By Evan Reid, Founder of Haul Handbook · Updated Jul 25, 2026
Quick answers for Pennsylvania CDL applicants
Use this page to answer the four searches most CDL applicants make before choosing a school or booking a test: what the state charges, which class of license the work needs, where the skills test is handled, and whether the state adds anything beyond federal ELDT.
- Published fee lines
- 12
- Skills testing
- agency offices or approved third-party testers
- Training rule
- Federal ELDT applies
- License class
- A, B or C, set by the truck
Amounts below come from PennDOT Driver and Vehicle Services, Bureau of Driver Licensing.
Booking points to dmv.pa.gov/exam_scheduling/eslogin.jsp.
State-specific ELDT notes are cited below.
Federal definitions, rendered below with the fee and test facts.
What a Pennsylvania CDL costs
These are the license-side fees PennDOT Driver and Vehicle Services, Bureau of Driver Licensing publishes; training tuition is a separate, school-set cost covered in our CDL training cost guide. A line reading "Not confirmed" means the agency publishes no figure; the note beside it says what the agency does say.
- Commercial learner's permit
- PennDOT publishes no flat commercial learner's permit price. Its Driver Licensing Fee Chart says initial commercial permit and licensing fees vary depending on the specifics of the initial product being applied for, and prices the upgrade paths instead. The chart adds that commercial fees are quoted for a single permit, with $5 for each additional commercial permit, and the application page tells applicants to expect an increased annual license fee, a photo fee, and permit fees for the privileges requested.
- Original commercial driver's license
- There is no single published original-CDL price in Pennsylvania. The fee chart bands the cost by how much time is left on the driver's existing non-commercial license, because a Pennsylvania CDL is issued as an upgrade of that license. Those four bands are itemized under other, and each includes the photo fee for one permit.Term: 4 years, or 2 years for applicants aged 65 and older
Endorsement fees
Endorsements ride on the base license; hazmat also carries a federal background check handled outside the license fee. Our hazmat endorsement guide covers that federal layer.
Scroll sideways to see every column.
Other published fee lines
Scroll sideways to see every column.
Pennsylvania prices commercial licensing by transaction rather than by one original-license fee, so the useful number depends on which door a driver comes through. The fee chart carries no itemized knowledge or skills test fee, and third-party skills testers set their own charges.
Which class of CDL the work needs
The class is set by what you drive, and the definitions are federal: Pennsylvania issues licenses against these three rather than writing its own. Pick the class by the heaviest combination you will actually operate, because the skills test is taken in a vehicle of that class.
- Class A
- Any combination of vehicles with a gross combination weight rating or gross combination weight of 26,001 pounds or more (whichever is greater), inclusive of a towed unit or units with a gross vehicle weight rating or gross vehicle weight of more than 10,000 pounds.
- Class B
- Any single vehicle with a gross vehicle weight rating or gross vehicle weight of 26,001 pounds or more, or such a vehicle towing a vehicle not exceeding 10,000 pounds GVWR or gross vehicle weight.
- Class C
- Any single vehicle or combination that does not meet Class A or B but is designed to transport 16 or more passengers including the driver, or transports placarded hazardous materials or select agents.
- Which class a hotshot needs
- A hotshot combination needs a Class A CDL when the greater of its GCWR or actual combination weight reaches 26,001 pounds and the greater of the towed unit’s rating or actual weight exceeds 10,000 pounds. Check Class B for a heavy single vehicle and Class C for passenger or hazardous-material use. Federal registration requirements depend separately on the operation.
Endorsements ride on whichever class you hold; the hazmat endorsement guide covers the one carriers ask about most, and CDL versus non-CDL driving covers the boundary case of trucks that stay under the threshold. If the plan is a specific vehicle rather than a license, hotshot trucking and the box truck business guide walk what each one requires end to end.
Who gives the skills test in Pennsylvania
States split between running CDL skills tests themselves and certifying third-party testers; it changes where you book and who you pay.
