Free · 22 short lessons · Quoted from the manual
Minnesota Driver Handbook, Chapter by Chapter
Start with lesson 1Every chapter of the Minnesota Driver's Manual that matters for the written test, cut down to the rules and exact numbers you need. Each point links to the manual text it comes from, with the page, and ends with questions from our free Minnesota practice test.
22 lessons in handbook order
Read one lesson, answer its 3 check questions, then drill that topic in the practice test. Most lessons take about 5 minutes.
- Lesson 1Chapter 1: Your license to driveLaws and paperwork
The written test, vision screening and road test
The Class D written test uses multiple choice and true or false questions, and you need 80 percent to pass. Your vision must be at least 20/40 with 105 degrees of peripheral vision, and the road test has three parts.
9 key points · 6 numbers · Handbook pp. 6 to 12
- Lesson 2Chapter 1: Your license to driveLaws and paperwork
The instruction permit and provisional license
An instruction permit is valid for two years, and teens need 30 hours of classroom instruction to get one at 15. After six months of practice, and a logged 40 or 50 supervised hours, a 16 year old can get a provisional license.
8 key points · 7 numbers · Handbook pp. 13 to 14
- Lesson 3Chapter 1: Your license to driveLaws and paperwork
Provisional license limits, Vanessa's Law and the under 21 license
For the first six months of a provisional license you may not drive from midnight to 5 a.m. without an exception, and passengers under 20 are limited. An under 21 license requires age 18 or 12 months on a provisional license without alcohol, drug or crash related convictions.
9 key points · 8 numbers · Handbook pp. 14 to 16
- Lesson 4Chapter 2: Your vehicleSignals and markings
Headlights, special lights and required equipment
Your headlights go on from sunset to sunrise and whenever you cannot see 500 feet ahead. Only certain vehicles may use blue lights or strobe lamps.
8 key points · 4 numbers · Handbook pp. 22 to 24
- Lesson 5Chapter 3: Traffic laws and vehicle operationSpeed limits
Speed limits and the basic speed law
Minnesota's basic speed law requires a speed reasonable for conditions, and the posted limit is the maximum. Default limits are 10 mph in alleys, 30 mph on urban roads and 55 mph elsewhere.
8 key points · 4 numbers · Handbook pp. 26 to 27
- Lesson 6Chapter 3: Traffic laws and vehicle operationSignals and markings
Signaling, turns, roundabouts and U turns
Signal at least 100 feet before turning and keep your wheels straight while you wait. In a roundabout, yield to traffic from the left and never stop, pass or change lanes inside.
8 key points · 3 numbers · Handbook pp. 27 to 33
- Lesson 7Chapter 3: Traffic laws and vehicle operationSignals and markings
Passing, backing up and parking
Never pass across a solid yellow line on your side, on a hill or curve without 700 feet of view, or within 100 feet of an intersection or crossing. Parking has exact distance rules from crosswalks, signals, railroad tracks and hydrants.
10 key points · 5 numbers · Handbook pp. 34 to 36
- Lesson 8Chapters 2 and 3: Your vehicle and passenger safetyLaws and paperwork
Seat belts, child seats, airbags and window rules
Everyone in the vehicle must wear a seat belt, and children under 13 ride in the back when possible. Children move from rear facing seats to forward facing seats and then booster seats by age and size.
9 key points · 8 numbers · Handbook pp. 24 to 39
- Lesson 9Chapter 4: Sharing the roadLaws and paperwork
Stop rules, school buses and fleeing police
Stop at least 20 feet from a school bus with flashing red lights, even if the stop arm stays in, unless you are across a divided road. Fleeing a police officer is a felony with years of prison time.
8 key points · 5 numbers · Handbook pp. 1 to 46
- Lesson 10Chapter 4: Sharing the roadRight of way
Right of way and yielding
When two drivers arrive together at an intersection without signals, the driver on the left yields. Yield to oncoming traffic when turning left, to cross traffic at a T intersection when you are turning and to funeral processions.
8 key points · 0 numbers · Handbook p. 43
- Lesson 11Chapter 4: Sharing the roadEmergencies
Emergency vehicles, the Move Over Law and traffic stops
For an emergency vehicle with lights and siren, pull right and stop until all have passed. The Move Over Law covers emergency, service and stalled vehicles with warning lights, and traffic stops have clear rules.
