Free North Carolina DMV permit practice tests

NCDMV doesn't publish the number of questions or the passing score. The written test covers traffic laws and safe driving, and a separate signs test asks you to identify signs by color and shape and explain what they mean. Both come from the North Carolina Driver Handbook. Oral tests are available on request, and the written test is offered in several languages.

You can take it again after seven calendar days. That applies to both the knowledge test and the driving test for a regular Class C license.

15, for a Level 1 Limited Learner Permit. First you finish an approved driver education course with 30 hours in class and 6 hours behind the wheel, and your driver education school gives you a Driver's Education Certificate. Students can start the course at 14½. At 18 or older, you can get a regular learner permit instead.

For the first six months you can drive only from 5 a.m. to 9 p.m., always with your supervising driver beside you; after that, any hour with a supervisor. The supervisor must be a parent, grandparent, guardian, or an adult they approve, licensed for at least five years. Only you and the supervisor sit in front, everyone buckles up, and you can't use a phone except to call about an emergency. You hold the permit nine months and log at least 60 hours, 10 of them at night.

At 16, with a Level 2 Limited Provisional License. You need nine months with the Level 1 permit, the 60-hour log, six months with no moving violation, seat belt, or phone convictions, and a road test. Level 2 lets you drive alone from 5 a.m. to 9 p.m. and to or from work. Driving alone, you can carry one passenger under 21 from outside your household, plus one more if they're a student you're taking to or from school.

After six months with Level 2 and no convictions in that time, you can upgrade online to a Level 3 Full Provisional License. It removes the limits on hours, supervision, and passengers, but drivers under 18 still can't use a phone while driving. At 18 you can upgrade to a regular Class C license online.

As of October 2026, the North Carolina Division of Motor Vehicles (NCDMV) lists the fee for a Level 1 Limited Learner Permit at $25.50. The fee is on the NCDMV page that explains how to get the Level 1 permit.

The NCDMV says to bring one document verifying identity and date of birth, a Social Security card or one document proving you have a Social Security number, one document proving North Carolina residency, and the Driver's Education Certificate issued by your driver education school.