- Testing model
- PennDOT put a modernized CDL skills test in place on August 28, 2023, given at PennDOT branch offices statewide and through third-party testing programs. The test runs in three parts: a vehicle inspection, a control skills test made up of backing maneuvers, and an on-road skills test. PennDOT authorizes the third-party testers under 49 CFR 383.75, and a tester may be an agency of Pennsylvania or another state, a motor carrier, a private driver training facility or other private organization, or a local government body.
- Scheduling
- Skills testing cannot be taken until 15 days after the knowledge testing is passed and a permit is issued, though PennDOT lets applicants book the appointment as soon as the knowledge test is passed, online or by phone. dmv.pa.gov/exam_scheduling/eslogin.jsp
- Before you apply
- The Pennsylvania sequence has its own steps around the federal frame. An applicant holds a Pennsylvania non-commercial license first, self-certifies the category of operation on Form DL-11CD, and files the Commercial Learner's Permit Application, Form DL-31CD. Knowledge testing comes before any practice driving, and the knowledge test authorization is valid for one year with three attempts on that authorization. Restriction K limits a driver to intrastate commerce only, which matters in a state where intrastate hauling for compensation also needs a PUC certificate.
Every applicant also needs a current medical certificate; our DOT physical guide covers the exam that produces it. Not sure your truck even needs a CDL? Start with CDL vs non-CDL.
Plan your Pennsylvania CDL application
Choose the vehicle class before comparing training quotes. The rated and actual weight tests explain how the truck and trailer affect Class A or B; passenger and hazardous-material operations need their own check.
- Read the official Pennsylvania manual for the class and endorsements you intend to test for.
- Match the license class to the truck before booking training, because the skills test is taken in a vehicle of that class.
- Separate the state license and test fees from the school’s tuition, equipment and retest charges.
- Use the testing-provider details to confirm where the skills test is administered.
- Follow the national permit, training and CDL sequence, then confirm the state’s current appointment instructions with its agency.
The federal training rule, then Pennsylvania's position
Entry-level driver training (ELDT) is federal: it applies in every state before the tests it gates, and the training must come from a provider on FMCSA's registry. The full walkthrough lives in our how to get a CDL guide.
- Who must train
- First-time Class A or Class B applicants; Class B holders upgrading to Class A; First-time S, P, or H endorsement applicants
- Registry requirement
- Entry-level driver training means training received from an entity listed on FMCSA's Training Provider Registry, completed before taking the CDL skills test for a first or upgraded Class A or Class B CDL, before the skills test for a first P or S endorsement, or before the knowledge test for a first H endorsement. You must complete training with a provider listed on the registry.
- States may add more
- States with training requirements that exceed the federal minimum standard may prohibit you from taking the skills test, or the knowledge test for the H endorsement, until you meet their state requirements as well as the federal ones. Federal rules also allow you to receive training and take the CDL skills test in a state other than the state you are licensed in.
PennDOT restates the federal entry-level driver training rule without adding to it. New drivers must complete ELDT when getting a CDL or a new endorsement for the first time, and PennDOT states the training must be completed before the skills test. Its fact sheet maps the requirement the way the federal rule does: initial and upgrade training for Class A and Class B, initial training only for the passenger, school bus and hazardous materials endorsements, and none for Class C, doubles and triples, tank, or restriction removals.
The official manual and where this fits
The knowledge tests come straight from the state's own manual, so study the agency's current edition: Pennsylvania Commercial Driver's Manual (PUB 223). The CDL licenses you as a driver; if the plan is your own trucks and your own freight, the business side runs on its own track through start a trucking company in Pennsylvania.
If you searched for Pennsylvania CDL requirements, go here next
Still deciding if you need a CDL?
Start with the vehicle weight and use case. The national guide explains the CDL threshold before you pay for a permit or training.
Compare CDL vs non-CDLReady to drive under your own authority?
The CDL is the driver credential. Operating authority, IRP, IFTA, insurance, and permits are the business credential stack.
See the Pennsylvania startup sequence