How to Prepare for Minnesota's Class D Knowledge Test

Before you study: what the test checks

You may get it on paper or on a computer, and it asks about signs and state traffic rules in two formats: true or false, and pick one of several answers. Minnesota Rules part 7410.4760 sets the bar at 80 percent, and you can take only one written test a day.

We could not find a fixed number of questions published by DVS on the pages and manual we checked, so prepare to know the material rather than relying on a margin of misses. Since 2024 legislation, the English version has been redone in plain language, which leaves older study guides out of step with the current wording.

Before you book: DVS station or proctor?

A DVS exam station requires an appointment, but you can take as long as you need, and the first two attempts cost nothing, unless a proctor has already tested you. Fail twice and every attempt from the third costs $10.

Proctors range from license bureaus and deputy registrars to community education offices and some public libraries (Windom and Walker, for instance); DVS lists them county by county on a sheet updated in November 2025. You get 40 minutes, may pay $10, and cannot use an interpreter or any other help. The proctor route suits confident English readers who want a test closer to home.

Before you book: language and audio options

On computer the test comes in English, ASL, Spanish, Somali, Hmong, Karen, Vietnamese and Russian, and most sites provide headphones so each question can be read to you as you follow along. Ask at the station about other accommodations.

For any other language, selected DVS stations give a spoken exam by appointment, limited to one hour. You supply the interpreter, who needs a valid Minnesota driver's license and translates each question as it is read aloud in English. Not every station offers it, so contact DVS to book.

Your study plan: manual and practice test

The June 2026 Driver's Manual begins with a New laws and information section. It covers motorcycle lane sharing, work zone safety, and the rule that you halt at least 20 feet back from a school bus flashing red, whether or not its stop arm swings out. Read it first, since new rules are favorite test material.

DVS also posts a 25 question practice test in English, Spanish, Somali, Hmong, Vietnamese, Russian, Ukrainian, French, Dari and Pashto. Do not expect to see those exact questions on test day; their value is that each cites a chapter, for instance reduced conflict intersections in Chapter 3 or SIPDE scanning in Chapter 6. A sensible plan: one or two chapters a night for five nights, then the practice test, then reread the chapters behind any miss.

• Ch. 1 and 2: your license; your vehicle
• Ch. 3: traffic laws and operating the car
• Ch. 4: sharing the road
• Ch. 5: signs, signals, pavement markings
• Ch. 6: driving conditions
• Ch. 7 and 8: your privileges; driving under the influence

On test day: what to bring

Bring a primary and a secondary identity document, or a Minnesota ID card, plus the pre-application confirmation. Teens also bring the Blue or Pink Card and, if done, the Supplemental Parental Curriculum certificate. Adults need no classroom instruction before testing.

Vision is checked separately, at the license office, when you apply for the permit; you need 20/40 and at least 105 degrees of side vision. Bring glasses or contacts; falling short means sending an eye doctor's report to DVS's Driver Evaluation Unit.

After the test: teens, adults and mopeds

There is one test for everyone and one pass mark. Teens differ only in needing the enrollment card and, on the permit application, a parent's signature. A pass leads to a two year permit, renewable without retesting if expired less than a year.

Teens leaning toward a moped can earn a motorized bicycle permit at 15 by finishing a moped safety course and passing written, vision and road tests. E-bikes are a separate category: no test at all, just a rider aged 15 or more.