8 key points · 1 numbers · Handbook pp. 44 to 45
- Lesson 12Chapter 4: Sharing the roadRight of way
Pedestrians, bicyclists and motorcycles
Stop for pedestrians in any marked or unmarked crosswalk and never pass a vehicle stopped for one. Give bicyclists at least 3 feet, and know that motorcycles may legally split lanes at no more than 25 mph.
8 key points · 3 numbers · Handbook pp. 47 to 50
- Lesson 13Chapter 4: Sharing the roadSafe driving
Commercial vehicles, railroad crossings and work zones
A loaded tractor trailer may need more than 400 feet to stop, and its no zones run 20 feet ahead and 200 feet behind. Stop at least 10 feet from a railroad crossing when signals activate, and use the zipper merge in work zones.
8 key points · 7 numbers · Handbook pp. 51 to 55
- Lesson 14Chapter 5: Signs, signals and pavement markingsRoad signs
Sign colors, shapes and regulatory signs
Sign shapes and colors tell you what a sign means before you can read it. Regulatory signs, such as stop, yield and wrong way, direct you to follow traffic laws.
8 key points · 0 numbers · Handbook pp. 56 to 59
- Lesson 15Chapter 5: Signs, signals and pavement markingsRoad signs
Warning, school, construction and guide signs
Most warning signs are yellow, and school, pedestrian and bicycle signs may be fluorescent yellow green. Orange signs mark work zones and blue signs show services.
7 key points · 1 numbers · Handbook pp. 59 to 65
- Lesson 16Chapter 5: Signs, signals and pavement markingsSignals and markings
Traffic signals, lane use signals and ramp meters
Treat a dark signal as an uncontrolled intersection and a flashing red as a stop sign. Lane use signals tell you which lanes you may drive in, and ramp meters let one car go per green.
8 key points · 0 numbers · Handbook pp. 65 to 68
- Lesson 17Chapter 5: Signs, signals and pavement markingsSignals and markings
Lines and lane markings
White dashes let you change lanes and yellow dashes let you pass, while a solid white line means do not change lanes and a solid yellow line means do not pass. Center turn lanes are used by traffic from either direction to turn left.
8 key points · 1 numbers · Handbook pp. 69 to 71
- Lesson 18Chapter 6: Driving conditionsSafe driving
Following distance, night driving and freeways
Use the three second rule, and stretch it to four or five seconds in poor conditions. Dim to low beams within 1,000 feet of oncoming traffic or 200 feet behind another vehicle.
9 key points · 4 numbers · Handbook pp. 73 to 77
- Lesson 19Chapter 6: Driving conditionsSafe driving
Distraction, aggression, winter driving and skids
Distraction causes at least 25 percent of Minnesota crashes, and drivers under 18 with a permit or provisional license may not use a phone except to call 911. In a skid, take your foot off the gas instead of slamming the brakes, and know that cars may hydroplane at 35 mph in heavy rain.
9 key points · 6 numbers · Handbook pp. 78 to 85
- Lesson 20Chapter 6: Driving conditionsEmergencies
Blowouts, brake failure and other vehicle emergencies
For a blowout, hold the wheel, steer straight and ease off the gas before braking. Know what to do for brake failure, a stuck gas pedal, a stall on railroad tracks, fire and a power line crash.
9 key points · 3 numbers · Handbook pp. 83 to 86
- Lesson 21Chapter 8: Driving under the influence of alcohol or drugsAlcohol and DUI
How alcohol affects you and the DWI law
An alcohol concentration of 0.08 percent or more, or 0.04 percent in a commercial vehicle, can mean a DWI arrest. Under 21, any detectable alcohol while driving is illegal.
10 key points · 5 numbers · Handbook pp. 91 to 96
- Lesson 22Chapter 8: Driving under the influence of alcohol or drugsAlcohol and DUI
Implied consent and DWI penalties
Refusing a required blood, breath or urine test is a crime and costs your license for one to six years. Penalties grow with each offense, and a fourth DWI in 10 years can be a felony.
10 key points · 12 numbers · Handbook pp. 93 to 95
Read, check, then practice
- Read a lesson. Open any point's source to see the exact manual wording and page.
- Answer the 3 check questions at the end without looking back.
- Drill that topic in the free Minnesota practice test, then take a full test when every lesson feels easy.
- Keep the Minnesota cheat sheet for a last look before test day.
Source: the Minnesota Driver's Manual (June 2026). Lessons are plain English summaries, not the law itself; where they differ, the manual and the statute govern. Every quote on these pages is checked against our saved copy of the manual. Last checked 2026-09-27.