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How much is the permit test?
In many states the written test is not billed on its own. What you pay is the permit or license application fee, and the knowledge test is part of it. That is why the answer looks different depending on which state you are in.
The catch is that states describe this differently, so a single national number would be misleading. Some fold the test into a permit fee you pay once, some charge only if you fail and come back, and some charge only for the at-home option. Here is what each state's own source actually says.
| State | What the official source says |
|---|---|
| Alabama | $5 exam fee |
| Alaska | The DMV permit application requires knowledge and vision tests and a $15 permit payment; no separate state knowledge-test fee is listed. |
| Arizona | $7 instruction-permit application fee for the at-home test or an MVD office visit, rather than a separate added exam charge |
| Arkansas | $5 for each written examination, collected by DFA with the driver license fee. |
| California | No separate fee; covered by the original driver license/permit application fee of $46 for a Class C license |
| Colorado | No first-attempt state test fee is listed; @Home testing charges $6.50 per attempt, and third-party charges vary. |
| Connecticut | $40 combined testing fee covering vision, knowledge, and road test; no standalone knowledge-test-only fee |
| Delaware | No separate knowledge-test fee is listed; testing is part of the driver license application. |
| Florida | No separate initial state knowledge-test fee is listed; the original Class E credential costs $48 and a knowledge retest costs $10. |
| Georgia | $10 Class CP permit fee, paid before each test attempt; no refund if any part is failed |
| Hawaii | Fees vary by county: Honolulu charges $2 in person or $12 online, before its separate $5 permit fee. |
| Idaho | $5 knowledge test fee; instruction permit fees are separate. |
| Illinois | The official fee schedule lists a $20 original Class D instruction permit and does not itemize a separate knowledge-test charge |
| Indiana | BMV’s fee chart lists a $9 learner’s permit; it does not itemize a separate knowledge-exam fee |
| Iowa | No separate knowledge-test charge is listed on the state fee schedule; the Class C instruction permit is $6. |
| Kansas | $3 first examination fee; waived for applicants using an accepted driver-education form. |
| Kentucky | The official application guide lists no standalone written-test charge; permit issuance costs $15 standard or $18 REAL ID. |
| Louisiana | Knowledge testing is normally administered by the driver-education provider; provider charges are separate from OMV’s $32.25 basic credential fee. |
| Maine | $35 (Class C/motorcycle permit examination fee) |
| Maryland | $0 MVA fee for the knowledge test; permit or license issuance fees still apply |
| Massachusetts | $30 combined permit application/testing fee, charged each time the test is taken, including retakes |
| Michigan | No fee at a Secretary of State office; online testing costs $6.50, which includes the convenience fee and credit card processing fee |
| Minnesota | No DVS written-test charge for the first two attempts; $10 for the third and later attempts after two failures. |
| Mississippi | DPS lists a $7 learner permit fee, with no separate regular knowledge-test charge listed in its fee schedule. |
| Missouri | $0 for the noncommercial written test at a Missouri State Highway Patrol examination station. |
| Montana | No separate knowledge-test charge is listed; MVD applies the age-based learner/license fee table, including administration costs |
| Nebraska | DMV lists the original LPD permit at $13, including its security fee; no separate written-test charge is listed on the permit page. |
| Nevada | $25 for the initial knowledge and skills tests; permit issuance is separate. |
| New Hampshire | Examination is included in the license fee: $50 standard or $60 REAL ID; youth operator fees are $10 per year, capped at $50. |
| New Jersey | No separate knowledge test fee; permit fee is $10, initial license fee is $24 |
| New Mexico | MVD lists a $10 instructional-permit application fee, not a separately priced knowledge exam; contracted school testing is also available |
| New York | Regular Class D/DJ permit and license fees total $64.25 to $102.50 by age and county; no separate permit test fee. Enhanced documents cost extra. |
| North Carolina | The Level 1 permit page lists a $25.50 permit fee and required knowledge/sign/vision tests, without a separately itemized test charge |
| North Dakota | $5 per knowledge-test attempt under NDDOT’s published fee schedule. |
| Ohio | BMV’s fee schedule lists $26.50 for the operator temporary permit, including deputy registrar fee; no separate knowledge-test charge is itemized |
| Oklahoma | No extra fee to take the written exam online; each failed attempt adds $4 due when the credential is issued. |
| Oregon | $7 each time you take the test |
| Pennsylvania | $45.50 covers the initial Class C permit and four-year license. |
| Rhode Island | DMV lists permit issuance at $13.50 under 18 or $8.50 at 18+; its permit fee table does not list a separate knowledge-test fee. |
| South Carolina | Knowledge test fee is $2.00; beginner's permit issuance fee is $2.50 |
| South Dakota | $38 instruction permit fee; the official fee table does not separately list a knowledge test fee. |
| Tennessee | No separate knowledge-test charge is listed in the state fee table; Class PD permit totals are $10.50 under 18 or $5.50 at 18+ |
| Texas | DPS lists application fees rather than a separate knowledge-test fee: $16 learner license under 18; adult license fees vary by age |
| Utah | Knowledge testing is part of the $19 learner permit application; after three failures a second fee is required. |
| Vermont | $39 for the learner permit knowledge test, separate from permit issuance. |
| Virginia | $3 learner permit fee plus $4 per license year ($20 minimum license fee). |
| Washington | The knowledge-test fee varies by approved testing location. |
| West Virginia | The Level 1 GDL fee is $7.50 per attempt; the adult instruction permit is listed at $7.50. |
| Wisconsin | $0 for knowledge and signs tests in person at DMV; the online option for eligible ages 15-17 costs $10 per test. |
| Wyoming | WYDOT lists $45 for a new Class C license or permit; its fee list does not identify a separate noncommercial written-test charge. |
Each value above is quoted from that state's own official source, linked on the state page. 0 states are not listed because our dataset does not yet carry a sourced figure for them, and we do not fill those in from aggregator sites.
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