The California permit test, officially the knowledge test, is a multiple-choice test based on the California Driver’s Handbook. You need 80% to pass, and you cannot use the handbook or your phone during the test. This guide turns that into a study plan: what to read, what to memorize and how to practice.
A five-step study plan
1. Read the current handbook
Every question on the test comes from the California Driver’s Handbook, according to the DMV. Read the official web edition rather than an old printed copy, because rules and amounts change. The DMV itself suggests giving yourself a few days to get through it.
2. Study section by section
Do not try to memorize the whole handbook in one sitting. Read one section, then answer practice questions on it while it is fresh. The table below shows which sections cover the driving rules and which of our tests practice them.
3. Learn signs, signals and markings on their own
Signs are easier to learn by sight than by reading. Learn what each shape and color means, then test yourself with our California road signs practice test, which shows a drawing with every question.
4. Practice, then study every miss
Take a full practice test, then go back to every question you missed and read the handbook section it links to. A missed question tells you exactly which page to reread. Our five California practice tests each have 46 questions and use the 80% passing mark; every answer is explained and linked to its handbook section. The DMV also publishes its own sample knowledge tests in several languages, which are worth taking too.
5. Retest until you pass comfortably
Take tests you have not seen before, not just the one you have practiced. If you keep scoring well above 80% on questions you have not seen before, that is a good sign you are ready. Read how many questions are on the California permit test to know what to expect.
Which handbook sections to focus on
Most of the driving rules are in Sections 5 to 9, plus the teen rules in Section 2 and the insurance and collision rules in Section 10. The DMV does not publish how many questions come from each section, so read them all; this table only shows where each topic lives and where to practice it.
| Handbook section | What it covers | Practice it in |
|---|---|---|
| 5. An Introduction to Driving | Steering, signaling, horn, headlights, seat belts, health and driving | Test 2, Test 5 |
| 6. Navigating the Roads | Lane markings, lane types, turns, U-turns, merging, passing, parking | Test 1, then all tests |
| 7. Laws and Rules of the Road | Signals and signs, right-of-way, speed limits, pedestrians, emergency vehicles, railroad crossings | Test 1, Test 2, Road signs |
| 8. Safe Driving | Scanning, following distance, blind spots, bad weather, sharing the road with trucks and bicyclists | Test 3, Test 5 |
| 9. Alcohol and Drugs | BAC limits, under-21 rules, DUI arrests and penalties | Test 1, Test 4 |
| 2. Getting an Instruction Permit and Driver’s License | Permit and provisional license rules for drivers under 18 | Test 1, Test 3 |
| 10. Financial Responsibility, Insurance and Collisions | Insurance minimums, what to do after a collision, reporting deadlines | Test 3, Test 4 |
Numbers worth memorizing
Numbers are easy to mix up, because the wrong choices on a number question are often other real numbers from the handbook. These all come from the current handbook, and each one appears in at least one of our tests.
| Number | Topic | What it means | Practice |
|---|---|---|---|
| 65 mph | Speed | Most highways, unless a different limit is posted | Test 3 |
| 55 mph | Speed | Two-lane undivided highways, and any vehicle towing a trailer | Test 3 |
| 25 mph | Speed | Business and residential districts; within 500 feet of a school while children are outside or crossing (unless posted lower) | Test 3, Test 1 |
| 15 mph | Speed | Alleys; blind intersections; within 100 feet of an uncontrolled railroad crossing when you can see less than 400 feet down the tracks | Test 1, Test 2, Test 3 |
| 100 feet | Distance | How early to start signaling before a turn | Test 1 |
| 500 / 300 feet | Distance | Dim your high beams within 500 feet of an oncoming vehicle, or 300 feet of a vehicle you are following | Test 2, Test 5 |
| 300 feet | Distance | Do not follow an emergency vehicle, such as a fire engine, closer than this while its siren or flashing lights are on | Test 1 |
| 200 feet | Distance | The farthest you may drive in a center left turn lane | Test 1 |
| 15 feet | Distance | No parking this close to a fire hydrant | Test 2 |
| 18 inches | Distance | Maximum gap between your wheels and the curb after parallel parking | Test 5 |
| 0.08% | Alcohol | Illegal BAC for drivers 21 and older | Test 1 |
| 0.04% | Alcohol | Illegal BAC when carrying passengers for hire | Test 3 |
| 0.01% | Alcohol | Illegal BAC for drivers under 21 (and for anyone on DUI probation) | Test 1, Test 4 |
| 10 days | Deadline | File an SR 1 report with DMV after a collision with an injury, a death, or over $1,000 in damage; also the deadline to report a new address | Test 1, Test 4 |
| 15½ / 6 months / 50 hours | Teen rules | Youngest age for a permit if you are under 18; how long you must hold it before the drive test; supervised practice needed (10 hours at night) | Test 1, Test 3 |
| 11 p.m. – 5 a.m. | Teen rules | Hours a provisional driver may not drive during the first 12 months, unless an exception applies | Test 1 |
Learn each number together with its situation. Knowing that 15 mph is a speed limit is not enough; you need to know it applies in alleys, at blind intersections and near some railroad crossings.
On test day
- Read each question carefully. The DMV says there is one correct answer, that the wrong choices are usually clearly wrong, and that there are no trick questions (DMV: Prepare for Knowledge and Drive Tests).
- You cannot use the handbook, a phone or other study aids during the test.
- You get three attempts to pass. If you are under 18 and fail, you must wait 7 days before retaking it, not counting the day you failed (Handbook Section 3).
- If you miss a question, the DMV says a field office employee can show you where the answer is in the handbook.
Check the DMV’s test preparation page for current details before you go.
Ready to start? Take California Practice Test 1.