Studying for and Passing the Georgia Permit Knowledge Exam

Before you study: how the exam is built

Forty questions in all, scored as two separate 20-question tests. Road Signs is about recognizing the standard signs, signals and lane markings you see on any highway. Road Rules covers driver responsibility, Georgia traffic law and safe driving practice for the license class you want. With 15 needed on each, a great score on one half cannot carry a weak one.

Signs catch more people than they expect, because there is nothing to reason through: you either know the sign or you do not. Learn shapes and colors first, since the shape alone tells you the category. Eight sides always means stop, a downward-pointing triangle means yield, and a five-sided sign marks a school zone.

Before you study: which parts of the manual matter

DDS posts its Drivers' Manual online and says everything needed to pass is inside. Section 3, Testing Information, explains the format. For Road Signs, Section 7 (Signs, Signals and Markings) teaches the shapes and the three sign families (regulatory, warning, guide) along with signals and road markings.

For Road Rules, spend your time on Section 5, Traffic Laws, which covers speed limits, who has the right of way, school buses, the hands-free law and the move-over law. Add Section 6 (teen laws, Joshua's Law and the Class D limits), Section 8 (safety guidelines), Section 9 (how to share space with trucks, motorcycles, cyclists and people on foot) and Section 10 (how you can lose the privilege to drive).

A two-week plan works for most people: signs and Section 7 in the first few days, the rules sections over the next week, then the practice test every other day until both halves feel easy.

Who sits it, and where

Anyone applying for a first Georgia license or permit has to pass. Teens can apply for the Class CP at 15, and a first-time adult faces exactly the same pair. Drivers whose license lapsed more than two years ago also retake signs and rules, along with the vision and road tests.

Every DDS Customer Service Center gives the exam on a walk-in basis, starting no later than 30 minutes before closing. Cheating or other misconduct is scored by DDS as a fail. Under 18, you also need school enrollment proof and a parent, legal guardian or responsible adult to sign.

On test day: languages, oral tests and eyesight

Both halves are offered in 26 languages. From Europe and the Americas: English, Spanish, French, German, Italian, Russian, Albanian, Brazilian Portuguese and Haitian Creole. From Africa: Amharic, Swahili, Wolof and Yoruba. From the Middle East and Asia: Arabic, Turkish, Farsi, Dari, Pashto, Urdu, Hindi, Burmese, Rohingya, Chinese, Japanese, Korean and Vietnamese. An applicant with a reading disability can ask for the questions to be read aloud; oral testing times differ from center to center, so call first. DDS lists no other accommodations on its testing page, so get in touch beforehand if you need something else.

The eye test comes first. You need 20/60 or better in at least one eye, glasses or contacts allowed, and side vision spanning 140 degrees. If the field check fails, a licensed optometrist or ophthalmologist must complete form DS-MR-274 (the Vision Report Form) for DDS. If you know your side vision is limited, see an eye doctor before you go.

If you fail: waits, fees and payment

The $10 permit fee is charged for every attempt as of October 2026. After a first failure you wait 1 day; after a second, 7 days. Each retest means paying the fee again, and only cash or a card will do; a check or money order is refused, and nothing is refunded.

The cheapest approach is to keep taking the practice test until both halves are comfortable before your first visit. Teens have another reason: the year-and-a-day clock for the Class D starts only when the permit is issued, so a late permit means a late license.