Class B CDL training

What a Class B CDL lets you drive

FMCSA describes Class B as any single vehicle with a gross vehicle weight rating or gross vehicle weight of 26,001 pounds or more, or any such vehicle towing a vehicle that does not exceed 10,000 pounds. A combination is Class A only when its combined rating or actual weight, whichever is greater, is 26,001 pounds or more and the towed unit is over 10,000 pounds. A heavier trailer alone does not make a lighter combination Class A.

Source: FMCSA driver overview, page updated February 4, 2026. See also 49 CFR 383.91.

A heavy straight truck is the usual way to picture Class B. A bus is Class B only when it meets that weight rule. A smaller vehicle designed to carry 16 or more people, including the driver, can fall under Class C instead. Hazardous-materials placarding can also put a vehicle that is outside Class A and Class B into Class C. Read the ratings and the cargo. Do not decide from the body style.

Passenger work still needs the P endorsement, school-bus work needs both the P and S endorsements, and, for a first-time applicant, the applicable entry-level training. FMCSA says a Class B holder who tests for passenger or school bus in a Class C vehicle gets an N restriction and may only operate Class C passenger vehicles or school buses. Air-brake and automatic-transmission restrictions can apply here too. The endorsement guide separates those letters from the license class. Tank and hazardous-materials rules are in the tanker and hazmat guides.

If the job is a tractor-trailer, use Class A CDL training and the Class A vs Class B comparison.

What FMCSA requires for a first Class B CDL

The state issues the license. For a first Class B CDL, FMCSA’s federal baseline matches the Class A sequence, with a different vehicle group:

1. Use your state’s current CDL manual and confirm which knowledge tests apply. Combination-vehicle knowledge is part of a Class A path, not an automatic Class B test.
2. Get a commercial learner’s permit and practice only with the required qualified CDL holder.
3. Finish entry-level driver training with a registered provider before the skills test if you are getting a Class B CDL for the first time and your permit was issued on or after February 7, 2022. Theory does not have to be finished before the permit application under the federal rule. States may require more.
4. Hold the permit at least 14 days, then pass the vehicle inspection, basic controls and road test in a representative vehicle.

Sources: FMCSA, how to get a CDL, updated December 8, 2025; 49 CFR 383.25; FMCSA driver overview.

Knowledge tests require at least 80 percent under 49 CFR 383.135. 49 CFR 391.11(b)(1) sets 21 as the minimum age to drive a commercial motor vehicle for a motor carrier covered by that part. The state decides the age for the license you are applying for. Start with the permit guide and the general knowledge and air brakes practice sets.

How long Class B training takes

There is no federal hour minimum for entry-level driver training. The 14-day permit period is a waiting rule, not the length of school. These two published Class B schedules were checked on October 28, 2026. Locations whose registry record lists theory and not behind-the-wheel are on the online training guide. That list does not say the theory is taught online.

Twenty-eight hours and ninety hours are not interchangeable courses. Ask what share of the hours you spend driving, and whether a passenger or school-bus endorsement is included. The timeline guide explains how to compare calendars that are not like-for-like.

Published Class B charges, not a national range

FMCSA does not publish tuition. The charges below are the schools’ own standard figures as of October 28, 2026. The distance between $1,800 and $7,500 is not a market range you can shop against. It is two named programs with different lengths.

Build the rest of the budget with the cost guide. If an employer offers to pay, read carrier-paid training before you sign.

Pay figures that are easy to misread

BLS does not report wages for Class B license holders. Bus driving is one occupation where a Class B CDL is sometimes required, and sometimes is not, because the vehicle class depends on weight. For May 2025, BLS reports these medians:

Source: BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook, bus drivers, checked October 28, 2026. School bus drivers’ lowest 10 percent earned less than $29,240, and the highest 10 percent earned more than $65,730. Transit and intercity bus drivers’ lowest 10 percent earned less than $40,030, and the highest 10 percent earned more than $84,700.

Heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers, the occupation closer to Class A combination work, had a May 2025 median of $58,640. That figure is explained on the Class A page and in the pay-offer guide. Do not use either median as the wage for a straight-truck job you have not been offered.

Find a school, a city page or a practice set

Filter the directory for Class B, then confirm the vehicle, endorsements and price. City pages below show listed training locations. They are starting points, not a claim that each city is the best place to train.