New Mexico Taxation and Revenue Department, Motor Vehicle Division
New Mexico permit test: 25 questions, a 70 percent bar
Original New Mexico questions with the law cited under every answer, scored the way MVD scores it.
- Exam Simulator25 questions, pass with 18, scored the way MVD scores it
- Practice Test 120 questions, a broad first pass across signs, right of way, rules and safety
- Road Signs Full197 questions, every sign, signal and pavement marking question
- Laws and Limits12 questions drawn from the NMSA 1978 ch. 66
Work through them in order.
NM Practice Test 1
NM Practice Test 2
NM Practice Test 3
NM Practice Test 4
NM Practice Test 5
NM Full Marathon
NM Road Signs Mini
NM Road Signs Full
NM Right of Way
NM Complex Situations
New Mexico Laws and Limits
NM Alcohol, Phones and Safety
NM Rules of the Road
New Mexico Exam Simulator
Every question you miss saves to a review deck on this device. See how the review deck works.
Know the format before you book.
New Mexico passes its class D and M written tests at 70 percent, not the 80 percent bar most of its neighbors use, and the Motor Vehicle Division puts that figure in Section E of Chapter 11 of its own Driver Procedures Manual. What the same manual never states is how many questions the exam holds, and neither does the learner permit page, the MVD frequently asked questions or the official New Mexico Driver Manual, so this page gives the percentage and leaves the count alone. The more useful New Mexico rule is that the written test can be skipped altogether at the permit stage. MVD's instructional permit chapter accepts either a passing written test or a Certificate of Completion from a driver education school under contract to MVD, and since the permit at 15 already requires enrollment in an approved course, many applicants never sit an MVD exam. MVD publishes eight testing languages, English, Spanish, Tagalog, Italian, German, French, Vietnamese and Chinese, and states there are no plans to offer more.
Honest note: MVD does not publish the exam format in a place we could confirm, so the 25 question count and the pass mark of 18 shown here are our best information rather than a verified fact. The practice questions themselves teach New Mexico law either way. Confirm the format with New Mexico Taxation and Revenue Department, Motor Vehicle Division before your appointment.
MVD: format figure not published; checked 2026-08-28
What the process looks like.
The knowledge test is written from the New Mexico Motor Vehicle Code, NMSA 1978 Chapter 66. 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.
New Mexico's instructional permit is available at 15 for teens enrolled in an approved driver education program, and permit holders may only drive with a licensed adult at least 21 years old who has held a license for a minimum of three years.
MVD's instructional permit chapter accepts either a passing written test or a Certificate of Completion from an MVD contracted driver education school as the knowledge requirement for the permit.
A provisional license follows at 15 and a half, but only after holding the instructional permit for at least six months and logging 50 hours of supervised driving, including 10 hours at night.
Provisional license holders cannot carry more than one passenger under 21 outside their immediate family, and cannot drive between midnight and 5 a.m., unless a licensed driver 21 or older rides along.
The provisional stage must last at least 12 months before a driver can move up to a full, unrestricted New Mexico license.
MVD's testing rules impose a wait of at least one week after a failed road test. No fixed wait is published for a failed written test, so ask your field office whether same day retesting is available.
New Mexico permit test questions, answered.
How many questions are on the New Mexico MVD knowledge test?
MVD publishes the pass mark but not the question count. Section E of Chapter 11 of its Driver Procedures Manual requires 70 percent or better on any class D or M written test, and the number of questions appears nowhere: not in that chapter, not on the learner permit page, not in the MVD frequently asked questions, and not in the official New Mexico Driver Manual. Two unofficial figures circulate. Driver training sites say 25, and MVD Now, a private MVD partner office rather than the agency, says 28 on its knowledge exam page. This practice test runs 25 questions with 18 correct to pass, and the count is the piece we could not confirm with MVD.
What score do I need to pass the New Mexico permit test?
Seventy percent or better, confirmed in MVD's own testing rules. That percentage is the part MVD actually publishes, so it holds whatever the exam length turns out to be. On the 25 question format this practice test uses, 70 percent works out to 18 correct, because 70 percent of 25 is 17.5 and there is no half question.
Can driver education stand in for the New Mexico written test?
At the permit stage, yes. MVD's instructional permit chapter lists the knowledge requirement as either a passing written test or a Certificate of Completion from a driver education school under contract to MVD.
In what languages can I take the New Mexico knowledge exam?
Eight: English, Spanish, Tagalog, Italian, German, French, Vietnamese and Chinese. MVD's testing rules add that there are no plans to offer more.
What happens if I fail the New Mexico knowledge test?
MVD's rules set a one week wait after a failed road test but publish no fixed waiting period for a failed written test, so check same day retesting availability with your local MVD field office.
How much does a New Mexico instructional permit cost, and how long is it valid?
Ten dollars, per MVD's learner permit page, and it stays valid for four years, the same length MVD gives a standard license, unless a medical report calls for a shorter period or the applicant turns 21 within that window, per Chapter 3 of the Driver Procedures Manual.