Skip to content

Is the Texas Driving Test Hard? (2026 Statistics)

Texas has one of the country's most forgiving knowledge tests. The state's road-safety, GDL and distracted-driving measures all land near the middle of the national distribution.

Across the 51 jurisdictions, more lenient knowledge tests tend to pair with deadlier roads. Texas sits well to the left of the cloud — a more forgiving test than most — with a road-safety composite closer to the middle.

02550751000255075100Knowledge-test difficulty (0–100, higher is harder)Road-safety composite (0–100, higher is safer)Texas38th in road safety49th-hardest test

Source: DMV IQ Driving Index. FARS 2023 · FHWA 2024 · CDC BRFSS 2023 · IIHS 2025.

The test

The DPS asks 30 questions and requires 70% correct — at least 21 right answers. That leaves a margin of 9 wrong — among the country's most forgiving pass-fail lines.

Texas's path from permit to full license

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

  1. Learner's permit
    Age 15
    held 6 months, 30 hours (10 at night)
  2. Probationary license
    Age 16
    night ban 12 AM - 5 AM
  3. Full license
    Age 18
    all restrictions lift

30 hours behind the wheel, with a parent watching.

Texas requires only 30 supervised hours before the road test — below the 45.2-hour national mean and well short of the IIHS-recommended 70.

0 hr25 hr50 hr75 hrTexas30 hrNational mean45.2 hrIIHS recommended70 hr
Supervised-driving hours required before unrestricted licensure. Source: IIHS state-laws table, 2025.

On Texas's roads.

For every 100,000 licensed drivers aged 19 and under in Texas, 24.4 die in a crash each year. The U.S. average is 16.8; Texas ranks 45th lowest of 51.

U.S. avg 16.8Texas24.4 deaths45th-lowest of 5101020304050← betterworse →Teen-driver deaths per 100,000 licensed drivers ≤19

Source: NHTSA FARS 2023 ÷ FHWA DL-22 2024.

Across all drivers, Texas's road network sees 1.39 deaths per 100 million vehicle miles travelled. The U.S. average is 1.25.

U.S. avg 1.25Texas1.39 deaths37th-lowest of 5100.511.52← betterworse →Deaths per 100 million vehicle miles travelled

Source: NHTSA FARS 2023 ÷ FHWA VM-2 2024.

What Texas bans behind the wheel.

Texas scores 4.0 of 6 on our distracted-driving rubric (rank 27th of 51). The state prohibits texting and manual data entry for all drivers and applies a total cellphone ban to teen and novice drivers. Texas's seat-belt law is primary enforcement — an officer may stop a vehicle for an unbuckled driver alone. Self-reported belt use is 95%.

On two wheels.

Texas's motorcyclist fatality rate is 18.33 deaths per 10,000 registered motorcycles — well above the 6.87 U.S. average. Texas's helmet law is partial — typically required only for younger riders.

U.S. avg 6.87Texas18.33 deaths50th-lowest of 5105101520← betterworse →Motorcyclist deaths per 10,000 registered motorcycles

Source: NHTSA FARS 2023 · FHWA MV-1 2024.

DPS's motorcycle knowledge test is 25 questions, with a 80% pass mark. Completion of the Texas Motorcycle Safety Education Program waives the DPS road test. Required for riders under 21 (over-21 riders can ride without if they've completed a safety course and carry medical coverage).

Source: IIHS — Motorcycle helmet use laws by state.

On bigger rigs.

The Texas CDL knowledge test is federally standardised — 50 questions, 80 percent to pass, the same content in every state. The CDL knowledge-test fee in Texas is $11. Other fees and endorsement processing run through the DPS.

Pass the DPS test before you take it.

Free Texas practice questions with instant explanations. Score 90 percent on three runs in a row and the real thing tends to look familiar.

Free Texas practice test

Nearby in the index.

Six more state pages — neighbours first, then the closest matches on road safety.

Is the Texas Driving Test Hard? (2026 Statistics) | DMV IQ