Only 47.6% Pass Nebraska’s Motorcycle Knowledge Test: 6 Years of Official Data

Over the last six years, more than three in four riders passed the motorcycle riding test. Fewer than one in two passed the written knowledge test. This report breaks down the state’s official motorcycle test data from 2020 to 2025, shows where riders get stopped, and explains how to prepare for the test that most of them fail.

Data source: Official Nebraska state records for non-commercial (Class M) motorcycle tests, 2020 to 2025. The records cover both written knowledge tests and on-cycle skills (drive) tests. They do not separate first-time takers from people retaking a test, and they count only tests taken at the DMV..

Written Test vs. Riding Test: Nebraska’s Motorcycle Pass Rates Compared

From 2020 to 2025, 77.7% of riders passed Nebraska’s motorcycle skills test. That is the real, on-cycle exam, where an examiner watches them ride. In the same six years, just 47.6% passed the written knowledge test. So more than three in four riders cleared the riding test, but just under half cleared the written one. That is a gap of about 30 percentage points, running in the direction almost nobody expects.

Nebraska motorcycle pass rates, 2020 to 2025:

How Many People Take Nebraska’s Motorcycle Tests?

Nebraska ran far more written tests than riding tests over this period. Both have grown.

On the written side, the state gave 20,086 motorcycle knowledge tests between 2020 and 2025. That is about 3,350 a year. The yearly total rose 22% over that time, from 2,819 in 2020 to 3,441 in 2025.

On the riding side, the state gave 6,605 motorcycle skills tests, or about 1,100 a year. That total grew 9%, from 969 in 2020 to 1,055 in 2025.

Nebraska Motorcycle Written (Knowledge) Test Pass Rates, Year by Year

The written test produces the most failures. In five of the last six years, more Nebraskans failed it than passed it.

Only once, in 2021, did the pass rate tip above half, and only just, at 50.1%. Every other year sat below 50%, with the lowest at 45.7% in 2023. In 2025, 1,860 written tests ended in failure against 1,581 passes. That is more fails than passes, again. Across the full six years, 10,533 written tests were failed.

Nebraska Motorcycle Riding (Skills) Test Pass Rates, Year by Year

Most riders pass the riding test, though the pass rate has moved down over the period.

The pass rate reached 82.8% in 2021, then fell for three years in a row to 74.1% in 2024, landing at 74.4% in 2025. Over the same period, the fail rate went from about 1 in 6 in 2021 to about 1 in 4 in 2025.

What Nebraska’s Motorcycle Written Test Asks

The written test has 25 multiple-choice questions, and a rider needs at least 20 correct to pass, an 80% score. Every question comes from the Nebraska Motorcycle Operator Manual and covers road rules, traffic signs, and safe-riding practices.

Riders Can Skip Both Tests: Here’s How

Nebraska gives riders a second route to a license that many do not know about. A rider who completes an approved Motorcycle Safety Foundation course, the Basic RiderCourse (BRC) or Basic RiderCourse 2 (BRC2), can have the DMV waive both the written and the skills test, as long as the course was finished within roughly the past two years.

This matters for the numbers above. Everyone in this dataset chose to test at the DMV instead of using the waiver. The course is a second path, and it puts riders on a bike with an instructor to build real riding skills, not just test answers. It is worth weighing before booking a DMV appointment.

What’s the Best App to Prepare for the Nebraska Motorcycle Written Test?

Most motorcycle study tools are just the manual in a different font. The written test has by far the lower pass rate of the two, and Zutobi is built for that test.

Its Nebraska motorcycle course is designed around the real exam. The practice tests match the official format, so riders arrive familiar with what the test looks like. Every question comes with an explanation, so riders learn the reasoning behind each rule instead of memorizing an answer key.

The material is broken into short, visual, game-like lessons built to stick better than a wall of text, which helps with recall on a closed-book test. According to Zutobi, its users have a 95.8% pass rate on their first try.

FAQ

What is the pass rate for the Nebraska motorcycle written test?

From 2020 to 2025, 47.6% of Nebraska motorcycle written (knowledge) tests ended in a pass, based on official state records covering 20,086 tests. That means more than half, 52.4%, were failed. In 2025, the pass rate was 45.9%.

What is the pass rate for the Nebraska motorcycle riding (skills) test?

From 2020 to 2025, 77.7% of on-cycle skills tests ended in a pass, with a fail rate of 22.3%, across 6,605 tests. More than three in four riders pass.

Do more people fail the written test or the riding test in Nebraska?

The written test, by a wide margin. Over 2020 to 2025, 47.6% passed the written test compared with 77.7% for the riding test, a gap of about 30 points. In five of those six years, more written tests were failed than passed.

How many questions are on the Nebraska motorcycle written test, and what is the passing score?

The written test has 25 multiple-choice questions drawn from the Nebraska Motorcycle Operator Manual. A rider needs at least 20 correct, an 80% score, to pass. It is closed-book.

Have Nebraska motorcycle pass rates changed over time?

Yes. The written test’s pass rate went from its 2021 high of 50.1% to 45.9% in 2025. The riding test’s pass rate went from 82.8% to 74.4% over the same period. The data shows the change in the numbers, but does not explain it.

What is the best way to prepare for the Nebraska motorcycle written test?

With Zutobi. It’s a driver’s-ed app with a dedicated Nebraska motorcycle course built around the written knowledge test. It offers Nebraska-specific practice tests, an explanation for every question so riders learn the reasoning, and short, visual, game-style lessons built to make the material stick. According to Zutobi, its users have a 95.8% first-try pass rate.