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Average Driving Test Pass Rates
In the first three quarters of the 2023/2024 financial year, data from the Department for Transport and the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency shows that only 48.2% of people pass the practical driving test and 45% pass the theory test. This means that driving test takers are more likely to fail their tests than pass them. However, the pass rates change by gender and age. Read below to find driving test pass rate statistics for your demographic. This information can be useful when researching driving lessons and instructors, to see how their pass rate compares to the UK average.
How Many People Pass the Car Driving Test?
By Q3 of 2023/2024 in Great Britain, of the 1,384,678 people who took the practical driving test, only 668,038 passed—a pass rate of just 48.2% for the practical driving test. That means that less than half of people pass the test when they take it. However, the pass rates are different the first time you take the test than on subsequent goes. Around 45% of test takers passed the theory test YTD in 2023/24.
| Car Test Pass Rates | Conducted | Passes | Pass Rate (%) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Theory | 1,928,373 | 867,667 | 45.0% |
| Practical | 1,384,678 | 668,038 | 48.2% |
How Many People Pass the Practical Driving Test for Cars the First Time?
In financial year 2023, 48.3% of test takers pass on the fist attempt (50.2% for men and 46% for women). The pass rate improves very slightly for those taking the test the second time, with 49.6% passing on the second attempt (51.3% for men and 47.8% for women). However, if you haven't passed after two attempts it seems to become harder to become qualified to drive, as the pass rate drops steadily between 3 and 6 attempts. By the 6th attempt, only 41.7% of test takers pass their test.
| Practical Car Test Pass Rates | Conducted | Passes | Pass Rate (%) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st attempt | 810,160 | 391,022 | 48.3% |
| 2nd attempt | 429,144 | 212,967 | 49.6% |
| 3rd attempt | 214,123 | 105,045 | 49.1% |
| 4th attempt | 107,531 | 51,748 | 48.1% |
| 5th attempt | 55,316 | 25,697 | 46.5% |
| 6th attempt | 72,681 | 30,296 | 41.7% |
| Total | 1,688,955 | 816,775 | 48.4% |
How Many Men and Women Pass the Driving Test?
Driving pass rates differ slightly by gender. Men have a slightly higher pass rate than women on the practical test (50.2% vs. 46.4%, respectively), but whatever your gender you have around a one in two chance of passing the practical driving test when you take it.
| Practical Driving Test Pass Rates 2022/23 | Conducted | Passed | Percent |
|---|---|---|---|
| Men | 886,928 | 444,828 | 50.2% |
| Women | 801,673 | 371,806 | 46.4% |
| Average | 1,688,955 | 816,775 | 48.4% |
However, women have better pass rates then men when it comes to the theory test. In 2022/23 women passed at a rate of 45.8% while 42.9% of men passed the theory test when they took it.
| Car Theory Test Pass Rates 2022/23 | Conducted | Passes | Pass Rate (%) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Men | 1,335,069 | 573,059 | 42.9% |
| Women | 1,095,366 | 501,713 | 45.8% |
| Average | 2,430,653 | 1,074,915 | 44.2% |
Driving Test Pass Rates by Age
For the practical test, those aged 17 and under have the best driving test pass rates, with 59% of this age group passing the practical test. By age 18, the pass rate drops to 51.6%. Those aged 59 have the worst pass rate, with only 33.6% of test takers passing (those aged 60+ have an average pass rate of 35.7%).
In terms of the theory test, the age group with the best pass rate is also the 17 and unders, with 48.9% passing. This is also the age group with the largest number of people taking the test.
