The North Dakota knowledge (permit) test

By the end of this topic you can

• You can explain where and how you can take the knowledge test.
• You can list the items that cause an automatic fail in the testing area.
• You can describe the fee and retake rule.
• You can name the manual chapters to study most.
• You can answer questions on North Dakota's own speed limits and distances.

What you need to know and understand

• You can test at a Driver License site (appointment needed) or online through KnowTo Drive, NDDOT's official online testing platform.
• The test costs $5 per attempt, and you are allowed one attempt per day.
• The Class D test is offered in 14 languages, including English, Spanish, Somali, Arabic and French.
• Automated American Sign Language and audio testing is available at the larger offices, such as Fargo, Bismarck, Grand Forks and Minot.
• Bringing a phone, bag, paper, pen or other banned item into the testing area means a failed score.
• Leaving the testing area before you finish also means a failed score.
• You must also pass a vision screening before a permit is issued.

Office or online: how the test works

At a Driver License site, arrive at least one hour before closing. If the office closes for lunch, arrive at least one hour before noon too, or you may not be allowed to test. Most smaller sites close from 12:00 to 1:00 p.m.; Bismarck, Minot, Grand Forks and Fargo do not.

Online testing through KnowTo Drive lets you take the test at home. Read the platform's own rules before you start. Passing online does not give you a permit: you still book an office visit for documents and the vision screening.

Testing room rules

NDDOT is strict about what comes into the testing area. You are responsible for locking items away before you go in.

• Not allowed: children, pets (service animals are fine), backpacks, purses, paper, pens, pencils, markers, notebooks, cell phones and any other electronic device.
• Bringing any of them in counts as a fail.
• Leaving the testing area mid-test also counts as a fail.

What to study first

The test covers signs, signals and markings, the Rules of the Road, driving skills and emergencies, and drinking, drugs and driving. North Dakota's own numbers come up often, so learn them exactly.

• Default speed limits: 20 mph at blind railroad crossings and intersections and past schools at busy times, 25 mph in business and residential districts, 55 mph on gravel roads, 80 mph on rural Interstate unless posted otherwise.
• Signal continuously for the last 100 feet before a turn.
• Dim high beams within 500 feet of oncoming traffic and within 300 feet when following.
• No parking within 10 feet of a fire hydrant or 15 feet of a stop sign.
• Alcohol limits: 0.08, or 0.02 under 21.
• Studded snow tires: October 15 to April 15.

If you fail

You can try again on another day, paying $5 each attempt. Use our North Dakota Permit Practice Test, which has original questions written from the manual, to find your weak areas before you rebook.

Common mistakes

• Keeping your phone in your pocket. It is an automatic fail, even if you never touch it.
• Trusting question counts and pass marks from unofficial websites. NDDOT does not publish them in the manual.
• Skipping the winter driving pages. North Dakota's manual puts real weight on snow, ice and plows.
• Arriving late in the day. Under one hour before closing, you may be turned away.

Test yourself: The North Dakota knowledge (permit) test

Answer each question, then read the explanation. Questions come in a random order each time.

Go deeper

• North Dakota Permit Practice Test
• Learning to Drive in North Dakota
• North Dakota Permit Test