All 50 states + DC · Updated October 2026

Driving laws by state, in plain English

Driving laws by state for speed limits, phone use, car insurance, car tax, inspections, teen licenses and motorcycles. Pick your state for a one-page answer, or compare the whole country on the map.

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Driving laws

Speed limits The highest posted limits on interstates and highways. See all states → Cell phone and texting laws Where hand-held phones and texting are banned. See all states → Driving age and teen license rules Learner's permit, provisional license and full-license ages. See all states →

Owning a car

Minimum car insurance requirements The minimum liability coverage every driver needs. See all states → Car sales tax What you pay in tax when you buy a car. See all states → Vehicle inspection and emissions testing Safety inspections and emissions (smog) tests. See all states → Moving to a new state: license and registration deadlines Deadlines for a new license and registration after moving. See all states →

Motorcycle

Motorcycle helmet laws Who has to wear a motorcycle helmet, state by state. See all states → Lane splitting laws Where riders may split or filter between lanes. See all states →

Map of driving laws by state

Cell phone and texting laws map of the United States Alabama: Hands-free law AL Alaska: Texting ban only AK Arizona: Hands-free law AZ Arkansas: Texting ban only AR California: Hands-free law CA Colorado: Hands-free law CO Connecticut: Hands-free law CT Delaware: Hands-free law DE District of Columbia: Hands-free law DC Florida: Texting ban only FL Georgia: Hands-free law GA Hawaii: Hands-free law HI Idaho: Hands-free law ID Illinois: Hands-free law IL Indiana: Hands-free law IN Iowa: Hands-free law IA Kansas: Texting ban only KS Kentucky: Texting ban only KY Louisiana: Hands-free law LA Maine: Hands-free law ME Maryland: Hands-free law MD Massachusetts: Hands-free law MA Michigan: Hands-free law MI Minnesota: Hands-free law MN Mississippi: Texting ban only MS Missouri: Hands-free law MO Montana: No texting ban MT Nebraska: Texting ban only NE Nevada: Hands-free law NV New Hampshire: Hands-free law NH New Jersey: Hands-free law NJ New Mexico: Texting ban only NM New York: Hands-free law NY North Carolina: Texting ban only NC North Dakota: Texting ban only ND Ohio: Hands-free law OH Oklahoma: Texting ban only OK Oregon: Hands-free law OR Pennsylvania: Hands-free law PA Rhode Island: Hands-free law RI South Carolina: Hands-free law SC South Dakota: Texting ban only SD Tennessee: Hands-free law TN Texas: Texting ban only TX Utah: Texting ban only UT Vermont: Hands-free law VT Virginia: Hands-free law VA Washington: Hands-free law WA West Virginia: Hands-free law WV Wisconsin: Texting ban only WI Wyoming: Texting ban only WY
Hands-free law (34) Texting ban only (16) No texting ban (1)

Cell phone and texting laws in every state →

Driving age and teen license rules map of the United States Alabama: Permit at 15 AL Alaska: Permit at 14 AK Arizona: Permit at 15 AZ Arkansas: Permit at 14 AR California: Permit at 15 CA Colorado: Permit at 15 CO Connecticut: Permit at 16 CT Delaware: Permit at 16 DE District of Columbia: Permit at 16 DC Florida: Permit at 15 FL Georgia: Permit at 15 GA Hawaii: Permit at 15 HI Idaho: Permit at 14 ID Illinois: Permit at 15 IL Indiana: Permit at 15 IN Iowa: Permit at 14 IA Kansas: Permit at 14 KS Kentucky: Permit at 15 KY Louisiana: Permit at 15 LA Maine: Permit at 15 ME Maryland: Permit at 15 MD Massachusetts: Permit at 16 MA Michigan: Permit at 14 MI Minnesota: Permit at 15 MN Mississippi: Permit at 15 MS Missouri: Permit at 15 MO Montana: Permit at 14 MT Nebraska: Permit at 15 NE Nevada: Permit at 15 NV New Hampshire: Permit at 15 NH New Jersey: Permit at 16 NJ New Mexico: Permit at 15 NM New York: Permit at 16 NY North Carolina: Permit at 15 NC North Dakota: Permit at 14 ND Ohio: Permit at 15 OH Oklahoma: Permit at 15 OK Oregon: Permit at 15 OR Pennsylvania: Permit at 16 PA Rhode Island: Permit at 16 RI South Carolina: Permit at 15 SC South Dakota: Permit at 14 SD Tennessee: Permit at 15 TN Texas: Permit at 15 TX Utah: Permit at 15 UT Vermont: Permit at 15 VT Virginia: Permit at 15 VA Washington: Permit at 15 WA West Virginia: Permit at 15 WV Wisconsin: Permit at 15 WI Wyoming: Permit at 15 WY
Permit at 14 (9) Permit at 15 (34) Permit at 16 (8)

