CDL Practice Test
Free CDL General Knowledge practice test
The base CDL knowledge exam every applicant must pass before any endorsement. Every question is written against the current CDL manual and 49 CFR, with the citation attached — miss one, see exactly why.
- Questions
- 52
- To pass
- 80%
- Modes
- Study · Timed
- Time limit
- 50 min (Timed mode)
Study Mode
Learn as you go — one question at a time. Answer, and the correct choice, a plain-English explanation, and the exact 49 CFR / CDL-manual citation appear immediately. Progress saves on this device.
Untimed · instant feedback · free
Timed Test
Exam conditions — 50 minutes on the clock, no feedback until you submit, answers changeable until the end. Explanations and citations are revealed with your score.
50 min · auto-submits at zero · 80% to pass
Been here before? Drill your bookmarks or your missed questions — saved on this device, no account needed.
What’s on the General Knowledge test
Federal rule sets the subject areas every general knowledge knowledge test has to cover. These are those areas — the ground the questions in this bank are drawn from:
- Safe operating regulations and the driver-qualification rules
- Commercial motor vehicle safety control systems
- Basic vehicle control, shifting and backing
- Visual search, communication, and space management
- Speed management and night operation
- Extreme driving conditions, hazard perception and emergency maneuvers
- Skid control and recovery
- How cargo weight and balance change the way a truck handles
- Vehicle inspections
- Hazardous-materials awareness
- Fatigue awareness and hours of service
Subject areas from 49 CFR § 383.111. How many questions your state asks, and how it scores them, is set by your state licensing agency — check with them before test day.
Where this fits
A practice test is one step. These are the others, in the order most drivers meet them:
- The CDL permit (CLP), explained — what the permit is, the tests that earn it, and how long it lasts.
- Entry-Level Driver Training (ELDT) requirements — the federal training step. Practice tests do not satisfy any part of ELDT, which must be completed with a provider listed on the FMCSA Training Provider Registry.
- The CDL skills test — the inspection, basic control and road test that come after the permit.
- Pre-CDL — the whole run-up to CDL school, stage by stage. “Pre-CDL” is our own name for that preparation stage, not a federal licence class, permit type, or government program.
Still working toward the permit?
These practice tests are free and always will be. If you want the whole run-up walked through in order — what to do before you ever sit the test, how the permit stage fits together, and what CDL school expects on day one — that is what CDL Pre-School is, a self-paced course for $199.
Free guide
Keep studying with the free guide
The free Driver’s Mind guide for new drivers — and the driver list, where new tests and study resources are announced first.