California state law test
The 27 rules that belong to California alone, each carrying the statute number it was drafted against. Each answer is tied to the rule it tests. No signup, no email.
27 questions, 40 minutes. The timer starts when you begin, and answers are shown at the end.
How the real California exam is graded
California DMV states 80 percent but publishes no current question count and no time limit. Its Provisional Licensing fact sheet (FFDL 19) caps under-18 applicants at 8 missed questions. The only clock it publishes is an office cut off: knowledge tests are not available at DMV offices after 4:30 p.m., and at-home testing has been closed to new driver license applicants since January 3, 2025. The counts widely quoted come from DMV research reports from 2006 and 2008.
This paper allows 40 minutes. That allowance is ours, not California DMV's, because no published limit exists for this test.
What is specific to California
California defines lane splitting in its vehicle code (CVC 21658.1), and it applies a universal helmet law to every rider and passenger at every age. It sets four separate alcohol thresholds rather than one, including 0.01 for anyone on DUI probation and 0.01 for drivers under 21. Minimum liability insurance rose to 30/60/15 on January 1, 2025. Daylighting rules now bar parking within 20 feet of the approach side of any crosswalk, marked or not, or 15 feet where a curb extension is present. Drivers under 18 may not use a phone while driving, hands-free included, except in an emergency, and on a two-lane highway where passing is unsafe, a slow driver must pull over once five vehicles have lined up behind them. The painted curb colors carry five specific legal meanings, which the test does ask about.
How many attempts do you get?
Three attempts per application, then you must reapply. Applicants under 18 must also wait seven days before retaking a failed knowledge test, not counting the day of the failure. DMV's Provisional Licensing fact sheet (FFDL 19, revised July 2019) gives the same wait and lets a provisional applicant miss no more than 8 questions.
Source: California Driver's Handbook (DL 600), the testing process, checked September 25, 2026.
Every question in this drill, with its answer and the section it comes from, is published in full on the California exam simulator page, which this paper draws from.
Other California practice tests
Original practice questions written from the rules themselves, not the examination questions California DMV uses. California DMVneither runs this site nor endorses it.