CDL Guide 2026: Classes, Endorsements, and How to Get Licensed

A commercial driver's license (CDL) lets you drive the heavy trucks, buses, and hazmat vehicles that federal rules define as commercial motor vehicles. The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) sets the minimum standards, but FMCSA doesn't issue CDLs — your state of residence does. That's why fees, appointment systems, and some paperwork differ from state to state while the tests look so similar.

You need a CDL if the vehicle you'll drive falls into one of the three classes below. Weight is based on the manufacturer's rating (GVWR or GCWR), not what the truck happens to weigh today. If a job ad says "Class A required," it's talking about these federal groups.

A higher class generally covers the lower ones as long as you hold the right endorsements — a Class A holder can drive most Class B and C vehicles, but still needs a P endorsement to drive a bus. Pick the class for the job you actually want. Upgrading later means more testing, and going from B to A for the first time triggers entry-level training.

Endorsements add vehicle types or cargo to your license. Each one requires its own knowledge test, and some also require a skills test or background check.

Restrictions limit what you can drive, usually because of how you tested. The federal codes include L (no air brake–equipped CMV), Z (no full air brake–equipped CMV), E (no manual transmission), O (no tractor-trailer), M (no Class A passenger vehicle), N (no Class A or B passenger vehicle), K (intrastate only), and V (medical variance). If you score under 80% on the air brakes test, you get the air brake restriction; if you don't pass the combination vehicles test, you can't get a Class A. Take your skills test in an automatic and you'll likely get the E restriction — which can knock you out of jobs that use manual rigs.

• A valid base driver's license from your state of residence. You can hold only one license.
• Age: federal rules require drivers in interstate commerce to be at least 21. Driving only within your state (intrastate) is governed by state law, and many states allow it at 18 — check yours.
• Medical qualification: you'll self-certify the type of commerce you drive in, and most CDL drivers need a DOT physical from a medical examiner listed on FMCSA's National Registry.
• English: federal driver-qualification rules require interstate CMV drivers to read and speak English well enough to talk with the public, understand road signs, answer officials, and fill out reports.
• A clean enough record: recent disqualifying offenses (such as DUI in a CMV or leaving the scene of a crash) can keep you from getting a CDL, and states check the national driver databases before issuing one.

1. Choose your class and endorsements. Match them to the job: Class A for tractor-trailers, Class B for straight trucks or buses, plus P, S, H, N, T, or X as needed.
2. Get your medical paperwork in order. Book a DOT physical with a National Registry examiner if your type of driving requires it.
3. Study the CDL manual. Most states use the AAMVA model commercial driver's manual (sometimes with a state supplement). Read the General Knowledge section plus every endorsement section you need.
4. Pass the knowledge tests and get your CLP. The commercial learner's permit lets you practice on public roads only with a qualified CDL holder beside you.
5. Complete entry-level driver training (ELDT). If you're getting a Class A or B for the first time, upgrading B to A, or adding P, S, or H for the first time, you must train with a provider listed on FMCSA's Training Provider Registry. Hazmat ELDT (theory) comes before the H knowledge test.
6. Wait out the 14 days. You can't take the skills test in the first 14 days after your CLP is first issued.
7. Pass the skills test — vehicle inspection, basic controls, and a road test — in a vehicle that matches the class and endorsements you want.
8. Get your CDL issued and keep your medical certificate current.

Everyone takes General Knowledge. Then you add a test for each thing you want to drive or haul: Air Brakes, Combination Vehicles, Hazardous Materials, Tank Vehicles, Passenger Transport, Doubles/Triples, and School Bus. They're multiple-choice, taken at your state agency or its testing site, and built from the manual's sections.

The federal standard is simple: you must answer at least 80% of the questions correctly on each knowledge test. Scores don't average across tests. Question counts and test delivery (computer or paper, languages offered, retest waits) are set by your state.

Our free CDL practice tests give you two full tests each for General Knowledge, Air Brakes, Combination Vehicles, Hazmat, Tank, and Passenger, with explanations for every answer.

The CDL skills test has three parts, and you have to pass all three:

• Vehicle inspection — show the examiner you can tell whether the vehicle is safe to drive.
• Basic vehicle control — backing and maneuvering exercises in a test area.
• On-road driving — turns, intersections, lane changes, railroad crossings, and other real traffic situations.

You take it in a vehicle representative of the class you want, and the vehicle matters: no air brakes means an air brake restriction, an automatic means the E restriction, and a Class A test in something other than a tractor-trailer can mean the O restriction. Many states let approved third-party testers give skills tests; your state's site will list them.

There's no national price. Each state sets its own fees, and the total depends on how many tests and endorsements you need. Budget for these pieces:

• CLP application and knowledge test fees
• Skills test fee (plus a third-party tester's charge, if you use one)
• CDL license and endorsement fees
• DOT physical (set by the medical examiner)
• ELDT tuition, unless an employer sponsors your training
• TSA security threat assessment fee, if you want the H endorsement
• Truck or bus rental for the skills test, if your school doesn't provide one

Find your state's current fees on its official site — our CDL requirements by state page links every state agency.

The only fixed federal waiting period is the 14 days between getting your CLP and taking the skills test. Everything else depends on you and your training provider: how fast you learn the manual, the length of your ELDT program, and how soon your state can schedule a skills test.

A realistic plan for most people:

1. Week 1–2: read the General Knowledge section and the sections for your endorsements; take practice tests until you're consistently above 80%.
2. Knowledge tests: take them together if your state allows it, then get your CLP.
3. Training: complete ELDT theory and behind-the-wheel training; practice the vehicle inspection out loud until you can do it without notes.
4. Skills test: book it early — in some areas the wait for a test slot is longer than the 14-day rule.

• Nov. 18, 2024 — Clearinghouse enforcement at the DMV. States must now remove commercial driving privileges from drivers whose status in FMCSA's Drug and Alcohol Clearinghouse is "prohibited." The CDL is downgraded until the driver completes the return-to-duty process.
• June 2025 — electronic medical certificates. States began receiving medical examiner's certificates electronically from FMCSA's National Registry. Nevada, for example, stopped taking paper medical cards, so drivers there no longer turn one in at the DMV. Ask your state how it handles yours.
• 2025 — new model manual. AAMVA's current model commercial driver's manual carries a 2025 copyright, and states have begun publishing it (Virginia's current manual is this edition). The core safety content is familiar, but some details have been updated, so study your state's current version instead of an old PDF.
• Feb. 2026 — non-domiciled CDLs. FMCSA issued a final rule on Feb. 11, 2026 setting new eligibility standards for non-domiciled CLPs and CDLs, and some states have stopped issuing them. Nevada, for example, is issuing no new non-domiciled CLPs or CDLs.

Entry-level driver training (required since Feb. 7, 2022) is still the biggest change for new drivers: you aren't eligible for the covered skills test (or the H knowledge test) until you've completed it, and your training provider reports your completion to FMCSA's registry by midnight of the second business day after you finish.

• Your state's CDL manual — free on your state agency's website (find yours on our state-by-state list). Virginia's, for example, is on the Virginia DMV CDL manual page.
• FMCSA: How do I get a CDL? — the federal overview of the CLP, ELDT, and skills test steps.
• FMCSA Training Provider Registry — search for a registered ELDT provider near you.
• 49 CFR Part 383 — the federal CDL standards themselves, including classes, endorsements, and testing.

Start with a baseline: take CDL General Knowledge Practice Test 1 and see which manual sections cost you points, then use Test 2 to check that you've fixed them. Then check your state's fees, testing locations, and document list on the CDL requirements by state page.