Preparing for the Maryland Permit Test

Before you study: the format and the pass mark

For a Class C permit, the noncommercial knowledge test has 25 questions, and the motorcycle and moped permit tests are the same length. The clock gives you 20 minutes, and with an 88 percent pass mark you can miss only three. Few states set the bar that high, and by the MVA's count roughly half of people fail on their first attempt.

Questions are multiple choice and normally on a computer. The MVA's own topic list covers sign shapes like the octagon, triangle and circle, what signs mean, right-of-way, following distance, turning and lane rules, intersections, bad-weather driving and how alcohol and drugs affect you.

A study plan built on the manual

Everything is in the manual (DL-002, December 2025), organized into ten sections. Section 3, Basic Driving, deals with right-of-way, speed, stopping and following distance, lanes, turns and U-turns, passing and parking. Section 4, Signs, Signals and Pavement Markings, explains what a sign's color and shape tell you, warning versus regulatory signs, and the lines painted on the road, bike and crosswalk markings included.

Section 5 deals with darkness, fog, skidding, roundabouts, work zones and train crossings. Section 6 tackles impairment, distraction and aggression behind the wheel. Section 7 is sharing the road, and Section 9 is restrictions and penalties. Section 10 includes what a supervising driver is responsible for, the ban on headsets, and the e-bike classes.

A workable two week plan: Sections 3 and 4 in the first week, since they generate the most questions, then Sections 5 to 7 and a quick pass through 9 and 10 in the second, with a timed tutorial run every other night.

• Section 3: speed, passing, right-of-way, following distance
• Section 4: sign shapes, signals, pavement markings
• Section 6: impaired, aggressive and distracted driving
• Section 7: school buses, pedestrians, bikes, motorcycles, mopeds

Practicing with the MVA tutorial

The state's own practice test is the Maryland Online Driver Test Tutorial. Each round has 25 questions, just like the real thing. You can run the untimed version as many times as you want or take the timed version with its 20 minute limit. Each topic links back to the matching part of the manual, and it works in English and Spanish.

There is also an MVA practice app for phones. Since you need 22 of 25 on the real test, wait until you are scoring 23 or higher on the timed tutorial before booking.

If English is not your first language

The noncommercial Class C test comes in 17 options: English, Spanish and American Sign Language, plus Arabic, Amharic, Yoruba, Farsi, Urdu, Hindi, Nepali, Korean, Vietnamese, Tagalog, Traditional Chinese, Russian, French and Portuguese. The manual is available in English, Spanish and 15 more languages, Haitian Creole among them.

You may bring a spoken language interpreter to a noncommercial test, but the MVA does not cover the cost; you settle the fee with the interpreter, and the MVA publishes rules for interpreter and translator providers. It is different for deaf and hard of hearing applicants. Call the TTY line, 1-800-492-4575, and the Driver Services Division will arrange and pay for a sign language interpreter for both the knowledge and skills tests.

If you need accommodations

For the knowledge test, which the MVA calls the Law Test, four accommodations are available: more time, someone to read the questions aloud, screen reader access to the electronic text, and headphones. Branches also offer video remote interpreting.

Request them through ContactMVA by choosing the category for customers with disabilities who need accommodations, and an MVA representative will get in touch. Documentation from a qualified professional may be required; the MVA tells you after you submit whether it is, so leave yourself time.

On test day: the vision standard

The manual lists three requirements to be licensed: vision in both eyes working together, acuity of 20/40 or better in each eye, and side-to-side vision spanning 140 degrees or more without gaps. You can be screened by the MVA or by an eye doctor you choose.

Need lenses to meet it? Then your license will carry a corrective lens restriction. There is separate MVA guidance for people who do not meet the vision requirements.

After the test: cost, retakes and next steps

Taking the knowledge test costs nothing at the MVA. The money goes toward the permit: in October 2026 that is $65 for a Type I if you have never been licensed, which includes converting to a full license later.

Fail, and you can come back the very next day, so go over what you missed first. Pass, and the permit is mailed to you; then driver education behind the wheel and logged practice can begin. File your test results with the permit for later appointments.