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South Dakota · South Dakota Department of Public Safety

South Dakota DMV practice test

The South Dakota knowledge test has 25 multiple-choice questions, and you need 20 correct answers to pass. DMV Champ teaches every question with its explanation, then checks you with 5 simulated tests in exactly that format.

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25

questions

20

correct to pass

80%

passing score

None

time limit

Part of this format is confirmed by sd.gov/dps; the rest is the best figure available, and it is the one DMV Champ’s test simulator uses. Check the current South Dakota handbook before your test.

What the South Dakota test looks like

South Dakota’s test is one of the shorter ones: only 5 jurisdictions ask fewer than 25 questions. You need 80% to pass, which means you can miss 5 questions and still get your permit. There is no time limit, so read every question twice.

The test is given by the DPS (South Dakota Department of Public Safety). Its questions come from the official South Dakota driver’s handbook, which is also where every DMV Champ question is checked.

The same format is used in Arkansas, Colorado, Connecticut, Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, North Carolina, North Dakota and Wyoming.

See how many questions you can miss in every state.

What the South Dakota handbook says

The South Dakota driver’s handbook calls it the knowledge test. Passing it is how you get an instruction permit, which you can apply for from age 14 in South Dakota. If you fail, the rule on retaking is: not before the next working day; three attempts per fee within six months.

36 topics in South Dakota: the 34 every state tests, plus winter driving and flooding, because the South Dakota handbook teaches them.

Test simulator

5 simulated tests in the South Dakota format

25 questions20 to passNo time limit

Pick South Dakota once in the app and every simulated test uses these figures. Nothing is revealed mid-test, and each attempt is graded against the 20-correct passing score at the end. Retake a test as often as you like, reordered each time.

What you study

4 sections, 36 topics, every one on the South Dakota test.

Signs and signals, road rules, safe driving and driving laws. The topics come from the AAMVA guidelines every state builds its test on, checked against the South Dakota handbook. On Learn they’re cut into short practices of about ten questions, in seven steps from road signs to the laws, and every answer is explained the moment you check it.

Learn by answering

No chapters to read first. Every practice question carries its answer and the reasoning, so a wrong answer is how the next thing is taught.

Mistakes come back

A question you get wrong goes to your mistakes in Review and comes back until you get it right there. Once you’ve answered every question and corrected every mistake, you’ve finished the learning phase.

Your chance of passing

Take a simulated test in the South Dakota format and see how likely you are to reach the 20-correct passing score. Your latest test counts the most.

South Dakota questions

Good to know before your South Dakota test.

How many questions are on the South Dakota permit test?

25. The South Dakota knowledge test has 25 multiple-choice questions, and you need 20 correct answers (80%) to pass.

How many questions can you miss on the South Dakota knowledge test?

5. With 25 questions and 20 needed to pass, you can get 5 wrong and still pass.

Is the South Dakota knowledge test timed?

No. South Dakota does not put a time limit on the knowledge test. Only 8 jurisdictions do.

How old do you have to be to get a learner’s permit in South Dakota?

14. In South Dakota the first permit is called an instruction permit, and the handbook sets 14 as the youngest age for it. The knowledge test is part of getting one.

Where do the South Dakota questions come from?

From the official South Dakota driver’s handbook, which is what the DPS writes its test from. Every DMV Champ question is checked against it and explained the moment you answer.

Ready for the South Dakota test?

A few questions a day is enough. Not in South Dakota?

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