Free North Dakota permit practice tests
North Dakota is one of very few states whose legislature wrote the online knowledge exam into law: N.D.C.C. 39-06-13 sets a $10 access fee, plants personal identity questions inside the test to deter fraud, and refuses to issue a Class D instruction permit until a parent or guardian certifies they monitored the sitting.
- Questions
- 25
- Correct to pass
- 20 NDDOT publishes no pass mark; 20 of 25 is our best information
- Questions here
- 263 all free, all cited
Honest note: NDDOT does not publish the exam format in a place we could confirm, so the 25 question count and the pass mark of 20 shown here are our best information rather than a verified fact. The practice questions themselves teach North Dakota law either way. Confirm the format with North Dakota Department of Transportation, Driver License Division before your appointment.
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.
ND Practice Test 1
A broad first pass across signs, right of way, rules and safety.
ND Practice Test 2
A completely different set of questions from test 1.
ND Practice Test 3
More scenarios, no repeats from the first two tests.
ND Practice Test 4
Fresh questions again, weighted toward the tougher end.
ND Practice Test 5
The last of the five distinct sets in the essentials block.
ND 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.
ND Road Signs Mini
A ten question warm up on shapes, colors and the signs people mix up.
ND Road Signs Full
Every sign, signal and pavement marking question in the bank.
ND Right of Way
Intersections, four way stops, roundabouts, pedestrians and emergency vehicles.
ND 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.
North Dakota Laws and Limits
Only the questions drawn from this state's own code: its limits, its penalties, its restrictions.
ND Alcohol, Phones and Safety
Impairment, distraction, seat belts, child restraints and sharing the road with trucks and bikes.
ND 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
- Instruction permit applicants must be at least 14, and anyone under 18 needs a parent or legal guardian to sign the sponsorship on the application.
- A 14 or 15 year old can be issued a permit to drive a Class D vehicle belonging to a parent, guardian, grandparent, sibling, aunt, or uncle, and must present a driver education Certificate of Training at the road test.
- Passing the road test at 15 gets you a restricted Class D license, still limited to relatives' vehicles, with no driving between the later of sunset or 9 p.m. and 5 a.m. unless a parent, guardian, or adult over 18 is along. It becomes an unrestricted license at 16.
- The knowledge test can be taken at a Driver License Site or online at nd.knowtodrive.com, but if you pass online you still have to book an office visit to collect the permit.
- North Dakota law writes the online exam into statute. N.D.C.C. 39-06-13 sets the $10 access fee, requires personal questions about the applicant during the test to deter fraud, and blocks issue of a Class D instruction permit until a parent or guardian certifies they monitored the sitting.
- The noncommercial knowledge test is offered in 14 languages, and eight offices, including Fargo, Bismarck, Minot and Grand Forks, add automated American Sign Language and audio testing.
NDDOT charges $5.00 per knowledge test attempt with one attempt allowed per day, $5.00 for the road test, and $15.00 for a noncommercial permit or license. Taking the exam online through KnowTo Drive costs $10.00 per attempt, a fee set by state law.
At a Driver License Site you get one knowledge test attempt per day. On the online exam a failed attempt can be repeated after 24 hours, and a fifth failure brings a one year wait.
The knowledge test is written from the North Dakota Century Code Title 39, Motor Vehicles. 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 North Dakota written test is scored and what happens at the North Dakota road test.
North Dakota permit test questions, answered
How many questions are on the North Dakota permit test?
NDDOT does not publish a question count anywhere public. Its learner permit page gives the fees and the 14 testing languages, the official Noncommercial Driver License Manual devotes its testing pages to what to bring and what you may not carry into the room, and KnowTo Drive, the NDDOT online platform, states a 60 minute limit and a $10 fee. Not one of them names a number. Driver testing sources commonly quote 25 questions with 20 correct needed, and that is the format this practice test uses.
What score do I need to pass the ND knowledge test?
NDDOT does not state one. There is no pass mark on the NDDOT driver pages, none in the Noncommercial Driver License Manual, none in the KnowTo Drive North Dakota FAQ, and none in North Dakota Century Code 39-06-13 or the driver licensing chapters of the North Dakota Administrative Code. The 80 percent figure repeated elsewhere is unconfirmed, so treat it as a target rather than a published rule and aim higher.
How much does the North Dakota knowledge test cost?
Five dollars per attempt at a Driver License Site, with one attempt allowed per day, or $10.00 per attempt online through KnowTo Drive. The noncommercial permit or license itself is $15.00 and the road test is another $5.00.
Can I take the North Dakota permit test online?
Yes. NDDOT points applicants to nd.knowtodrive.com, its only official online testing platform, and you get 60 minutes. If you are under 18 a parent or guardian has to certify they watched you take it, and you still need an appointment at a Driver License Site to be issued the permit.
How young can you get a North Dakota permit?
Fourteen, which is about as early as any state goes. A 14 or 15 year old is limited to a Class D vehicle belonging to a close relative, and a 15 year old who passes the road test can move up to a restricted license.
How much does a North Dakota instruction permit cost, and how long must you hold it?
Fifteen dollars for the permit itself, the same fee NDDOT charges for the license that follows it. North Dakota Century Code 39-06-04 requires anyone who gets the permit before turning 16 to hold it at least twelve months before moving up to a license.