Wisconsin CDL Practice Test

Everyone takes General Knowledge. Add Combination Vehicles for Class A, Air Brakes for a truck or bus with air brakes (air-over-hydraulic counts), and a test for each endorsement you want: Passenger, School Bus, Tank Vehicle, Doubles/Triples and Hazardous Materials. Wisconsin Commercial Driver's Manual p. 26–27

General Knowledge has 50 questions, Air Brakes 25, School Bus 25, Hazardous Materials 30, and Combination, Passenger, Doubles/Triples and Tank Vehicles 20 each. You need 80% to pass every test. Our practice tests use the same sizes and pass marks.

Sections 1 to 10 of the Wisconsin Commercial Driver's Manual (BDS356) and its Wisconsin front pages: licensing, permits, endorsements and medical rules, vehicle inspection, safe driving, cargo, passengers, air brakes, combination vehicles, doubles and triples, tank vehicles, hazardous materials and school buses. Wisconsin Commercial Driver's Manual p. 6

Walk in to a DMV customer service center with your valid Class D license; the tests are free and need no appointment, but allow 1 to 1½ hours. Hazmat and school bus tests are in English only, with no translator or audio help.

Not here. The 10-question Farm Service test comes from Wisconsin's separate Farm Service manual (BDS201), which isn't part of the Commercial Driver's Manual these practice tests are built from.

80% on each of the 8 tests, each graded on its own (General Knowledge: 40 of 50). Every test's numbers are in the table on this page. Always confirm the current tests with the Wisconsin Department of Transportation, Division of Motor Vehicles (DMV). Why 80% in every state →

18 for a commercial learner permit, with a valid Wisconsin driver license. Federal law doesn't let anyone under 21 drive a CMV in interstate commerce, so drivers 18 to 20 get a CDL restricted to driving within Wisconsin. Wisconsin Commercial Driver's Manual p. 15

The CLP is valid for 180 days and can be renewed. Hold it at least 14 days before the skills test, and drive only with a qualified instructor or a licensed driver for that vehicle, aged 21 or older, beside you. No passengers, except three other CLP holders when an instructor rides along. Wisconsin Commercial Driver's Manual p. 15

Yes for a first CDL, an upgrade from Class B to Class A, and a first hazmat, passenger or school bus endorsement, from a provider on FMCSA's Training Provider Registry. Hazmat training must be finished before the hazmat knowledge test; the others before the skills test.

For DOT physicals done on or after April 13, 2025, FMCSA sends your medical card information to Wisconsin DMV electronically within 48 hours, and DMV no longer accepts paper copies. Cards from earlier exams still have to be faxed, emailed or mailed.

Authorized third party examiners, not DMV. The three parts (vehicle inspection, basic vehicle control and the on-road drive) are taken in that order, in a vehicle that fits your class, all on the same CLP. Book well ahead: there is at least a two-day wait. Wisconsin Commercial Driver's Manual p. 15

Wisconsin Department of Transportation, Division of Motor Vehicles (DMV) lists the current fees for the commercial learner permit, the CDL tests and the license on its official fee page.

By the highest of four weights: the manufacturer's GVWR, the GCWR when the towed unit is over 10,000 pounds, the actual weight and the registered weight. If any of them is over 26,000 pounds you need a CDL, as you do for placarded hazmat or a vehicle built or used for 16 or more people.

Not when a farmer, family member or farm employee drives the farmer's own or leased vehicle, not for hire, carrying farm supplies, produce or machinery within 150 miles of the farm. A farmer still needs a CDL with the right endorsements for double or triple trailers, or for a vehicle built for or carrying 16 or more passengers.

Firefighters and rescue squad members in equipped emergency vehicles (another state may still want a CDL), people driving their own motor home or fifth-wheel up to 45 feet for non-commercial use, and back-up snowplow drivers for local governments of 3,000 people or fewer who hold a Class D and plow within that area.

No. If you want a Class A CDL and also want to drive most buses, which take a Class B with passenger and school bus endorsements, Wisconsin has you take two skills tests: one in a Class A vehicle and one for Class B with P and S.

No. Drivers taking a skills test only to remove the L (no full air brakes), E (no manual transmission) or O (no tractor-trailer) restriction are exempt from Entry Level Driver Training, as are certain military drivers and holders of restricted CDLs for farm-related service or the pyrotechnic industry.

Every time: at the first issue, at each renewal, when transferring an out-of-state license, and whenever you add or remove a class, endorsement or restriction. Bring proof of U.S. citizenship or legal status to each of those Wisconsin DMV visits.

Wisconsin residents in the military, Reserve or National Guard, or within a year of leaving, can have the skills test waived; you still pass the knowledge tests. The even exchange also waives those for Army 88M, 92F or 14T, Air Force 2T1, 2F0 or 3E2, Marine Corps 3531 or Navy EO. Neither covers hazmat or school bus.

Finish entry-level hazmat training, apply at DMV (forms MV3001 and MV3735) with proof of citizenship or legal status, pass the hazmat knowledge test, then get fingerprinted at a Wisconsin Fieldprint location within 7 days. TSA's background check can take up to 90 days, and DMV mails the new CDL.

Age 18, a background check (at issue, each renewal and every 4 years), a medical report every 2 years (yearly from 70), and knowledge, road signs, vision and skills tests in a school bus. The tests are repeated at every renewal, in a shorter skills version. Wisconsin Commercial Driver's Manual p. 16–17

The violation goes into FMCSA's Drug and Alcohol Clearinghouse. While a driver's status there is "Prohibited", Wisconsin must downgrade the CDL or CLP; the commercial classes and endorsements come back once the status changes to "Not Prohibited" after the return-to-duty process.

Federal rules (49 CFR 383.51) disqualify you for at least 180 days and up to 1 year for a first violation, 2 to 5 years for a second within 10 years and 3 to 5 years for a third; carrying placarded hazmat or 16 or more passengers raises the first penalty to up to 2 years. Wisconsin's manual lists its disqualifications online, so these practice tests don't ask the figures.

Every 8 years, with no extensions. After a move, you have 10 days to get a duplicate CDL showing the new address, at any DMV service center. Wisconsin Commercial Driver's Manual p. 23

Yes. In Wisconsin a school bus endorsement can go on a regular Class D license when the bus is built to carry fewer than 16 people, driver included. Larger school buses need a commercial license with the passenger and school bus endorsements.

No. Wisconsin won't issue an occupational license for commercial vehicles while you're disqualified. Disqualifications run from 60 days to life depending on the offense, DMV applies them automatically after certain convictions, and the order is mailed to your last known address.