| Number Taking and Passing the Driving Test by Age | Practical | Theory | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conducted | Passes | Pass Rate (%) | Conducted | Passes | Pass Rate (%) | |
| 17 and under | 264,403 | 155,901 | 59.0% | 603,229 | 295,016 | 48.9% |
| 18 | 240,322 | 123,921 | 51.6% | 251,407 | 99,699 | 39.7% |
| 19 | 150,251 | 74,428 | 49.5% | 162,394 | 66,636 | 41.0% |
| 20 | 97,224 | 46,763 | 48.1% | 121,395 | 51,913 | 42.8% |
| 21 | 77,067 | 36,983 | 48.0% | 101,846 | 45,568 | 45.1% |
| 22 | 67,137 | 32,519 | 48.4% | 88,896 | 40,799 | 44.7% |
| 23 | 60,694 | 29,319 | 48.3% | 79,973 | 37,269 | 45.9% |
| 24 | 56,256 | 26,774 | 47.6% | 76,219 | 35,076 | 46.6% |
| 25 | 52,621 | 24,820 | 47.2% | 72,918 | 33,011 | 46.0% |
| 26 | 48,592 | 22,709 | 46.7% | 68,864 | 30,974 | 45.3% |
| 27 | 44,018 | 20,511 | 46.6% | 63,438 | 28,383 | 45.0% |
| 28 | 41,547 | 19,005 | 45.7% | 59,999 | 26,865 | 44.7% |
| 29 | 39,079 | 17,960 | 46.0% | 57,064 | 25,408 | 44.8% |
| 30 | 37,483 | 16,902 | 45.1% | 54,219 | 24,167 | 44.5% |
| 31 | 36,763 | 16,278 | 44.3% | 50,738 | 22,483 | 45.3% |
| 32 | 36,072 | 15,683 | 43.5% | 49,666 | 21,643 | 44.6% |
| 33 | 34,498 | 14,819 | 43.0% | 46,682 | 20,318 | 44.3% |
| 34 | 32,911 | 14,143 | 43.0% | 44,303 | 19,265 | 43.6% |
| 35 | 30,261 | 12,689 | 41.9% | 40,518 | 17,392 | 43.5% |
| 36 | 27,825 | 11,515 | 41.4% | 38,028 | 16,161 | 43.5% |
| 37 | 26,024 | 10,776 | 41.4% | 35,565 | 14,893 | 42.9% |
| 38 | 23,408 | 9,527 | 40.7% | 31,558 | 13,058 | 42.5% |
| 39 | 21,438 | 8,644 | 40.3% | 28,864 | 11,889 | 41.9% |
| 40 | 19,147 | 7,571 | 39.5% | 25,866 | 10,456 | 41.4% |
| 41 | 16,871 | 6,681 | 39.6% | 22,749 | 9,108 | 41.2% |
| 42 | 15,223 | 5,933 | 39.0% | 21,117 | 8,212 | 43.1% |
| 43 | 13,114 | 4,974 | 37.9% | 18,435 | 6,956 | 40.4% |
| 44 | 10,893 | 4,168 | 38.3% | 15,537 | 5,794 | 40.0% |
| 45 | 9,318 | 3,437 | 36.9% | 13,502 | 4,994 | 38.9% |
| 46 | 8,314 | 3,145 | 37.8% | 11,960 | 4,516 | 37.7% |
| 47 | 7,328 | 2,718 | 37.1% | 10,505 | 3,825 | 37.3% |
| 48 | 6,217 | 2,296 | 36.9% | 9,005 | 3,230 | 37.0% |
| 49 | 5,482 | 1,979 | 36.1% | 7,998 | 2,988 | 37.8% |
| 50 | 4,608 | 1,697 | 36.8% | 6,884 | 2,518 | 36.4% |
| 51 | 3,958 | 1,503 | 38.0% | 5,767 | 2,149 | 35.9% |
| 52 | 3,538 | 1,260 | 35.6% | 5,470 | 1,938 | 37.4% |
| 53 | 3,167 | 1,172 | 37.0% | 4,650 | 1,632 | 38.3% |
| 54 | 2,807 | 1,011 | 36.0% | 3,979 | 1,446 | 36.6% |
| 55 | 2,289 | 786 | 34.3% | 3,323 | 1,225 | 37.3% |
| 56 | 1,906 | 690 | 36.2% | 2,873 | 1,070 | 35.4% |
| 57 | 1,672 | 620 | 37.1% | 2,526 | 956 | 35.1% |
| 58 | 1,401 | 494 | 35.3% | 2,189 | 812 | 36.3% |
| 59 | 1,135 | 381 | 33.6% | 1,745 | 624 | 36.9% |
| 60 and over | 4,635 | 1,657 | 35.7% | 6,790 | 2,580 | 37.2% |
| Total | 1,688,955 | 816,775 | 48.4% | 2,430,653 | 1,074,915 | 37.1% |
