Free Massachusetts DMV practice tests

16. The mass.gov application page lists that alongside four other conditions you have to meet at the same time: be a resident of Massachusetts, not hold a driver's license or learner's permit in any other state, be clear of outstanding obligations to any state, and meet minimum Class D or Class M driver's license medical standards. Under 18 you also need written consent from a parent, a legal guardian, the Department of Children and Families, or a boarding school headmaster, given by signing the Class D, M, or D/M license and ID card application — and if the person consenting is not a parent, proper documentation of authority must be shown at the time of the written test.

25 questions, 18 of them right, inside 25 minutes. The Class D driver's manual, the learner's-permit application page and the knowledge-test FAQs all print the same three figures. Eighteen correct out of 25 leaves you seven misses, and no published RMV list sets a separate minimum for any single topic, so those seven can fall anywhere across the subject matter. The RMV states the bar as a count and never as a percentage.

You pick, and you say so at the counter. The application page says you can take the exam at the Service Center during your learner's permit appointment or online, and that you need to tell the Service Center employee where you plan to take it. In the building it runs on an automated testing station, a videoscreen kiosk in RMV Full Service Centers. At home it needs a computer with a working camera enabled, a browser at least as current as Google Chrome 97, Microsoft Edge 94, or Internet Explorer 11, and a quiet location — no smartphones or tablets. Either way you must first visit a Service Center or a AAA branch if you are a member, because the RMV verifies your identity, checks your vision and takes your photo there.

$30, listed on the application page as the Learner's Permit Application Fee and described in the manual as the learner's permit exam fee covering the cost of processing your application and administering your exam. It buys one sitting: the manual says that if you fail the exam or your permit expires, you will be charged this fee again for another examination. The knowledge-test FAQs describe what happens next procedurally — fail, and you are given instructions at the end of the exam on how to pay for and take another one. Fees are subject to change at any time, so confirm the current figure on the application page before you go.

The RMV's medical-standards page sets four minimums together: at least 20/40 distant visual acuity in either eye, with or without corrective lenses; not less than 120 degrees combined horizontal peripheral field of vision; the ability to distinguish the colors red, green and amber; and no unresolvable diplopia. Between 20/50 and 20/70 in either eye, with the same 120-degree field, you may be eligible for a license with a daylight only restriction instead. If you fail the screening, decline it, or are unable to take it, the manual lets you submit an original RMV Vision Screening Certificate completed by your ophthalmologist or optometrist.

For a Class D test, yes — a sponsor, and the manual says that if you are not accompanied by one you will not be given the test. The sponsor must be 21 years of age or older, have at least 1 year of driving experience, and have a valid driver's license issued by their home state, with the license on them that day; holders of foreign driver's licenses are not eligible. One person may not sponsor more than three different applicants within a one year period without approval from the RMV Road Test Program. A sponsor is not required for a Class M road test.

$35. The Class D road-tests page says the fee is not refunded if you fail the test, are unprepared, do not have a registered vehicle, are late or do not appear, or cancel or reschedule your test with less than 72 hours notice — and lists separately that you will still be charged if you fail, are unprepared, do not bring a qualified sponsor, do not appear or are late, or cancel or reschedule inside the same 72 hours. Tests the RMV cancels itself work the other way: a Governor's state of emergency cancels them automatically, examiners may cancel for unsafe weather, and those may be rescheduled at no additional fee.

The manual sets the wait at least 14 days if you fail a road test or do not appear for your scheduled test, and the RMV's scheduling page states the same rule as two weeks. All fees must be paid before you can schedule a new road test. There is also a ceiling on the year: you can attempt no more than 6 Class D road tests in a 12-month period. Booking is online only for Class D and Class M, tests are scheduled 60 days in advance and fill up quickly, and new time slots are added each business day throughout the day.

Paying first. If you pass the road test, have prepaid your license fee, and have no outstanding obligations, the manual says the examiner validates your learner's permit and it becomes a temporary license valid up to 60 days, unless the permit expires before that. If you have not prepaid, you have 60 days to either pay online or take the permit with the road test results to a Service Center — pay online without visiting one and you will not receive a temporary license, and missing the 60 days may mean retaking the road test at your expense. The card itself is mailed: the manual and the renewal page say 10 to 14 business days, and the fee-payment page says 7 to 10 days on the road-test path. Contact the RMV if nothing arrives after 30 days.

Most standard and REAL ID passenger and motorcycle licenses, Class D and M, are good for 5 years and cost $50; a combined passenger and motorcycle Class DM license costs $65. Licenses issued for less than 5 years because of the duration of an applicant's lawful presence in the U.S. are prorated at $10 a year. You can renew up to 1 year before expiration and up to 2 years after it; past 2 years expired, the renewal page says you will be required to take the learner's permit exam and road test again. All license fees are non-refundable and all fees are subject to change at any time, so check the renewal page for the current figures.