Is the Maryland Driving Test Hard? (2026 Statistics)

The test

The MVA asks 25 questions and requires 88% correct - at least 22 right answers. That leaves a margin of 3 wrong - the country's hardest pass-fail line.

Maryland's path from permit to full license

In Maryland, a new driver picks up a learner's permit at 15 + 9 months, holds it for 9 months, qualifies for an intermediate license at 16 + 6 months, and earns a full unrestricted license at 18.

On Maryland's roads.

For every 100,000 licensed drivers aged 19 and under in Maryland, 10.3 die in a crash each year. The U.S. average is 16.8; Maryland ranks 15th lowest of 51.

Across all drivers, Maryland's road network sees 1.09 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.

Maryland 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. Maryland's seat-belt law is primary enforcement - an officer may stop a vehicle for an unbuckled driver alone. Self-reported belt use is 96%.

What it costs to insure a car here.

Once you have the license, insurance is the real running cost. In Maryland, the average driver pays about $1,477 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 16.9% of Maryland drivers carry no insurance at all (the national figure is 15.4%), and the least coverage the state lets a driver carry is $30,000 for injuries to one person, $60,000 total for injuries per accident, and $15,000 for property damage. Roll spend, uninsured drivers, affordability and required coverage together and Maryland lands 12th of 51 on our insurance-burden score, where 1st is the heaviest.

A defensive-driving course may earn a discount from some Maryland insurers, but the state does not require one, so treat it as optional.

On two wheels.

Maryland's motorcyclist fatality rate is 8.98 deaths per 10,000 registered motorcycles - well above the 6.87 U.S. average. Maryland is one of 20 jurisdictions with a universal helmet law: every rider, every passenger, no age exemptions.

MVA's motorcycle knowledge test is 25 questions, with a 84% pass mark. Whether a safety course waives the MVA road test is not something we have verified for Maryland, so check with MVA before you count on it. All riders and passengers must wear a DOT-compliant helmet.

On bigger rigs.

The Maryland CDL knowledge test is federally standardised - 50 questions, 80 percent to pass, the same content in every state. Fees, scheduling and endorsement processing run through the MVA; see https://mva.maryland.gov for current rates.