Driving age and teen license rules in every state →

Vehicle inspection and emissions testing map of the United States Alabama: No regular inspection AL Alaska: No regular inspection AK Arizona: Emissions only AZ Arkansas: No regular inspection AR California: Emissions only CA Colorado: Emissions only CO Connecticut: Emissions only CT Delaware: Safety + emissions DE District of Columbia: Emissions only DC Florida: No regular inspection FL Georgia: Emissions only GA Hawaii: Safety only HI Idaho: No regular inspection ID Illinois: Emissions only IL Indiana: Emissions only IN Iowa: No regular inspection IA Kansas: No regular inspection KS Kentucky: No regular inspection KY Louisiana: Safety + emissions LA Maine: Safety + emissions ME Maryland: Emissions only MD Massachusetts: Safety + emissions MA Michigan: No regular inspection MI Minnesota: No regular inspection MN Mississippi: No regular inspection MS Missouri: Safety + emissions MO Montana: No regular inspection MT Nebraska: No regular inspection NE Nevada: Emissions only NV New Hampshire: No regular inspection NH New Jersey: Emissions only NJ New Mexico: Emissions only NM New York: Safety + emissions NY North Carolina: Safety + emissions NC North Dakota: No regular inspection ND Ohio: Emissions only OH Oklahoma: No regular inspection OK Oregon: Emissions only OR Pennsylvania: Safety + emissions PA Rhode Island: Safety + emissions RI South Carolina: No regular inspection SC South Dakota: No regular inspection SD Tennessee: No regular inspection TN Texas: Emissions only TX Utah: Emissions only UT Vermont: Safety + emissions VT Virginia: Safety + emissions VA Washington: No regular inspection WA West Virginia: Safety only WV Wisconsin: Emissions only WI Wyoming: No regular inspection WY
Safety + emissions (11) Safety only (2) Emissions only (17) No regular inspection (21)

Vehicle inspection and emissions testing in every state →

Lane splitting laws map of the United States Alabama: Not allowed AL Alaska: Not allowed AK Arizona: Filtering only AZ Arkansas: Not allowed AR California: Lane splitting legal CA Colorado: Filtering only CO Connecticut: Not allowed CT Delaware: Not allowed DE District of Columbia: Not allowed DC Florida: Not allowed FL Georgia: Not allowed GA Hawaii: Not allowed HI Idaho: Not allowed ID Illinois: Not allowed IL Indiana: Not allowed IN Iowa: Not allowed IA Kansas: Not allowed KS Kentucky: Not allowed KY Louisiana: Not allowed LA Maine: Not allowed ME Maryland: Not allowed MD Massachusetts: Not allowed MA Michigan: Not allowed MI Minnesota: Splitting with limits MN Mississippi: Not allowed MS Missouri: Not allowed MO Montana: Filtering only MT Nebraska: Not allowed NE Nevada: Not allowed NV New Hampshire: Not allowed NH New Jersey: Not allowed NJ New Mexico: Not allowed NM New York: Not allowed NY North Carolina: Not allowed NC North Dakota: Not allowed ND Ohio: Not allowed OH Oklahoma: Not allowed OK Oregon: Not allowed OR Pennsylvania: Not allowed PA Rhode Island: Not allowed RI South Carolina: Not allowed SC South Dakota: Not allowed SD Tennessee: Not allowed TN Texas: Not allowed TX Utah: Filtering only UT Vermont: Not allowed VT Virginia: Not allowed VA Washington: Not allowed WA West Virginia: Not allowed WV Wisconsin: Not allowed WI Wyoming: Not allowed WY
Lane splitting legal (1) Splitting with limits (1) Filtering only (4) Not allowed (45)

Lane splitting laws in every state →

Recent changes to driving laws by state

  • Jun 2026 Louisiana: Law signed to end annual "brake tag" inspections on January 1, 2027.
  • Jan 2026 Washington: New 8% luxury tax on the part of a vehicle's value above $100,000.
  • Jan 2026 New Jersey: Minimum car insurance rose to 35/70/25.
  • Jan 2026 Hawaii: Minimum car insurance rose to 40/80/20.
  • Jan 2026 New Hampshire: Mandatory annual inspections ended (still being challenged in court).
  • Oct 2025 Delaware: Vehicle document fee rose from 4.25% to 5.25%.
  • Sep 2025 South Carolina: Hands-free law took effect for all drivers.
  • Aug 2025 Missouri: Hands-free law took effect for all drivers.
  • Jul 2025 Minnesota: Lane splitting became legal at up to 25 mph.
  • Jul 2025 North Carolina: Minimums rose to 50/100/50, and UIM became mandatory.
  • Jun 2025 Pennsylvania: Hands-free law (Paul Miller's Law) took effect.
  • Jan 2025 Texas: Safety inspections ended for passenger cars.
  • Jan 2025 California: Minimums doubled to 30/60/15.

Popular questions

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Driving laws by state at a glance

Driving laws by state differ more than most people expect. 33 states and DC ban holding a phone while driving, 9 states post speed limits of 80 mph or more, 17 states and DC require a helmet for every motorcycle rider, and 3 states charge no state tax on a car purchase.

That is why a road trip, a move or a car purchase across a state line can change what is legal and what you pay. Our guides to driving laws by state cover nine topics for all 50 states and the District of Columbia, and each page shows the date the rules were last checked.

How to use these driving laws by state

Pick your state in the box at the top for a one-page summary, open a topic for a national map and a sortable table, or compare two neighboring states before you cross the border. Every page in our driving laws by state guide links to the official agency so you can confirm the details, and the free car sales tax calculator estimates what you will pay when you buy a car.

Why trust our driving laws by state?

Road rules change every year, and official sites spread them across dozens of pages. We collect the driving laws by state that drivers and riders search for most, check them against state law and trusted sources, and show the date each one was last reviewed. How we research.