Teen driving laws by state

Every state sets its own floor for a teen license, and the floors are all over the map. Here they are side by side.

Required supervised practice runs from none (Arkansas and Mississippi) to 100 hours in Oregon (or 50 with approved driver ed). The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety recommends at least 70. None of these numbers is a measure of readiness. They're the legal minimum someone picked. Use the table to see where your state sits, then decide what your family's standard is. More on that in The 50-Hour Myth.

Checked against each state's licensing agency in October 2026. Rules change; your state guide links to the official source. Tap a column heading to sort.


Alabama	50Only if no approved driver ed	Not set	15	6 months	16	Depends
Alaska	40Night or bad weather	10	14	6 months	16	Optional
Arizona	3020 (6 at night) with driver ed; none with an approved program	10	15 years 6 months	6 months	16	Optional
Arkansas	None	Not set	14	6 months	16	Optional
California	50	10	15 years 6 months	6 months	16	Required
Colorado	50	10	15	12 months	16	Depends
Connecticut	40	Not set	16	120 days	16 years 4 months	Required
Delaware	50	10	16	12 months	16 years 6 months	Required
Florida	50	10	15	12 months	16	Required
Georgia	40	6	15	1 year and 1 day	16	Required
Hawaii	50	10	15 years 6 months	180 days	16	Required
Idaho	50	10	14 years 6 months	6 months	15	Required
Illinois	50	10	15	9 months	16	Required
Indiana	50	10	15	180 days	16	Optional
Iowa	20Plus 10 more (2 at night) for a full license	2	14	12 months	16	Required
Kansas	50	10	14	1 year	15	Required
Kentucky	60	10	15	180 days	16	Required
Louisiana	50	15	15	180 days	16	Required
Maine	70	10	15	6 months	16	Required
Maryland	60	10	15 years 9 months	9 months	16 years 6 months	Required
Massachusetts	4030 with a driver skills program	Not set	16	6 months	16 years 6 months	Required
Michigan	50	10	14 years 9 months	6 months	16	Required
Minnesota	5040 if a parent takes the supervised-driving class	15	15	6 months	16	Required
Mississippi	NoneParent affidavit certifies 50	Not set	15	12 months	16	Optional
Missouri	40	10	15	182 days	16	Optional
Montana	50	10	14 years 6 months	6 months plus 1 day	15	Required
Nebraska	50	Not set	15	6 months	16	Depends
Nevada	50	10	15 years 6 months	6 months	16	Required
New Hampshire	40	10	15 years 6 months	None	16	Required
New Jersey	50	10	16	6 months	17	Required
New Mexico	50	10	15	6 months	15 years 6 months	Required
New York	50	15	16	6 months	16	Depends
North Carolina	60	10	15	9 months	16	Required
North Dakota	50Only for teens licensed at 14 or 15	Not set	14	12 months	15	Required
Ohio	50	10	15 years 6 months	6 months	16	Required
Oklahoma	50	10	15	180 days	16	Required
Oregon	10050 with approved driver ed	Not set	15	6 months	16	Optional
Pennsylvania	65Includes 5 in poor weather	10	16	6 months	16	Depends
Rhode Island	50	10	16	6 months	16 years 6 months	Required
South Carolina	40	10	15	180 days	15 years 6 months	Required
South Dakota	50Includes 10 in bad weather	10	14	275 days	14	Optional
Tennessee	50	10	15	180 days	16	Optional
Texas	30	10	15	6 months	16	Required
Utah	40	10	15	6 months	16	Required
Vermont	40	10	15	1 year	16	Required
Virginia	45	15	15 years 6 months	9 months	16 years 3 months	Required
Washington	50	10	15	6 months	16	Required
West Virginia	50	10	15	6 months	16	Optional
Wisconsin	50	10	15	6 months	16	Required
Wyoming	50	10	15	10 days	16	Depends

“Depends” means driver's ed is required only for some ages or license stages, or is one of two ways to qualify. Ages are the earliest allowed; holding periods and age rules can stack, so the earliest real license date may be later. See each state's guide for exceptions.

What the table can't tell you

Whether your teen is ready. The state sets eligibility; you set readiness. Start with Ready Isn't a Feeling and The Six Environments.