing safety, slow moving vehicle safety, bicycle related traffic laws, and safe driving practices.
Can I take the Minnesota knowledge test outside a DVS exam station?
Yes. Alongside DVS exam stations, Minnesota approves third party proctors, mostly deputy registrars, license bureaus, libraries and driver education programs, to run the class D test online. Proctors may charge up to 10 dollars for it, can test between 6 a.m. and 11 p.m. Monday to Saturday, and may supervise no more than 10 test takers at once. Appointments are required for the class D test at DVS stations, which do not take walk-ins for it.
Do I need the written test if I move to Minnesota with an out-of-state license?
Not if you are 21 or older and hold a valid, unexpired license from another state. Minnesota dropped the written test requirement for those new residents, and the waiver also covers a valid two-wheeled endorsement from another state.