What the G1 knowledge test looks like
To get your first Ontario driver's licence, you must be at least 16, pass a vision test and pass a knowledge test on the rules of the road and traffic signs. Pass both and you get a G1 licence, the first step of Ontario's graduated licensing system. You write the test at a DriveTest centre, where no appointment is needed for the knowledge test.
| Part of the test | What to expect |
|---|---|
| Format | Multiple choice, with four answer choices per question, as in the handbook's own sample questions |
| Parts | A road signs part and a rules of the road part |
| Pass mark | 80% |
| Time limit | None. DriveTest says most people take 20 to 30 minutes |
| Results | Marked at the centre, so you get your result right away |
| What to bring | Two pieces of identification, money for the test fee, and glasses or contacts if you need them to drive |
DriveTest has said that if you fail, you can pay and try again, that a result stays valid for one year, and that within that year you only redo the parts you did not pass. The official pages we checked do not give an exact question count. The test is widely described as 40 questions, 20 on signs and 20 on rules, which at 80% means 16 correct in each part. Our untimed simulation uses that layout. Check DriveTest before your visit in case anything has changed.
How our sign questions work
On the real test, the signs part shows pictures of signs. Our site does not use images, so every sign question describes the sign in words, using the shape, colour, symbol or message the handbook gives: for example, "an eight-sided sign with a red background and white letters" or "a yellow diamond warning sign with a checkerboard border". Learning signs this way builds the habit the test rewards: recognizing a sign by its shape and colour first, then its symbol. We also cover traffic lights, pedestrian signals and pavement markings in this part, because the handbook groups them with signs.
What the rules part covers
The handbook lists the topics the written test may ask about, including seatbelts, emergency vehicles, headlights, speed limits, freeways, streetcars and school buses, licence suspensions, the demerit point system, passing, collision reporting and sharing the road. Our 114 rules questions follow those topics.
- G1 conditions. Zero blood alcohol, no driving between midnight and 5 a.m., a fully licensed accompanying driver with at least four years of experience in the front seat, a working seatbelt for everyone, and no 400-series highways posted over 80 km/h unless your accompanying driver is a driving instructor.
- Demerit points. As a G1 or G2 driver, nine points in two years means a 60-day suspension. Know the big ones: seven points for leaving the scene of a collision and six for failing to stop for a school bus. Hand-held phone use is three points for fully licensed drivers, but G1 and G2 drivers get a 30-day licence suspension instead on a first conviction.
- Numbers that come up a lot. 50 km/h in towns where no limit is posted, a two-second following distance, 20 metres behind a stopped school bus, 5 metres from a railway crossing, 150 metres for dimming your high beams, and $5,000 for reporting a collision to police.
- Right-of-way. Who goes first at an all-way stop, an uncontrolled intersection, a pedestrian crossover and a roundabout.
How to prepare
Read the Official MTO Driver's Handbook first. The online version is free, and the test questions are based on it. Then practise one part at a time: use section practice on road signs until you score well above 80%, then do the same for the rules. Finish with full simulations that keep the two parts separate, so you can see whether you would clear 80% in each part. Read the explanation after every question, including the ones you got right, because many items test an exact number from the handbook.
Aptitude Tests Canada is an independent practice platform. We are not affiliated with or endorsed by the Ministry of Transportation, DriveTest or the Government of Ontario. Our questions are original practice questions written from the public handbook, not real test questions.
Three worked examples
One question from different sections of the full pack, with the answer and explanation.
Which description matches a yield sign in Ontario?
- A circle with a yellow background and a black border
- An eight-sided sign with a white background and red letters
- A diamond with an orange background and black letters
- A triangle with a white background and a red border
What blood-alcohol level must a G1 driver have while driving?
- Less than .05
- Zero
- Less than .08
- Less than .02