In most states, you do not have to parallel park in a driving test. Roughly two-thirds of states have removed the maneuver from their road exams, but a meaningful minority still require it, and the list shifts every few years. The only way to know for certain is to check your state DMV’s road test page before your appointment.
Which States Still Require It
Each state sets its own road test requirements. There is no federal standard dictating which maneuvers must be included. The American Association of Motor Vehicle Administrators publishes guidelines that encourage uniformity, but individual states choose whether to follow them. The result is a patchwork.
As of the mid-2020s, more than a dozen states have officially eliminated parallel parking from their road tests. The trend picked up momentum around 2015 and has continued since, with several states concluding that the skill, while useful in daily driving, doesn’t belong in a pass-or-fail licensing exam. States that still require it tend to cluster in the Northeast and Midwest, where street parking is common and the maneuver is treated as a core competency.
Outdated lists circulate online for years, and requirements can change between the time you get your learner’s permit and the time you schedule your test. Check your state DMV’s road test page directly. If your state does require parallel parking, that page will usually describe how the maneuver is set up and how it’s scored.
How Parallel Parking Is Scored on the Test
In states that include it, the setup typically involves parking between two cones or markers rather than between actual cars. You pull alongside the front marker, then back into the space, straightening the vehicle so it ends up close to the curb and roughly centered between the markers. Most states require your wheels to finish no more than 12 inches from the curb, though the exact tolerance varies.
Examiners watch for several things during the maneuver: whether you check mirrors and blind spots before moving, whether you control your speed, and whether you complete the park without striking a cone or rolling over the curb. In many scoring systems, hitting a cone or jumping the curb is an automatic failure rather than a point deduction. Extra pull-ups to adjust your position usually cost points but won’t fail you outright unless the maneuver becomes excessive.
Even in states that don’t test parallel parking on the road exam, driver education courses still teach it. Dropping it from the test doesn’t mean the skill is unimportant. It means the state decided a controlled cone exercise doesn’t reliably predict real-world parking ability, or that limited test time is better spent evaluating traffic judgment and higher-speed skills.
What Fails People More Often Than Parallel Parking
Parallel parking gets the most anxiety, but it’s rarely the maneuver that actually fails people. The rest of the road test evaluates skills you use every time you drive, and examiners weight them heavily.
Turns and Intersections
Left and right turns are tested repeatedly throughout the exam. Examiners watch your lane positioning before and after the turn, whether you signal early enough, and whether you check for pedestrians and cross traffic. Wide turns and cutting corners are common point deductions. Left turns across oncoming traffic are where many applicants lose the most points, usually by misjudging gaps or failing to wait near the center of the intersection.
Lane Changes and Merging
If the test route includes multi-lane roads, you’ll be asked to change lanes at least once. The examiner is looking for a specific sequence: mirror check, signal, head-turn blind spot check, then a smooth transition. Skipping the physical head turn is one of the most common mistakes, and in some states it’s enough to fail you on its own if traffic is present. Relying only on mirrors without turning your head tells the examiner you have a blind spot you don’t know about.
Backing Up in a Straight Line
Most states ask you to reverse in a straight line for roughly 50 feet at a slow, controlled speed. You need to turn your head and look through the rear window rather than relying on mirrors. Weaving, going too fast, or looking forward while backing are all point deductions.
Three-Point Turns
Also called a K-turn or turnabout, this maneuver demonstrates your ability to reverse direction on a narrow road. You pull to one side, back while turning the wheel, then pull forward to complete the turn. Extra maneuvers beyond three points will cost you, and failing to check for traffic before each movement is a common mistake. Some states have replaced this with a two-point turnabout using a driveway.
Ongoing Observation
Throughout the test, the examiner evaluates things you might not think of as maneuvers: maintaining a safe following distance, adjusting speed for conditions, scanning intersections before entering them, and responding properly to signs and signals. These ongoing observations often account for more of the score than any single maneuver.
How the Scoring Works
Most states use a point-deduction system. You start with a clean sheet, accumulate points for errors, and fail if you exceed a threshold. The passing threshold varies by state, but a common model allows up to 30 points of deductions before failing, with individual errors costing 5, 10, or 15 points depending on severity. A missed signal might cost 5 points; poor judgment at an intersection might cost 10; inability to complete a required maneuver might cost 15.
You can make several small mistakes and still pass. Most people who fail don’t fail on a single dramatic error. They accumulate moderate deductions across multiple categories until the total pushes them over the line.
Automatic Failures
Certain actions end the test immediately, regardless of your point total. They fall into two broad categories: dangerous acts and traffic violations.
Dangerous acts include anything that forces another driver or pedestrian to take evasive action, any situation where the examiner has to intervene (grabbing the wheel or telling you to stop), losing control of the vehicle, and running any wheel over a curb during a maneuver. Failing to yield to a pedestrian in a crosswalk is also treated as an automatic failure in most states.
Traffic violations that trigger immediate failure include running a stop sign or red light, driving on the wrong side of the road, exceeding the speed limit by more than five miles per hour, and failing to wear a seatbelt. Refusing to follow the examiner’s instructions will also end the test on the spot.
The line between a point deduction and an automatic failure usually comes down to whether other people were affected. A wide right turn into an empty lane costs points. A wide right turn that cuts off another car ends the test.
If You Fail
Failing the road test is common and not the end of the process. Most states let you retake it, though the waiting period ranges widely. Some states allow you to reschedule as soon as the next available appointment; others impose a mandatory waiting period of one to six weeks. The examiner’s score sheet, which you’ll receive after the test, tells you exactly which errors cost you points, and that sheet is your study guide for the next attempt.
Retake fees vary. In some states the road test fee is bundled into your initial application, so retakes are free or low-cost. In others, you’ll pay a separate fee each time, typically in the range of $10 to $40. Most states limit the number of attempts, commonly three, before requiring you to restart the application process or complete additional driver education.