Texas Permit Test 2026
What to expect on the Texas knowledge test for a learner license, how many questions you need to get right, and how to get ready.
Updated October 2026
At a glance
| Minimum age | 15, with driver education under way |
|---|---|
| Where you test | In your driver education course, or at a Texas DPS driver license office if you didn't test in your course |
| Questions | 30 multiple-choice questions |
| To pass | 70%, which is 21 correct |
| Attempts (at DPS) | Up to 3 within 90 days of paying the application fee, with a 24-hour wait between attempts |
| Fee | $16 for a learner license under 18 (per the DPS fee schedule when we checked) |
How to get your learner license (under 18)
- Start driver education. You need 6 hours of classroom instruction (concurrent method) or 24 hours (block method) before you can apply.
- Pass the knowledge test in your course, or at a DPS office if your course doesn't include it.
- Get a Verification of Enrollment (VOE) from your school showing enrollment and at least 90% attendance last semester. It's valid for 30 days (90 days if issued in summer).
- Gather your documents: proof of identity, proof of Texas residency, proof of U.S. citizenship or lawful presence, and your driver education certificate. Your Social Security number is checked electronically.
- Visit DPS with a parent or guardian (or bring a notarized application), pay the fee and take the vision test.
What's on the test
Questions come from the Texas Driver Handbook: traffic signs and signals, right of way, Texas traffic laws, safe-driving basics such as speed and following distance, and sharing the road with pedestrians, cyclists, motorcycles, trucks and emergency vehicles.
After you pass
With a learner license you may drive only with a licensed adult aged 21 or older in the front passenger seat, and you can't use a phone at all, even hands-free, except in an emergency.
To get a provisional license you must be 16 or 17, have held the learner license for at least 6 months, and complete 30 hours of practice driving, 10 of them at night, along with your driver education in-car lessons. You also need to complete the Impact Texas Teen Driver (ITTD) program within 90 days before your driving test.
On a provisional license you can't drive between midnight and 5 a.m. (with exceptions for work, school activities and emergencies), carry more than one non-family passenger under 21, or use a phone while driving.
How to prepare
- Read the Texas Driver Handbook. All questions are drawn from it.
- Know your signs. Shapes and colors alone answer many questions.
- Learn the Texas-specific rules, such as the learner and provisional restrictions above.
- Take full 30-question practice tests and aim for at least 27 correct before the real one.
- Go back over every miss until you can explain why the right answer is right.
Common questions
How many questions are on the Texas permit test?
30 multiple-choice questions. You need 70% to pass, which is 21 correct.
Can I take the Texas permit test online?
Many Texas driver education courses include the knowledge test, so you can take it as part of your course. If yours doesn't, you take it at a DPS driver license office.
How many times can I retake the Texas permit test?
At DPS you get up to three attempts within 90 days of paying the application fee, with a 24-hour wait between attempts. After that you need to apply and pay again.
How old do you have to be to get a learner license in Texas?
At least 15, and you must have completed the required classroom hours of driver education.
Practice with the real format
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