Is the District of Columbia Driving Test Hard? (2026 Statistics)

The test

DC DMV asks 25 questions and requires 80% correct - at least 20 right answers. That leaves a margin of 5 wrong. That places District of Columbia near the middle of the national distribution on test difficulty.

District of Columbia's path from permit to full license

In District of Columbia, a new driver picks up a learner's permit at 16, holds it for 6 months, qualifies for an intermediate license at 16 + 6 months, and earns a full unrestricted license at 18.

On District of Columbia's roads.

For every 100,000 licensed drivers aged 19 and under in District of Columbia, 6.0 die in a crash each year - one of the lowest rates in the country (the U.S. average is 16.8). In Mississippi the figure is 44; in Montana, 34.

Across all drivers, District of Columbia's road network sees 1.24 deaths per 100 million vehicle miles traveled. The U.S. average is 1.25.

The country's strictest law on driving with a phone in your hand.

District of Columbia scores a full 6.0 of 6 on our distracted-driving rubric - the only state to do so. The law bans handheld phones for all drivers, prohibits texting and manual data entry for all drivers, and applies a total cellphone ban to teen and novice drivers. District of Columbia's seat-belt law is primary enforcement - an officer may stop a vehicle for an unbuckled driver alone. Self-reported belt use is 94%.

What it costs to insure a car here.

Once you have the license, insurance is the real running cost. In District of Columbia, the average driver pays about $1,677 a year, more than the $1,282 a typical American pays. Here is where that sits next to the national average and the cheapest and priciest states.

About 23.1% of District of Columbia drivers carry no insurance at all (the national figure is 15.4%), and the least coverage the state lets a driver carry is $25,000 for injuries to one person, $50,000 total for injuries per accident, and $10,000 for property damage. Roll spend, uninsured drivers, affordability and required coverage together and District of Columbia lands 3rd of 51 on our insurance-burden score, where 1st is the heaviest.

One way to trim the bill: District of Columbia law makes insurers give a discount for finishing an approved defensive-driving course (for drivers all ages), good for 2 years. The same course can also knock points off your record or help dismiss a ticket.

On two wheels.

District of Columbia's motorcyclist fatality rate is 16.57 deaths per 10,000 registered motorcycles - well above the 6.87 U.S. average. District of Columbia is one of 20 jurisdictions with a universal helmet law: every rider, every passenger, no age exemptions.

DC DMV's motorcycle knowledge test is 25 questions, with a 80% pass mark. Whether a safety course waives the DC DMV road test is not something we have verified for District of Columbia, so check with DC DMV before you count on it. All riders and passengers must wear a DOT-compliant helmet.

On bigger rigs.

The District of Columbia CDL knowledge test is federally standardised - 50 questions, 80 percent to pass, the same content in every state. The CDL knowledge-test fee in District of Columbia is $78. Other fees and endorsement processing run through the DC DMV.